Board-Certified Neurosurgeon
Sylvain Palmer, M.D., F.A.C.S.
- Education
- Qualifications
- Research
- Patient Care
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 also in the top 10% of 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 developed 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 worldwide 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 the 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.
