Allyson Alexander, MD, PhD

Associate Professor, Neurosurgery-Peds


FacultyPhoto
Medical School
  • MD, University of California, Irvine, School of Medicine (2008)
Graduate Schools
  • MS, Stanford University (1999)
  • PhD, University of California, Irvine (2006)
Undergraduate School
  • BA/BS, Stanford University (CA) (1999)
Internship
  • Stanford University Program (2009)
Residency
  • Stanford University Program, Chief Resident, Neurosurgery (2015)
Fellowships
  • Phoenix Children's Hospital Program, Neurosurgery (2017)
Languages
English
Department
Neurosurgery-Peds

Professional Titles

  • Assistant Professor

Research Interests

I study basic mechanisms of how epilepsy develops using human and mouse models.

Publications

  • Cea-Del Rio CA, Nunez-Parra A, Freedman SM, Kushner JK, Alexander AL, Restrepo D, Huntsman MM. Disrupted inhibitory plasticity and homeostasis in Fragile X syndrome. Neurobiol Dis. 2020 Aug;142:104959. PubMed PMID: 32512151
  • Karsonovich T, Alexander A, Graber S, O'Neill BR. Placement of leads for stereotactic electroencephalography without the use of anchor bolts: technical note. J Neurosurg Pediatr. 2020 Dec 18:1-6. doi: 10.3171/2020.7.PEDS20403. Online ahead of print. PMID: 33338995
  • Maureen Andrews, Greg Allen, Allyson Alexander, Brooke French, Corbett Wilkinson, Aaron Mason. Evolution of a Virtual Multidisciplinary Cleft and Craniofacial Team Clinic During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Children's Hospital Colorado Experience. Cleft Palate Craniofac J . 2020 Dec 28;1055665620961904. doi: 10.1177/1055665620961904. Online ahead of print. PMID: 33356504
  • Nagahama Y, Alexander AL, O'Neill BR. Intracranial pressure monitoring during stereoelectroencephalography implantation: a technical note. J Neurosurg Pediatr. 2022 Jan 21;:1-4. [Epub ahead of print] PubMed PMID: 35061987
  • Guglielmi G, Eschbach KL, Alexander AL. Smaller Knife, Fewer Seizures? Recent Advances in Minimally Invasive Techniques in Pediatric Epilepsy Surgery. Semin Pediatr Neurol. 2021 Oct;39:100913. PubMed PMID: 34620456
  • Nagahama Y, Zervos TM, Murata KK, Holman L, Karsonovich T, Parker JJ, Chen JS, Phillips HW, Fajardo M, Nariai H, Hussain SA, Porter BE, Grant GA, Ragheb J, Wang S, O'Neill BR, Alexander AL, Bollo RJ, Fallah A. Real-World Preliminary Experience With Responsive Neurostimulation in Pediatric Epilepsy: A Multicenter Retrospective Observational Study. Neurosurgery. 2021 Nov 18;89(6):997-1004. PubMed PMID: 34528103
  • Flores CA, French BM, Alexander AL, Graber S, Wittenberg B, Poppleton K, Wilkinson CC. Vascularized Pericranial Flap as a Method to Prevent Persistent Skull Defects After Craniectomy for Sagittal Synostosis. J Craniofac Surg. 2021 Nov-Dec 01;32(8):2744-2748. PubMed PMID: 34238877
  • Characterizing the diversity of L2/3 human neocortical neurons in epilepsy J. Keenan Kushner, Paige B. Hoffman, Christine Brzezinski, Molly M. Huntsman, Allyson L. Alexander bioRxiv 2022.06.13.495678; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2022.06.13.495678
  • Somatic variants in diverse genes leads to a spectrum of focal cortical malformations Brain. 2022 Aug 27;145(8):2704-2720. doi: 10.1093/brain/awac117. Dulcie Lai 1, Meethila Gade 1, Edward Yang 2, Hyun Yong Koh 3 4, Jinfeng Lu 1, Nicole M Walley 5, Anne F Buckley 6, Tristan T Sands 7 8, Cigdem I Akman 8, Mohamad A Mikati 9 10, Guy M McKhann 11, James E Goldman 12, Peter Canoll 12, Allyson L Alexander 13, Kristen L Park 14, Gretchen K Von Allmen 15 16, Olga Rodziyevska 16, Meenakshi B Bhattacharjee 17, Hart G W Lidov 18, Hannes Vogel 19, Gerald A Grant 20, Brenda E Porter 21, Annapurna H Poduri 3 4, Peter B Crino 22, Erin L Heinzen 1 23
  • Postoperative general medical ward admission following Chiari malformation decompression. Finneran MM, Graber S, Poppleton K, Alexander AL, Wilkinson CC, O'Neill BR, Hankinson TC, Handler MH. J Neurosurg Pediatr. 2022 Sep 16;30(6):602-608. doi: 10.3171/2022.7.PEDS22226. Print 2022 Dec 1. PMID: 36115060
  • Intracranial pressure monitoring during stereoelectroencephalography implantation: a technical note. Nagahama Y, Alexander AL, O'Neill BR. J Neurosurg Pediatr. 2022 Jan 21;29(4):454-457. doi: 10.3171/2021.12.PEDS21490. Print 2022 Apr 1. PMID: 35061987
