Photo of Sylvain Palmer, MD

Sylvain Palmer, MD

Accepting New Patients
Offers Video Visits
31872 Coast Highway
Laguna Beach, CA 92651
2257.8 miles away
Speaks: Spanish and English
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Providence Mission Hospital - Laguna Beach

31872 Coast Highway, Laguna Beach, CA 92651

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About Sylvain Palmer

Dr. Sylvain Palmer grew up in Detroit, Michigan. He attended Cornell University and completed his Bachelor of Arts Degree at The Johns Hopkins University, in 1974, where he was in the top 10% of his class and was admitted into the Phi Beta Kappa Honors Society. He received his medical degree from The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, in 1977, where he was in the top 10% his class and was admitted into the Alpha Omega Alpha honors society. He completed his surgical internship and his neurosurgical residency at the prestigious Johns Hopkins Hospital, ranked the number one hospital in the US by The US and World Report.

Dr. Palmer has been board certified since 1986. He is a member of numerous neurosurgical societies including The American Association of Neurological Surgeons, The Congress of Neurological Surgeons, The Joint Spine and Peripheral Nerve Section, The Joint Brain Trauma Section, The California Association of Neurological Surgeons, The American Medical Association, The California Medical Association, and The Orange County Medical Association. He has served as Secretary, Treasurer, and President of the Orange Country Neurosurgical Society. He has also served as Chief of Neurosurgery, Chief of Surgery, Chief of Staff, and was a board member of Mission Hospital and Regional Medical Center.

Dr. Palmer has practiced Neurosurgery in Orange County, California since 1981. He has done groundbreaking research and development, since 1996, in Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery (MIS). He has development minimally invasive techniques in MIS that are now used around the world. He has a particular interest in the MIS treatment of herniated cervical and lumbar disks and spinal stenosis with or without instrumentation. He lectures and teaches extensively in this area as well as having published numerous articles and book chapters on MIS techniques.

Dr. Palmer was an early and pivotal member of the Mission Hospital Trauma Team, since 1981, which won the 2000 Ernest B. Codman award from the National Joint Committee on Accreditation of Hospitals. He was a pioneer in the treatment of traumatic brain injury and has published numerous articles and has lectured world- wide in this area. He was a founding member of the Adam Williams Traumatic Brain Injury Initiative, which has trained over 50 hospitals in advanced brain injury treatment techniques.

Dr. Palmer and his staff’s main focus is on the patient experience from first consultation, through treatment, until final discharge. The patient is encouraged to fully understand his problem, his treatment options, and his anticipated outcomes. The patient, thereby, becomes an active participant in his health care leading to improved results and higher patient satisfaction.

Medical School

Johns Hopkins University- School of Medicine

Internship

Johns Hopkins Hospital
1977

Residency

Johns Hopkins Hospital

Training

Board Certifications
  • American Board of Neurological Surgery, Neurological Surgery
Affiliated Locations
Providence Mission Hospital - Laguna Beach
Mission Hospital Leonard Cancer Institute - Mission Viejo
Providence Mission Hospital - Mission Viejo

