According to Dr. Maria, Lorraine Lazar, MD, and Dr. Mahalingam
are widely recognized experts in epilepsy care, and the pediatric neurosurgery teams led by Amo Fried, MD, or Catherine Mazzola, MD,
specialize in epilepsy surgery. “We have the largest number of highly
qualified neurosurgeons of any children’s hospital in the nation,”
says Dr. Maria.
AtlAntic HeAltH SyStem
TREATING AND PREVENTING
CONCUSSIONS
Goryeb offers a wide variety of concussion services. “We treat concussions that occur on and off the field, those that occur in sports as
well as in accidental mild traumatic brain injury,” says Dr. Maria.
“We provide a baseline assessment, a treatment plan and education
about concussions,” he adds.
Michelle Sirak, MD, director of the division of pediatric physical
medicine and rehabilitation; Harvey Bennett, MD, child neurologist;
and Damion Martins, MD, director of sports medicine for Atlantic
Health System, often use the Immediate Post Concussion Assessment
and Cognitive Testing test (ImPACT) to collect baseline information
and to monitor recovery from concussion. ImPACT is preferably
administered on-site and measures symptoms along with memory,
reaction time and processing speed. “The main treatment is rest and
avoiding triggers such as TV, computer screens, loud noises and bright
lights,” observes Dr. Sirak. The outlook for most patients with concussion is excellent. In fact, most children with mild traumatic brain injury
recover in five to 14 days. Often children with other risk factors like
migraine, depression, ADHD, learning disorders and anxiety disorders
take longer to recover. Neurologists are specially trained to sort out those
conditions from concussions and use a graded return to play protocol.
As part of Atlantic Health System, Chilton Medical Center
provides seamless access to the specialized services offered at Goryeb
Children’s Hospital should patients require more advanced care. “In
the event that something is not right, whether it’s headaches, seizures,
neurodevelopmental issues or something more, it’s nice to know there
is a hospital just for kids nearby where you can see the right expert.
At Goryeb Children’s Hospital, we make that happen every time,”
Dr. Maria states. ❖
Consider This
■ Anchored at Morristown Medical Center, Goryeb
Children’s Hospital is a state-designated children’s
hospital that offers expertise and specialties typically
unavailable at general hospitals, such as a pediatric
intensive care unit and a regional perinatal center.
The hospital can take care of every child, from the
simplest injury to the most complex, chronic and
acute conditions.
■ Goryeb Children’s Hospital offers more than 120
board-certified pediatric specialists in over 20
concentrated areas of pe F