Pittsburgh, July 21, 2010 -- Department neurosurgeons Pedro Aguilar, MD, Matt El-Kadi, MD, PhD, J. William Bookwalter, III, MD, Joseph Maroon, MD, and Arlan Mintz, MD, were featured on the July 2010 cover of North Hills Monthly, a local Pittsburgh magazine focusing on community resources in communities in northern Allegheny County and southwest Butler County.

The cover article, 'The Evolution of Neurosurgery at UPMC Passavant,' talks about how the recent additions of state-of-the-art technologies and services have helped the hospital grow beyond its historical role as a traditional community hospital.

UPMC Passavant President Teresa G. Petrick is quoted in the article as saying the recent additions have helped the hospital evolve "into a world-class tertiary care center that is now attracting patients from around the region and country for advanced specialty care."

The article cites the hospital's 'Center for Excellence in spine and neurosurgical services' as an example of this advanced specialty care.

Dr. Maroon comments in the article, "The facilities are nothing less than spectacular; the space, equipment and personnel are all superb. The endoscopic and microscopic equipment is state-of-the-art and the level of technology makes procedures much more efficient."

Dr. El-Kadi, chief of neurosurgery at UPMC Passavant, notes, "With more than 8,000 spine procedures performed at UPMC Passavant to date, we have built one of the most comprehensive spine centers in the region. As a result of the success of the spine and neurosurgery program, we will be adding new services that will enhance and grow our advanced neurosurgical services not only in the northern corridor but also in the tri-state area.”