COVID-19 Neurosurgical Information Hub

CNS Recorded Webinars Related to COVID-19

• UCSF’s Experience with COVID-19 in the Midst of the California Shelter-in-place Order, Complimentary Version | Purchase CME Version
• Critical Care for the Neurosurgeon in the COVID Era, Complimentary Version | Purchase CME Version
• COVID-19 Critical Care Update for Neurological Surgeons: Hemodynamics, Complimentary Version | Purchase CME Version
• Best Practices for NIR/Neurosurgical Care During COVID-19 Pandemic, Complimentary Version | Purchase CME Version
  
  

View Presidents' Message

View Statement Regarding Current Crisis

From the Joint Neurotrauma Section

A Neurosurgeon’s Guide to Pulmonary Critical Care for COVID-19
PDF | PowerPoint
Alan Hoffer, MD, Chair, Critical Care Committee
The protocols discussed in this presentation are from the Mission: Possible program at University Hospitals of Cleveland, based on guidelines and recommendations from several medical societies and the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). Please check with your own hospital or institution to see if there is any variation from these protocols before implementing them in your own practice. 

A Neurosurgeon’s Guide to Cardiovascular and Renal Critical Care for COVID 19
PDF | PowerPoint
Alan Hoffer, MD, Chair, Critical Care Committee
Rana Hejal, MD, Medical Director, Medical Intensive Care Unit

Recommendations on Elective Surgery 

• CMS Adult Elective Surgery and Procedures Recommendations
• ACS Recommendations for Management of Elective Surgical Procedures

Government Information and Resources 

• Federal Government COVID-19 Hub
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
• Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
• Small Business Administration
• Department of Labor
• Department of State
• Department of Defense
• Environmental Protection Agency
• HHS Office of Inspector General
• Project N95 Website
• AMA Partners With project N95 to Make PPE Available to AMA Members
• Medicaid Federal Disaster Resources
  
  

COVID-19 Neurosurgery Perspectives:

