Neurologists
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Dec 2011
I am looking for a neurologist and there is someone in my
network, Selena Ellis, who doesn't have any reviews online.
I am interested in her because she also does acupuncture. If
you have been to see Dr. Ellis, I would love to hear about
your experience. I work best with doctors who are respectful
and attentive so I prefer to read a few reviews before seeing someone.
Thanks.
seekinggoodneurologist
Dr. Selena Ellis has been my doctor since spring of 2011, I
highly recommend her as a doctor. She is down to earth,
warm, a good listener and more importantly on top
everything. Her office staff is awesome and I have never
had to wait of any length of time for my appointments. If
you need more info feel free to email me.
Michelle
Oct 2011
I am looking for a referral for a neurologist who is an excellent
problem solver/detective for my husband who has a number of unexplained
neurological problems. We recently moved to the East Bay and would like
to find a neurologist here. Thank you.
MG
You asked for a neurologist who is a good problem solver /
detective. I recommend Dr. Joshua Kuluva very highly: He
really does ''detective work'' and has helped both my husband
and myself track down the causes and figure out a better
plan to manage a number of neurological conditions and
symptoms. His office is on Telegraph nr Russell. Happy patient of
Dr Kuluva's
May 2009
We are looking to get a second opinion in the event our son is
diagnosed with cerebral palsy when he turns one. I think that my
son is fine, but his neurologist is concerned with his tone issues
(they have gotten better with each examination, but are still
there). We currently go to Kaiser Oakland, so we are looking for
someone at another Kaiser facility or (ideally)outside of Kaiser.
I guess a developmental specialist might be helpful as well.
DJ
Hi,
My daughter was diagnosed with mild right-side hemiplegia (right-side
weakness) at 16 months. This is one of many different classifications
that fall under the huge umbrella Cerebral Palsy. With loads of early
intervention (therapy, ankle-foot brace, and periodic botox injections)
she is an amazing, active, 9 year-old. (She rides her bike, scooter,
swims, and has done karate for 2 and 1/2 years.) Most people would never
know she has CP. She hasn't worn a brace for 5 years (she has custom
orthotics), periodically gets checked with Dr. Scott Hoffinger at
Children's, sees Physical Therapist Christine Egan, and Dr. Elaine Pico
who is about to administer botox again. (Her last botox was 2 years ago.
The botox helps to release her calf muscles allowing her to get her heel
on the ground.)
The reason I tell you this is because early intervention is critical. We
had an MRI done at Children's when our daughter was about 20 months. This
helped us know what part of her brain was affected (which is helping to
understand some of her learning difficulties) and confirmed her diagnosis.
Since that time I feel we have built a phenominal team to help my daughter
thrive. If your child does have CP, he sounds mild. Children with mild
CP often get somewhat passed over since they don't have high needs, and
it's up to you to fight to get what is best for your child - and sometimes
that takes a lot. Additionally, a diagnosis opens lots of doors for
treatment and services that could really help your child. I know it's
hard to find out your child is anything but perfect. Please feel free to
contact me with any quesitons.
jjs
April 2008
hi,
we are looking for recommendation for good pediatric
neurologists for infants. They can be located in the
peninsula, san francisco or east bay. (Insurance is not
relevant). many thanks
Dr. Jean Hayward at Kaiser Oakland is one of the best ped. neurologists in the Bay
Area, especially for seizure disorders.
anon.
Jan 2007
I am looking for recommendations for a Pediatric Neurologist. Perhaps one who has had good
success with seizures in young children. We live in Oakland but I'd take my little guy to the
moon if neccessary.
We've had alot of experience with pediatric neurology and seizure disorders. By far,
the best doctor we ever had was Candace Brown at Children's Hospital, Oakland. We
also like Paul Garcia at UCMed. Email me if I can be helpful to you. beverly
Hello. I HIGHLY recommend Dr. Luis Bello-Espinosa in SF at
California Pacific Medical Center (CPMC). I went through 3 ped.
neurologists and fought with my HMO (and won) so that my son
could see him. He is well-reputed, well-studied, and very
personable! Go here: http://www.drluisbello.com He is the
absolute best. Good luck!
MS
Our son was treated by pediatric neurologist JEAN HAYWARD at Kaiser Oakland for
seizures. She is definitely the expert for seizures in young children in the Bay
Area. We knew another family from Marin who went to a specialist at Stanford for
their son's seizures, and they were ultimately referred back here to Jean Hayward. A
little caution: Dr. Hayward is known for being somewhat (quite) blunt at times, but
she is extremely knowledgeable (particularly regarding which seizure meds work best
for different seizure types), and we felt she gave our son the best care possible.
