Cranial Bypass Program

At NYU Langone’s Cranial Bypass Program, our neurosurgeons specialize in performing extracranial–intracranial bypass surgery—often called cranial bypass or cerebral bypass surgery—to improve blood flow to the brain and prevent strokes. Our highly skilled neurosurgeons have years of experience performing this surgical technique in both adults and children.

During this procedure, a blood vessel located outside the skull that flows in the scalp is diverted and connected to a blood vessel in the brain. Rerouting blood flow to the brain provides additional flow that reduces stress on the body’s circulation and lessens the risk of stroke or bleeding inside the brain.

Cranial bypass can often be a treatment option for people with moyamoya disease—a rare condition in which the internal carotid arteries that supply blood to the brain become narrowed, limiting blood flow. Our neurosurgeons perform cranial bypass surgery in both adults with moyamoya disease and children with moyamoya disease. Care for children is provided through Hassenfeld Children’s Hospital at NYU Langone.

During your first visit, our doctors review your symptoms, imaging studies such as CT and MRI scans, and other test results to assess the best treatment approach for your condition. For those patients who have had a previous stroke, we work with your stroke neurologist to determine if you are a candidate for the procedure.

Surgery is performed at our world-class facilities within NYU Langone’s Kimmel Pavilion, which includes two floors dedicated to neurosurgical care, including seven operating rooms (ORs) and a neuro-intensive care unit dedicated to neurosurgical recovery. Our “smart” ORs are digitally integrated and are equipped with the most advanced technology to ensure superior neurosurgical outcomes.

After surgery, you are cared for by our multidisciplinary neurocritical care and neurosurgery teams that specialize in caring for patients after brain surgery. Most people who have cranial bypass surgery will have significantly reduced their risk for further strokes, and no additional treatment is needed. If rehabilitation is needed to address the effects of previous strokes, the specialists at Rusk Rehabilitation can develop a treatment plan to help.

Contact Us

To learn more about the Cranial Bypass Program, please call 212-263-0596.