Spina Bifida Center

Founded in 1967, the Spina Bifida Center at The Children's Hospital at Montefiore was one of the first programs of its type in the United States. Because of the nature of their many problems, children with disorders of the spine, including such congenital anomalies as spina bifida, myelomeningocele and sacral agenesis, as well as traumatic injuries, require coordinated care delivered by a large number of specialists. Our Center delivers this care by bringing together the specialists in a single setting, so that infants, children and adults can see all their physicians on a single day. This approach also allows the team of board certified physicians and surgeons caring for an individual patient to discuss that patient's needs at a team meeting, a concept that prevents duplication of care and unnecessary surgery and procedures. Currently caring for more than 200 patients ranging in age from newborns to 35-year-olds. Our Center is one of the largest of its kind in the northeast. 

But the Spina Bifida Center delivers more than medical and surgical care. Children with spina bifida and their families have many nonmedical needs as well. Our staff includes representatives from social service, genetic counseling, psychology and child life to help assist our patients. We sponsor support groups for adolescents and parents, outings for children and families, and ongoing family counseling. In short, the Center provides for all the needs of our patients from birth into adulthood.

The Center's staff provides state-of-the-art care to infants, children and adults with:

• Spina bifida (also known as meningomyelocele)
• Meningocele
• Sacral agenesis (also known as caudal regression)
• Traumatic injuries of the spinal cord

Our staff (and their areas of expertise) includes:

• Robert Marion, MD, Medical Director (pediatrics/medical genetics)
• Linda Schendel, PNP, Nursing Coordinator
• James Goodrich, MD, PhD. (neurosurgery)
• Leonard Seimon, MD (orthopedic surgery)
• Stanley Kogan, MD (urology)
• Richard Borkow, MD (physiatry)
• Ellen Hantman, MS (genetic counselor)

Services provided include:

• Diagnostic services
• Longitudinal care and management
• Social service involvement
• Genetic counseling

Things to bring to your appointment:

• Medical records from visits to other physicians
• X-rays and laboratory studies performed in the past
• Information about medical conditions in family members