We also grew to like and trust her very much in a very difficult situation. I did a
lot of my own research, and concluded that she really was the best around. I believe
she is still at Kaiser Oakland, but I no longer have her phone number. Best of luck
to you and your son. anon
Nov 2005
I am looking for a neurologist for a yearly check-up for my
multiple sclerosis. Since I was diagnosed 8 years ago, I have
only had 2 episodes, neither of which left significant residual
symptoms, so most years I have only needed to contact my
neurologist to renew my Copaxone prescription (knock wood that
this will be the future pattern as well). Now that I recently
began to have decent health insurance, I would like to see
someone to get a more thorough check-up and re-assess my
treatment/management options. I am looking for someone who
supports the use of Copaxone, will not cause me anxiety by
expecting the worst, will support my general attitude of taking
my medicine reliably but otherwise not thinking about my MS
most of the time, and who is up on the medical literature.
She/he does not need to be an MS specialist. I appreciate any
recommendations, particularly in Berkeley/Oakland.
anonymous
Try the doctors at UCSF MS center(http://mscenter.ucsf.edu/). They are more than worth the trip over to the City.
Good Luck
Nov 2005
I'm looking for a neurologist in San Francisco to diagnose/treat
a tremor in my hand. Any recommendations?
-Shaky
I had a second opinion on my hand tremor done by Ann Poncelet at
the UCSF Neurology Department. She was great, knew just what it
was and how to allay my anxieties.
Heather
(with Benign Essential Tremor)
May 2005
Does anyone have recent experience with a neurologist (for
adults) in the East Bay or SF? My main problem with
neurologists I've seen so far is that they didn't really seem to
care about me as a person (and my seizures have been strongly
related to my personal history). Since all of my brain tests
have always come out normal, the neurologists I've dealt with so
far just seemed to want to prescribe a medication that would
suppress the seizures and leave it at that. I am looking for
someone who is personable and who is interested in approaching
this illness more from a mind/body perspective rather than using
just the standard, contemporary medical approach.
Do you have Kaiser? If so, Dr. Amgott-Kwan at Kaiser Oakland
is a great neurologist who actually works side by side with a
behavioral medicine psychologist both of whom are VERY
supportive of alternative and mind-body practices.
anon
I didn't see the original post. I can recommend Richard Cuneo
for neurology. Both my husband and I have gone to him for a
stroke and recurrent Bell's Palsy over the past 15 years. He is
incredibly thorough, bright and personable. He has always been
available, even when he has been on vacation. He has also been
voted the neurologist that doctors would most like to use if
needed in the KQED surveys. He is a professor at UCSF and has
his office at 3838 California, SF. His number is 415-221-3006.
Good luck.
linda
Oct 2004
Hi,
Can anyone recommend a good neurologist in San Francisco with
Brown and Toland medical group? I have a stable seizure
disorder and am interested in checking out other medication
options besides what I'm on (dilantin), and want someone who
will work with me around this.
Julie
I work at UCSF (inpatient) with the epilepsy team. Our epilepsy
specialists that are with B&T are Paul Garcia, MD, and William
Marks, MD. (both very good). Good Luck.
Kathleen
Dr. Andrews is a B&T nuerosurgeon in SF and saved my life, as
well as that of my closets friends. His office will certainly
refer you to the best. If that doesn't work (I can't imagine
that) email me and I'll call my friend with a siezure disorder
and get her doctor's info for you. But definitely keep Andrew's
name on hand, he's totally the best.
Nicki
June 2003
Hello. My 4 yr. old son has just had two unexplained seizures,
five weeks apart. His current pediatrician is not as good as he
used to be and appears to be heavily medicated when we have
appointments with him. His initial diagnosis is Benign
Epilepsy of Childhood. Does anyone have an experienced
pediatrician who has experience with seizure disorders in young
children? We live in West Contra Costa County. Thank you!
There aren't that many pediatric neurologists, but you
definitely should see one. My son sees Dr. Daniel Birnbaum at
Children's Hospital in Oakland-he is very nice, if not always
that assertive. Your child may need medication, and he should
get an EEG. Don't leave it to your primary care physician!
anon
June 2003
My daughter (almost 2) just had her second complex partial
seizure and we need to see a pediatric neurologist to get an EEG
and possibly an MRI. I saw the recommendations for pediatric
neurosurgeons, but none of the names are on my list (Hill
Physicians), and I didn't see any plain old neurologists (is
there such a thing?). I'd love to hear from other parents who
have been through this kind of thing, also.
The doctors at Childrens' hospital Oakland are fantastic. They
work with state of the art equipment and truly cutting edge
procedures. Children fly from all over the country for their
first-rate care. Unfortunatly I don't have any specific names
for you because my son stayed there for reasons not having to do
with neurology. but it would be the first palce I would look.