• Letter: The Coronavirus Disease 2019 Global Pandemic: A Neurosurgical Treatment Algorithm
• Letter: Academic Neurosurgery Department Response to COVID-19 Pandemic: The University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Hospital Model
• Letter: Strategies for Prevention and Control of 2019 Novel Coronavirus Infection Among Medical Staff
• Letter: Neurosurgical Triage in the Pandemic Era
• Letter: Adaptation Under Fire: Two Harvard Neurosurgical Services During the COVID-19 Pandemic
• Letter: Rongeurs, Neurosurgeons, and COVID-19: How Do We Protect Health Care Personnel During Neurosurgical Operations in the Midst of Aerosol-Generation From High-Speed Drills?
• In Reply: Precautions for Endoscopic Transnasal Skull Base Surgery During the COVID-19 Pandemic
• A COVID-19 Patient Who Underwent Endonasal Endoscopic Pituitary Adenoma Resection: A Case Report
• Letter: Precautions for Endoscopic Transnasal Skull Base Surgery During the COVID-19 Pandemic
• Letter: Neurosurgery and Coronavirus (COVID-19) Epidemic: Doing our Part
• Letter: Collateral Pandemic in Face of the Present COVID-19 Pandemic: A Neurosurgical Perspective
• Letter: COVID-19 Infection Affects Surgical Outcome of Chronic Subdural Hematoma
• Letter: Transmission of COVID-19 During Neurosurgical Procedures—Some Thoughts From the United Kingdom
• Letter: Global Neurosurgery
• In Reply: Precautions for Endoscopic Transnasal Skull Base Surgery During the COVID-19 Pandemic
• Letter: For Whom the Bell Tolls: Overcoming the Challenges of the COVID Pandemic as a Residency Program
• Letter: Maintaining Neurosurgical Resident Education and Safety During the COVID-19 Pandemic
• Letter: Telemedicine in Neurosurgery—A Timely Review
• Letter: The Risk of COVID-19 Infection During Neurosurgical Procedures: A Review of Severe Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) Modes of Transmission and Proposed Neurosurgery-Specific Measures for Mitigation
• Letter: COVID-19 Pandemic: Safety Precautions for Stereotactic Radiosurgery
• Letter: Neurosurgical Management of Spinal Pathology Via Telemedicine During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Early Experience and Unique Challenges
• Letter: Surgical Management of Brain Tumor Patients in the COVID-19 Era
• Letter: The Use of Absorbable Sutures in Neurosurgical Procedures in the Time of COVID-19
• Letter: Back Pain and Accesses to Emergency Departments During COVID-19 Lockdown in Italy
• Letter: COVID-19 Impact on the Medical Student Path to Neurosurgery
• Letter: Safety Instructions for Neurosurgeons During COVID-19 Pandemic Based on Recent Knowledge and Experience
• Letter: Neurosurgical Patients’ Management During the COVID-19 Pandemic—An Institutional Report From an African Neurosurgical Center
• Letter: Considerations for Performing Emergent Neurointerventional Procedures in a COVID-19 Environment
• Letter: Neurological Implications of COVID-19 and Lessons Learned From Prior Epidemics and Pandemics
• Letter: The Resiliency of the Neurosurgeon in the Midst of COVID-19 Pandemic Storm: The Italian Experience From the Frontline
• Letter: News From the COVID-19 Front Lines: How Neurosurgeons Are Contributing
• Letter: Evaluation and Surgical Treatment of Functional Neurosurgery Patients With Implanted Deep Brain Stimulation and Vagus Nerve Stimulation Pulse Generators During the COVID-19 Pandemic
• Letter: Emergency Response Plan During the COVID-19 Pandemic: The University of Alabama at Birmingham Experience
• Letter: Anosmia in COVID-19: Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Through the Nasoliary Epithelium and a Possible Spreading Way to the Central Nervous System—A Purpose to Study
• Letter: Approaches to Mitigate Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Neurosurgical Residency Application Cycle
• Letter: “The Most Interesting Man in the World” – A Tribute to Dr James Tait Goodrich
• Letter: Safety Considerations for Neurosurgical Procedures During the COVID-19 Pandemic
• In Reply: The Coronavirus Disease 2019 Global Pandemic: A Neurosurgical Treatment Algorithm
• Letter: Preliminary National Survey Results Evaluating the Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Medical Students Pursuing Careers in Neurosurgery
