UW Health Neurosurgeon Featured on 'Forward Motion'

Madison, Wisconsin - A patient and his family inspired Dr. Joshua Medow, a UW Health neurosurgeon and biomedical engineer, to create the "Holy Grail" of brain monitoring.

Medow was a resident at University of Wisconsin Hospital when he saw yet another child come into the emergency room after the shunt designed to remove excess fluid from his brain malfunctioned.

The parents thought the child only had a headache; instead, pressure was building inside his head. Before the night was over, the child had slipped into a coma and was rushed into the operating room.

"It dawned on me, there must be a better way," said Medow, who now is the hospital's director of neurocritical care and an assistant professor of neurosurgery and biomedical engineering at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health.

With a three-year, $300,000 award from the Hartwell Foundation, Medow will be able to refine a new implantable device that will allow parents to easily monitor the pressure inside a child's head.

Now, Medow's medical breakthrough is being shared nationwide thanks to the Big Ten Network.

The story of the development of his brain pressure monitor was featured on "Forward Motion," a 30-minute news magazine spotlighting the inspiration behind some of UW-Madison's most innovative research and teaching. Watch the segment below: