MEET NEW YORK BRAIN AND SPINE SURGEON

DR. EZRIEL KORNEL

Dr. Ezriel Kornel is a principle in the highly regarded private practice group, Brain and Spine Surgeons of New York and an assistant clinical professor of neurosurgery at Weill-Cornell Medical College. He was awarded “Best Doctor” status by numerous publications including US News and World Report, Guide to America’s Top Surgeons and Castle Connolly.

Neurosurgeon Ezriel E. Kornel MD is in the forefront of minimally invasive neurosurgery (MIS), which is used to minimize the trauma of surgery and increase the speed of recovery.

Dr. Kornel also is an expert in minimally invasive endoscopic surgery of the spine as well as minimally invasive approaches in the surgical treatment of brain tumors. He was involved in the early development of surgical instruments used in endoscopic and minimally-invasive spine surgery, and has taught these techniques to other spine surgeons.

Additionally, Dr. Kornel is one of the first neurosurgeons in the New York metropolitan area to replace damaged cervical discs with artificial discs, newly-introduced to the market. He is one of the first spine surgeons in the New York/New Jersey/Connecticut area to perform percutaneous lumbar fusions, and he introduced frameless stereotaxic guided cranial surgery in Westchester County, New York hospitals to allow for less invasive brain surgery.

Dr. Kornel holds several patents on surgical devices for both the spine and the brain. Patents are pending on instruments Dr. Kornel invented for percutaneous spine fusion surgery. He has authored scientific articles relating to neurosurgery and has authored a chapter in an online textbook regarding management of cervical spine trauma.

Dr. Kornel gained his initial expertise during his neurosurgical residency at the George Washington University Medical Center under the tutelage of Hugo Rizzoli, M.D., who, at the time, was one of the most renowned and respected neurosurgeons in the world. When in Stockholm, Dr. Kornel trained and is certified in the use of the Gamma Knife, a stereotactic radio-surgical technique he uses for the treatment of brain tumors and trigeminal neuralgia.

In 1981, he was part of the team that treated James Brady, press secretary to President Reagan, when Mr. Brady sustained a devastating gunshot wound during the assassination attempt on the president. Dr. Kornel’s work was cited numerous times in the biography of James Brady.

Leadership Positions:

- Chief of Neurosurgery, Metropolitan Hospital, NYC 1993-1997
  Northern Westchester Hospital, Mount Kisco, NY 1999-2002
- Director of Neurosurgical Trauma, Lincoln Hospital, Bronx, NY 1993-1997
- Past President, The New York State Neurosurgical Society
- Past Director, American Association of Neurological Surgeons
- Director, Institute for Neurosciences, Northern Westchester Hospital 1999-2011
- Director-At-Large, Orthopedic and Spine Institute, Northern Westchester Hospital 2011-present

Education:

M.D. Rush Medical College, Rush Presbyterian St. Luke’s Hospital
A.B. Cornell University

Postgraduate Training and Fellowships:

General Surgery, Washington Hospital Center, Washington, D.C., 1978-1979
Neurological Surgery, George Washington University Hospital, Washington, D.C., 1979-1984
Microneurosurgery Course — University of Vienna, Austria, July 1984

Specialty Certification:

American Board of Neurological Surgeons, 1987

Professional Affiliations:

Dr. Kornel is a past president of the New York State Neurosurgical Society and is currently on the board of that organization. He is a former New York delegate to the Council of State Neurosurgical Societies and is a former Director on the Board of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons.

Hospital Affiliations:

Dr. Kornel’s primary hospital affiliations are with hospitals that consistently maintain national
rankings in the top tenth percentile. (Click links below to visit these websites.)

Personal time:

Dr. Kornel is a neurosurgeon with a wide variety of interests and passions including acting, music (violin), and poetry. His company, Synaptic Productions, produced Terrence McNally’s stunning drama A Perfect Ganesh in 2008, in which he starred as Ganesha, the deity; He loves scuba diving, skiing, tennis and art.

Westchester Neurosurgeon Ezriel Kornel, MD, FACS, has the skills required to remove brain tumors and replace damaged cervical discs thrive symbiotically with artistic talent and passion. Dr. Kornel, the Director of the Institute for Neurosciences at Mount Kisco’s Northern Westchester Hospital and principal of Brain &Spine Surgeons of New York in West Harrison, also happens to be a violin virtuoso. A Bedford resident, Kornel has a credible artistic CV. He studied violin in college and has performed at Carnegie Hall, the Kennedy Center, and with the North Shore Philharmonic.

“As a violinist, I also focus on dexterity and fine motor control, which translates nicely into surgery.”