• Letter: Implementation of a Neurosurgery Telehealth Program Amid the COVID-19 Crisis—Challenges, Lessons Learned, and a Way Forward
• In Reply: Rongeurs, Neurosurgeons, and COVID-19: How Do We Protect Health Care Personnel During Neurosurgical Operations in the Midst of Aerosol-Generation From High-Speed Drills?
• In Reply: COVID-19 Infection Affects Surgical Outcome of Chronic Subdural Hematoma
• Letter: The Impact of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Pandemic on Neurosurgeons Worldwide
• Letter: Neurosurgery Residency in the COVID-19 Era: Experiences and Insights From Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
• In Reply: Precautions for Endoscopic Transnasal Skull Base Surgery During the COVID-19 Pandemic
• Neurologically Devastating Intraparenchymal Hemorrhage in COVID-19 Patients on Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation: A Case Series
• Letter: Using Continuous Intracranial Electroencephalography Monitoring to Manage Epilepsy Patients During COVID-19
• Letter: Perioperative and Critical Care Management of a Patient With Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Corona Virus 2 Infection and Aneurysmal Subarachnoid Hemorrhage
• Letter: Hemorrhagic Conditions Affecting the Central Nervous System in COVID-19 Patients
• Letter: Thrombotic Neurovascular Disease in COVID-19 Patients
• Letter: COVID-19 Pandemic—The Bystander Effect on Stroke Care in Michigan
• In Reply: The Coronavirus Disease 2019 Global Pandemic: A Neurosurgical Treatment Algorithm
• Ventilated Upper Airway Endoscopic Endonasal Procedure Mask: Surgical Safety in the COVID-19 Era
• Letter: A Guide to the Prioritization of Neurosurgical Cases After the COVID-19 Pandemic
• Letter: May Cooler Heads Prevail During a Pandemic: Stroke in COVID-19 Patients or COVID-19 in Stroke Patients?
• Letter: Neurosurgeons and Curves: The Need for Critical Appraisal of Modeling in the Post-COVID Era
• In Memoriam: A Memoir for Our Fallen “Heroes”
• Telemedicine in Neurosurgery: Lessons Learned from a Systematic Review of the Literature for the COVID-19 Era and Beyond
• In Reply: May Cooler Heads Prevail During a Pandemic: Stroke in COVID-19 Patients or COVID-19 in Stroke Patients?
• In Reply: May Cooler Heads Prevail During a Pandemic: Stroke in COVID-19 Patients or COVID-19 in Stroke Patients?
• Telemedicine in Neurosurgery: Lessons Learned from a Systematic Review of the Literature for the COVID-19 Era and Beyond
• Letter: Outpatient Consultation and Silent Transmission of COVID-19: Risk for the Neurosurgeon?
• In Reply: Dismantling the Apocalypse Narrative: The Myth of the COVID-19 Stroke
• In Reply: Dismantling the Apocalypse Narrative: The Myth of the COVID-19 Stroke
• Letter: The Impact of COVID-19 on the Neurosurgery Department During and After the Lockdown of Wuhan
• In Reply: Neurosurgery and Coronavirus (COVID-19) Epidemic: Doing Our Part
• Neurosurgery Endorses Coronavirus Provider Protection Act 05.18.21
• Letter: Impact of Sub-Internship Cancellations in Neurosurgery During COVID-19
• Letter: Telemedicine in Neurosurgery: Lessons Learned From a Systematic Review of the Literature for the COVID-19 Era and Beyond
• In Reply: Telemedicine in Neurosurgery: Lessons Learned From a Systematic Review of the Literature for the COVID-19 Era and Beyond
• United States Medicolegal Progress and Innovation in Telemedicine in the Age of COVID-19: A Primer for Neurosurgeons
• In Reply: Precautions for Endoscopic Transnasal Skull Base Surgery During the COVID-19 Pandemic
• Incidence, Characteristics and Outcomes of Large Vessel Stroke in COVID-19 Cohort: An International Multicenter Study
• Letter: COVID Conundrum: Postoperative COVID-19 Infections Following Endonasal Transsphenoidal Pituitary Surgery
• In Reply: Thrombotic Neurovascular Disease in COVID-19 Patients
• Letter: Unexpected Decrease in Shunt Surgeries Performed During the Shelter-in-Place Period of the COVID-19 Pandemic
• In Reply: Unexpected Decrease in Shunt Surgeries Performed During the Shelter-in-Place Period of the COVID-19 Pandemic
• Letter: Outcomes and Spectrum of Major Neurovascular Events Among COVID-19 Patients: A 3-Center Experience
• In Reply: Outcomes and Spectrum of Major Neurovascular Events Among COVID-19 Patients: A 3-Center Experience