Clinical Interests

  • Accessory Nerve Disease
  • Accessory Nerve Injury
  • Acoustic Neurofibromatosis
  • Acute Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyradiculoneuropathy
  • Aneurysm
  • Anterior Temporal Lobectomy
  • Arachnoid Cyst
  • Back Surgery
  • Benign Neoplasm Of Brain
  • Berry Aneurysm
  • Biopsy Of Brain
  • Biopsy Of Skull
  • Brachial Nerve Tumors
  • Brain Laceration
  • Brain Neoplasms
  • Brain Surgery
  • Bulging Disc
  • Burr Hole
  • Carotid Stenosis
  • Cavernous Hemangioma
  • Cavernous Sinus Thrombosis
  • Central Venous Stenosis
  • Cerebellar Anomalies
  • Cerebral Aneurysm
  • Cerebral Artery Bypass Surgery
  • Cerebral Cyst
  • Cerebral Decompression
  • Cerebral Edema
  • Cerebral Hernia
  • Cerebral Revascularization
  • Cerebrospinal Fluid Leak
  • Cerebrovascular Bypass Surgery
  • Cervical Laminoplasty
  • Cervical Spinal Stenosis
  • Cervical Spine Fracture
  • Cervical Spine Fusion
  • Chiari Decompression
  • Cingulotomy
  • Clipping Of Brain Aneurysm
  • Colloid Cyst
  • Compression Fracture
  • Cranial Nerve Injury
  • Cranial Nerve Repair
  • Cranial Vault Malformations
  • Craniectomy
  • Craniocele
  • Craniocervical Junction Surgery
  • Craniotomy
  • Csf Shunt Removal
  • Decompression Laminectomy
  • Deep Brain Stimulation
  • Deep Brain Stimulation (Asleep)
  • Deep Brain Stimulation (Awake)
  • Deep Brain Stimulation For Dystonia
  • Disc Surgery
  • Diskectomy
  • Dorsal Column Stimulator
  • Electrical Sacral Stimulation
  • Encephalocele Repair
  • Endoscopic Endonasal Approach
  • Endoscopic Third Ventriculostomy
  • Epidural Hematoma
  • Epidural Hemorrhage
  • Epilepsy Surgery
  • Epilepsy Surgery Evaluation
  • Extradural Abscess
  • Flow Diversion For Cerebral Aneurysms
  • Head Reconstruction
  • Hemispherectomy
  • Herniated Disc
  • Herniation Syndrome
  • Hydrocephalus
  • Image Guided Biopsy Of The Spine
  • Interspinous Device Placement
  • Intracranial Abscess
  • Intracranial Arterial Bypass
  • Intracranial Arterial Occlusion
  • Intracranial Hemangioma
  • Intracranial Hemorrhage
  • Intracranial Hypotension
  • Intraspinal Abscess
  • Kyphoplasty
  • Kyphosis
  • Laminectomy
  • Laminoplasty
  • Lateral Access Spine Surgery
  • Lesionectomy
  • Lobectomy Of Brain
  • Low Back Surgery
  • Lumbar Drain
  • Lumbar Spinal Stenosis
  • Lumbar Spine Fusion
  • Lumboperitoneal Shunt Placement
  • Meningocele
  • Migraine Surgery
  • Minimally Invasive Spine Surgery
  • Mri Guided Focused Ultrasound
  • Myelopathy Surgery
  • Needle Biopsy Of Brain
  • Needle Biopsy Of Cerebral Meninges
  • Neuroablation
  • Neuroendoscopy
  • Non Ruptured Cerebral Aneurysm
  • Open Biopsy Of Brain
  • Optic Nerve Decompression
  • Optic Nerve Surgery
  • Orbital Nerve Decompression
  • Parkinson's Disease (Pd) Surgery
  • Percutaneous Trigeminal Rhizotomy
  • Peripheral Nerve Surgery
  • Pituitary Surgery
  • Post Laminectomy Kyphosis
  • Post Laminectomy Syndrome
  • Repair Of Brain
  • Resection Of Cerebral Arteriovenous Malformation (Avm)
  • Ruptured Brain Aneurysm
  • Ruptured Intervertebral Disc
  • Scoliosis
  • Shevel Procedure
  • Spinal Abscess
  • Spinal Cord Anomalies
  • Spinal Cord Compression
  • Spinal Cord Stimulator
  • Spinal Stenosis
  • Spine Embolization
  • Spine Fusion
  • Spine Injury
  • Spine Instrumentation
  • Spine Stapling
  • Spondylectomy
  • Stereotactic Ablative Radiotherapy
  • Stereotactic Brain Biopsy
  • Stereotactic Eeg
  • Stereotactic Radiosurgery
  • Subarachnoid Hemorrhage
  • Subcaudate Tractotomy
  • Subdural Hematoma
  • Subdural Hemorrhage
  • Surgery For Spasticity
  • Surgical Treatment Of Myelopathy
  • Thoracic Spinal Stenosis
  • Thoracic Spine Fusion
  • Topectomy
  • Transpetrosal Approaches
  • Ulnar Nerve Decompression
  • Ulnar Nerve Surgery
  • Vagal Nerve Stimulator
  • Vagal Stimulation
  • Ventricular Shunt
  • Ventriculo Peritoneal Shunt
  • Ventriculocisternostomy
  • Ventriculostomy
  • Vertebroplasty
  • Virtual Care