Antonio Bernardo


Antonio Bernardo is an Italian-American neurosurgeon and academic physician. He is a Professor of Neurological Surgery and the Director of the Surgical Innovations Laboratory for Skull Base and Microneurosurgery in the Department of Neurological Surgery at Weill Cornell Medical College. He has gained significant notoriety for his expertise in skull base and cerebrovascular surgery, and has published extensively on minimally invasive neurosurgery. He is a pioneer in the use of 3D technology in neurosurgery and a strong advocate for competency-based training in surgery.

Early life

Bernardo was born in Santa Maria a Vico and raised in Naples, Italy.

Education

Bernardo earned his medical degree from the University of Naples Federico II in 1990 and completed residency training in neurosurgery at The Western General Hospital in Edinburgh, Scotland, which is part of NHS Lothian. During his residency, he worked extensively on the epidemiology and treatment of head injury and hemorrhagic stroke with Douglas Miller.
Following residency he trained in skull base and cerebrovascular surgery at the University of California, Irvine from 1997 to 1999 and subsequently completed fellowship training in Skull Base Surgery at the Barrow Neurological Institute, under the mentorship of Robert Spetzler.

Professional career

Following his time at the University of California, Irvine, Bernardo moved to Peru in 1999 and joined the as part of an effort to establish skull base surgery programs in hospitals throughout the country.
In 2000, Bernardo joined the neurosurgery faculty of the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, where he was also the co-Director of their Microneurosurgery Skull Base Laboratory.
Following completion of his fellowship at the Barrow Neurological Institute, he joined the Faculty of Weill Cornell Medical College in 2004 where he is currently a Professor of Neurosurgery and the Director of the Surgical Innovations Lab for Skull Base and Microneurosurgery.
Bernardo co-founded the , a research and training facility for neurosurgeons, wherein he directs a fellowship training program in skull base and microneurosurgery. The laboratory works on the development of new operative techniques in neurosurgery as well as the integration of neurosurgery with novel technologies. Bernardo's current areas of research include minimally invasive and transtubular neurosurgery, surgical simulation and planning, surgical robotics, flexible endoscopy, flexible surgical instrumentation, white matter navigation, 3D printing, virtual and augmented reality, and the development of novel operative techniques in microneurosurgery.
Bernardo currently practices neurosurgery in several countries where he exclusively operates complex skull base and cerebrovascular surgical cases.

Humanitarian work

Bernardo has been a vocal proponent for the advancement of neurosurgical education in developing countries and has provided educational opportunities for surgeons from around the world through courses and his fellowship program. Since 1999, he has regularly volunteered his time for surgery and to teach surgeons in a number of developing countries in Latin America.

Awards

Books and book chapters