Practice Management Information and Resources 

• Payor Resources
  
• Aetna
• Cigna
• Humana
• UnitedHealthcare
• America’s Health Insurance Plans (AHIP)

Advocacy Efforts

• Neurosurgery Joins Coalition in Urging Congress to Explore the Problem of Long COVID
• Neurosurgery Leads Effort to Prevent Medicare Payment Cuts
• Surgical Coalition Asks Congress for COVID-19 Relief
• Neurosurgery Requests COVID-19 Relief
• AANS and CNS Join Surgical Coalition in Requesting COVID-19
• Neurosurgery Joins Medicine in Requesting COVID-19 Relief
• Neurosurgery Asks CMS for Prior Authorization Relief 3.27.20
• AANS and CNS Urge HHS to Direct COVID-19 Funding to Physicians 4.7.20
• Neurosurgery Leads Effort for COVID-19 Medical Liability Protections 4.9.20
• Neurosurgery Asks Congress for Additional COVID-19 Relief 4.13.20
• Neurosurgery Joins 135 Medical Societies in Asking Congress for COVID-19 Relief 4.15.20
• Neurosurgery Asks Governors for Prior Authorization Relief 4.16.20
• Neurosurgery Urges State Insurance Commissioners to Adopt Prior Authorizations Reforms 4.16.20
• Neurosurgery Asks Governors to Suspend Prior Authorization Requirements 041620
• AANS and CNS Urge State Insurance Commissioners to Waive Prior Authorization 041620
• Neurosurgery Joins Alliance of Specialty Medicine in Requesting Additional COVID-19 Relief 4.17.20
• Neurosurgery Joins Alliance in Commenting on COVID-19 Policies 4.20.20
• AANS and CNS Join Surgical Coalition in Requesting Additional COVID Relief 4.21.20
• Surgical Coalition Requests Relief from Quality and EHR Programs 4.24.20
• Neurosurgery Urges Congress to Adopt COVID-19-Related Liability Protections 05.12.20
• Neurosurgery Urges Congress to Provide COVID-19 Relief for Pediatric Providers 05.13.20
• Neurosurgery Joins the Alliance in Letter to CMS Urging Improved Telehealth Access 5.27.20
• Reps. Roe and Correa Introduce COVID-19 Liability Protection Legislation 05.28.20
• AANS and CNS Endorse COVID-19 Liability Protections Legislation 05.29.20
• Neurosurgery Endorses COVID-19 Liability Protections 05.29.20
• AANS and CNS Lead Coalition Effort for COVID-19-Related Medical Liability Protections 06.10.20
• AANS and CNS Join More than 130 Medical Groups in Calling for Medical Liability Protections 6.9.20
• Neurosurgery Submits Statement to Senate re Medical Liability Protections 07.01.20
• Neurosurgery Asks CMS to Prevent Pay Cuts 7.1.20
• Neurosurgery Urges Congress to Fund Additional Residency Slots 07.09.20
• Neurosurgery Calls on Congress to Increase Funding for COVID-19 Testing 07.21.20
• Neurosurgery Supports COVID-19-Related Liability Protections 07.09.20
• Neurosurgery Asks CMS for DGME Cap Deadline Extension 081320
• Neurosurgery Supports COVID-19 Provider Fund Tax Relief 08.25.20
• Neurosurgery Joins Alliance is Asking Congress to Suspend Medicare Payment Sequester 11.9.20
• Neurosurgery Urges Health Plans to Recognize CPT Code 99072 for COVID-19-Related Expenses 11.10.20
• Neurosurgery Joins Effort Urging Congress to Eliminate Medicare Sequester Cuts 11.11.20
• Neurosurgery Urges Improvements to COVID-19 Vaccination Process 1.19.21
• President Biden’s COVID-19 Response Plan 1.20.21
• Neurosurgery Supports Legislation to Suspend Medicare Payment Sequester 02.02.21
• Neurosurgery Joins Effort to Extend Medicare Payment Sequester Moratorium 02.02.21
• Neurosurgery Joins Effort to Extend Medicare Payment Sequester Moratorium 2.12.21
• Neurosurgery Joins Alliance in Asking Congress to Suspend Medicare Payment Sequester 02.17.21
• Neurosurgery Urges New York to Lower Medical Liability Premiums 02.25.21
• Neurosurgery Joins Alliance in Supporting Medicare Sequester Relief Act 03.19.21
• Neurosurgery Joins Letter in Urging Gov. Cuomo to Maintain COVID-19-Liability Protections 03.24.21
• Neurosurgery Joins Effort to Ensure Provider Relief Funds are Not Taxable 04.19.21

Continuing Medical Education and Clinical Information

• New England Journal of Medicine COVID-19 Information 
• JAMA COVID-19 Information

 
Hart Health Strategies 

• COVID-19 Testing
• Disaster Primer
• Federal Relief Overview
• Health Care Workers on the Front Lines
• Hospice and Palliative Care
• Nursing Resources
• Personal Protective Equipment
• Physician Provisions
• Small Business Resources
• Small Business – Paycheck Protection Program
• Small Business – PPP FAQ
• State Resources
• Tax Provisions
• Telehealth Overview
• Timeline for Implementation  
  
  

Additional Resources

• AMA Physician's Guide to COVID-19
• ACS COVID-19 Resources
• AHA Updates and Resources on Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19)
• Hart Health Strategies COVID-19 Resources
• American Academy of Neurology 
• Powers Law Firm  
• Kaiser Family Foundation
• Marriott Community Caregiver Rate

Disclaimer: The content provided on the CNS website, including any affiliated CNS/AANS section website (collectively, the “CNS Sites”), regarding or in any way related to COVID-19 is offered as an educational service. Any educational content published on the CNS Sites regarding COVID-19 does not constitute or imply its approval, endorsement, sponsorship, or recommendation by the CNS. The content should not be considered inclusive of all proper treatments, methods of care, or as statements of the standard of care and is not continually updated and may not reflect the most current evidence. Nothing in the educational content published on the CNS Sites should be considered, or used as a substitute for, medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. The CNS Sites and the educational services offered therein do not constitute the practice of medicine or any medical or other professional health care advice, diagnosis, or treatment. The CNS assumes no responsibility for any injury or damage to persons or property arising out of or related to any use of this content or for any errors or omissions.