David E. Adler, MD

David Adler, M.D., moved to Portland in 1999 after spending three years as a faculty member at State University of New York, downstate in Brooklyn. He is now in private practice and has developed a focus on the neurosurgical treatment of brain tumors as well as the minimally invasive treatment of spine tumors, both primary and metastatic. Additional areas of interest include neurocritical care as it applies to brain and spinal cord injury, and the application of multimodal monitoring for critically-ill neurosurgical patients. In measuring brain oxygen, blood flow, brain glucose and other metabolites, the technique of cerebral microdialysis has become a mainstay in helping improve the outcome of his patients. Dr. Adler is co-investigator in two international multicenter phase 3 clinical trials for traumatic brain injury and one multicenter phase 3 clinical trial for the treatment of glioblastoma multiforme. Recent approval for the use of 5-ALA (aminolevulinic acid) has provided encouraging results in helping the surgeon distinguish high-grade tumor tissue from surrounding normal brain, allowing for a more complete resection of the tumor. To help preserve neurologic function, Dr. Adler performs awake brain surgery, uses intraoperative CT scanning and plans optimal surgical trajectories for tumor removal using stealth guidance and MR tract imaging techniques. Dr. Adler's practice also includes the treatment of degenerative spine disease using fusion procedures and artificial disc implantation, and the treatment of spinal fractures. Minimally invasive approaches to the spine and brain in his practice has resulted in faster healing times, shorter hospital stays and rapid recovery times from surgery. Additionally, Dr. Adler regularly performs peripheral nerve surgery, such as ulnar and median nerve releases for entrapment syndromes. Dr. Adler regularly operates at Providence Portland Medical Center and Providence St. Vincent Medical Center.