Jessica
I am not sure if this helps, but my son was seen and evaluated
by Dr. Peter Sun at Children's Hospital Oakland. Dr. Sun ordered
all the tests, figured out the extent of the neurologic problem
(very different from seizures), and operated on my little guy.
Dr. Sun is the head of neurosurgery there and one of the most
caring and thoughtful physicians I have ever met. He works with
a great nurse practitioner, Sue, who is also a good resource
when going through something this stressful.
We have Hill Physicians through HealthNet and we have had no
problems with referals or bills. Send me an e-mail if you want
more details.
Sarah
My infant son has experience with Pediatric Neurosurgeons,
unfortunately, and among the 2 best are:
1) Peter Sun at Oakland's Children's Hospital
510/428-3319
2) Nalin Gupta at UCSF, also has offices in Walnut Creek
925/945-6098
Maryanne
June 2003
Hello. My 4 yr. old son has just had two unexplained seizures,
five weeks apart. His current pediatrician is not as good as he
used to be and appears to be heavily medicated when we have
appointments with him. His initial diagnosis is Benign
Epilepsy of Childhood. Does anyone have an experienced
pediatrician who has experience with seizure disorders in young
children? We live in West Contra Costa County. Thank you!
marn
There aren't that many pediatric neurologists, but you
definitely should see one. My son sees Dr. Daniel Birnbaum at
Children's Hospital in Oakland-he is very nice, if not always
that assertive. Your child may need medication, and he should
get an EEG. Don't leave it to your primary care physician!
anon
Feb 2003
A CAT scan found a spot on my brain and I need to see a
Neurologist at Kaiser Oakland to see if it is anything to worry
about. Does anyone have any recommendations or ones to
avoid?
Just a little nervous
A few years ago I had some weird ''focal seizures''. I asked a
friend of mine who did her residency at Kaiser which neurologist
she'd recommend. She recommended Garrick Amgott-Kwan. I was
feeling a bit scared about it, as no doubt you are about your
spot, and I found Amgott-Kwan to be kind, intelligent, accessible,
with an appropriate sense of humor and a willingness to explain
everything I needed to have explained. I had a CAT scan and a few
other tests. I turned out to be okay. I hope your results are
equally reassuring.
Been There
Dr. Garrick Amgott-Kwan at Kaiser-Oakland is good -- calm,
sensible, and generally respectful of patients.
Kate
August 2001
Can anyone recommend an adult neurologist, preferably in the East Bay. My
husband currently sees Dr. Eric Collins and we are looking for someone else.
Many thanks.
Adele
A friend saw and highly recommends:
Dr. Heidi Shale
East Bay Neurology
3000 Colby Street, Suite 201
Berkeley, California 94705
510/ 849-0499
Dr. John Friedberg
510-644-2282
3000 Colby St. Ste. 305
Berkeley, CA
excellent doctor -- with a great sense of humor and great rapport with
patients.
Christine
Dr. Randall Starkey in Oakland. 510-834-5778. Very personable and
knowledgeable.
-- DrCandAC
I'd like to recommend John Friedberg.
His office # is 510-644-2282, and his office is at 3000 Colby St, Ste # 305
in Berkeley.
I went to him for migraines -- and he was very knowledgeable and helpful in
discussing my treatment. Unfortunately, there isn't much out there other
than imitrex. He referred me to a wonderful book by Oliver Sacks called
"Migraine" as a reference. Christine
I highly recommend Dr. Joanna Cooper, East Bay Neurology, across from Alta Bates Hospital.
She is very busy so be prepared to wait for an appointment but it will be worth it. She is very
down to earth, attentive, honest and realistic. She may not be able to stop the migraines totally
but will offer to reduce number and severity of headaches. She worked a miracle for me. Good luck.
Patricia
I can second the recommendation on Dr.
Friedberg in Berkeley. Not all neurologists are
"headache guys", but Friedberg is. I have suffered
with migraines since I was a child and have had many
bad experiences with neurologists as an adult. Dr.
Friedberg is the most knowledgable Dr. I've met about
migraine headaches.
Janet
I don't see a neurologist specifically for migraines, but I have found Dr.
Joanna Cooper (office near Alta Bates Hospital) to be excellent. She is
very communicative (something I have found rare in the neurologists I have
seen), carefully explaining tests, results, and in general taking plenty of
time to answer my questions. She also discusses her recommendations with
me and makes sure I understand that I can choose not to have specific tests
etc. if I want.
Karen
I recommend Dr. Michael Stein, MD in Walnut Creek te.
925-938-5252. He helped me find relief with some of
the newer pills. Susan
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