Neuroscience at AHN Saint Vincent: Advanced Treatments and Collaborative Care Closer to Home

Author(s):

Key Takeaways

AHN Saint Vincent Hospital offers advanced neurological care locally, reducing travel needs for Erie region patients.
The program provides a wide range of treatments, including spinal surgeries, O-arm technology, and BOTOX for various conditions.
Patient wait times are significantly reduced, with same-day appointments available for urgent issues like back pain.
Collaboration with specialists across subspecialties ensures comprehensive care, with connections to Allegheny General Hospital for specialized treatments.

AHN Saint Vincent Hospital offers advanced neurological care, reducing wait times and providing local access to specialized treatments for various conditions.

Nicholas Todhunter, DO

The neuroscience program at AHN Saint Vincent Hospital plays a vital role in providing advanced neurological care to patients in the Erie region — reducing the need to travel to a major city for many conditions. Without this local access, many would face delays in receiving life-saving or quality-of-life-enhancing treatment.

The multidisciplinary neuroscience team at SVH diagnoses and treats a wide range of conditions — from migraines, epilepsy, and neuromuscular disorders to Parkinson disease, dementia, and Alzheimer disease. By offering advanced tools and techniques locally, AHN ensures patients receive leading-edge care with greater efficiency and less disruption.

Key offerings include:

Spinal surgeries& treatments for herniated discs, spinal stenosis, and spondylolisthesis, among other disorders.
O-arm^TM technology for real-time, intraoperative CT guidance during spine and cranial procedures.
StealthStation^TMnavigation to enhance precision in brain tumor resections.
Neuromuscular ultrasound for identifying and treating nerve and muscle disorders.
Electromyography (EMG) to evaluate nerve injuries, radiculopathy, and peripheral neuropathy.
BOTOX^Ò treatment to mitigate symptoms of migraines, spasticity, dystonia, and other conditions.

AHN neurologist Nicholas Todhunter, DO, says in addition to robust treatment options, SVH significantly shortens patient wait times. While wait times at other institutions may be 4-6 months, Saint Vincent has been able to cut this time in half in many instances, even offering same-day appointments for urgent concerns like back pain.

Collaborative teamwork across subspecialties

To meet patients’ complex needs and determine the most effective treatment plans, AHN neurologists collaborate closely with a wide range of specialists, including those in family medicine, pulmonology, rheumatology, and beyond. Saint Vincent’s neuroscience team also has strong connections to specialists at Allegheny General Hospital — which serves as the central hub for the AHN Neuroscience Institute.

While many AHN Neuroscience Institute offerings extend to AHN patients in Erie, patients may also be referred to Allegheny General for things like management of newer therapies for Alzheimer disease, amyloid testing and imaging, specialized treatment of movement disorders like Parkinson disease, single fiber EMG testing for symptoms of Myasthenia Gravis (MG), and testing for Dysautonomia.

"The entire AHN system is very interconnected," said Dr. Todhunter. "The wide geographical reach of these leading-edge treatments gives patients the flexibility to receive care in a way that works best for them and their health."

How to refer

To refer your Erie patients to the neuroscience program at AHN Saint Vincent Hospital for comprehensive neurological care, call 814-452-7575.