  • Perry MS, Shandley S, Perelman M, Singh RK, Wong-Kisiel L, Sullivan J, Gonzalez-Giraldo E, Romanowski EF, McNamara NA, Marashly A, Ostendorf AP, Alexander A, Eschbach K, Bolton J, Wolf S, McGoldrick P, Depositario-Cabacar DF, Ciliberto MA, Gedela S, Sannagowdara K, Karia S, Shrey DW, Tatachar P, Nangia S, Grinspan Z, Reddy SB, Shital P, Coryell J. Surgical evaluation in children <3 years of age with drug-resistant epilepsy: Patient characteristics, diagnostic utilization, and potential for treatment delays. Epilepsia. 2022 Jan;63(1):96-107. PubMed PMID: 34778945
  • Surgical evaluation in children <3 years of age with drug-resistant epilepsy: Patient characteristics, diagnostic utilization, and potential for treatment delays. Perry MS, Shandley S, Perelman M, Singh RK, Wong-Kisiel L, Sullivan J, Gonzalez-Giraldo E, Romanowski EF, McNamara NA, Marashly A, Ostendorf AP, Alexander A, Eschbach K, Bolton J, Wolf S, McGoldrick P, Depositario-Cabacar DF, Ciliberto MA, Gedela S, Sannagowdara K, Karia S, Shrey DW, Tatachar P, Nangia S, Grinspan Z, Reddy SB, Shital P, Coryell J. Epilepsia. 2022 Jan;63(1):96-107. doi: 10.1111/epi.17124. Epub 2021 Nov 15.
  • Talai A, Eschbach K, Stence NV, Palmer C, Bird W, Alexander A, O'Neill BR, Chapman KE, Joshi C. Comparison of subdural grid and stereoelectroencephalography in a cohort of pediatric patients. Epilepsy Res. 2021 Nov;177:106758. PubMed PMID: 34530304
  • Andrews M, Allen G, Alexander A, French B, Wilkinson C, Mason A. Evolution of a Virtual Multidisciplinary Cleft and Craniofacial Team Clinic During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Children's Hospital Colorado Experience. Cleft Palate Craniofac J. 2021 May;58(5):653-657. PubMed PMID: 33356504
  • Responsive Neurostimulation in Drug-Resistant Pediatric Epilepsy: Findings From the Epilepsy Surgery Subgroup of the Pediatric Epilepsy Research Consortium. Singh RK, Eschbach K, Samanta D, Perry MS, Liu G, Alexander AL, Wong-Kisiel L, Ostendorf A, Tatachar P, Reddy SB, McCormack MJ, Manuel CM, Gonzalez-Giraldo E, Numis AL, Wolf S, Karia S, Karakas C, Olaya J, Shrey D, Auguste KI, Depositario-Cabacar D; PERC Surgery Registry Workgroup.
  • Leveraging expertise and optimizing clinical research: Initial success of a pediatric epilepsy surgery collaborative. Berl MM, Koop JI, Ailion A, Bearden DJ, Boyer K, Cooper CM, Decrow AM, Duong PH, Espe-Pfeifer P, Gabriel M, Hodges E, Marshall DF, McNally KA, Molnar AE, Olsen EK, Ono KE, Patrick KE, Paul BM, Romain J, Sepeta LN, Stilp RLH, Wilkening GN, Zaccariello M, Zelko F, Perry MS; PERC Surgery Workgroup. Epilepsia. 2023 Jun;64(6):1554-1567. doi: 10.1111/epi.17579. Epub 2023 Mar 24.
  • 2. Hoffman P, Svalina MN, Flores C, Brzezinski C, Kushner JK, Staple B, Franco S, and Alexander AL. Developmental Characterization of Neuronal Migration Anomalies and Axon Proliferation in mTOR pathway-associated Malformations of Cortical Development bioRxiv [preprint]. Posted 3/12/23. Available at: https://doi.org/10.1101/2023.03.11.532231
  • 37. Welton TA, George NM, Ozbay BN, Gentile Polese A, Osborne G, Futia G, Kushner JK, Klenschmidt-Demasters B, Alexander AL, Abosch A, Ojemann S, Restrepo D, Gibson EA. Two-Photon Microendoscope for Label-Free Imaging in Stereotactic Neurosurgery. Biomedical Optics Express, 2023 Jun 27;14(7):3705-3725. doi: 10.1364/BOE.492552. eCollection 2023 Jul 1.
  • Highlights From the Annual Meeting of the American Epilepsy Society 2022 Ignacio Valencia, MD https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2385-4933 ignacio.valencia@towerhealth.org, Allyson L. Alexander, MD, PhD, […], and Barbara Jobst, MD, PhD https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9243-2238+109View all authors and affiliations OnlineFirst https://doi.org/10.1177/15357597231187227

Practice Locations

Children's Hospital Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus
13123 East 16th Ave
Aurora, CO 80045
720-777-1234

Children's Hospital Colorado - Colorado Springs
4090 Briargate Pkwy
Colorado Springs, CO 80920
719-305-1234

Hospital Affiliation
  • Children's Hospital Colorado

Center Affiliations

Specialty Information

Specialties
  • Neurological Surgery
Conditions & Treatments
  • Surgery - Neurosurgery
  • Surgery
Clinical Interests
surgical treatment of epilepsy; craniosynostosis; hydrocephalus and shunts; Chiari malformations; tethered cords; general pediatric neurosurgery

Care Philosophy
Providing compassionate surgical care to children with neurosurgical conditions before, during, and after surgery.

Personal Interests
I spend my free time with my husband and two daughters exploring the city, finding the best playgrounds, cooking and baking, and traveling.

Public Speaking
Yes
Epilepsy research; traumatic brain injury; childhood brain tumors