UTHealth professor wins Founders' Laurel Award for exceptional service in the field of medical education

Arthur L. Day, M.D., professor of neurosurgery at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) and a neurosurgeon at the Mischer Neuroscience Institute at Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center, has received one of the top honors awarded by the Congress of Neurological Surgeons.

At the association's annual meeting in San Francisco Oct. 19-23, Day was presented the Founders' Laurel Award in recognition of his exceptional service, lifelong dedication and meritorious accomplishments in the field of medical education.

Day is recognized internationally for his expertise in cerebrovascular and skull base neurosurgery and directs the neurosurgery residency training program at the UTHealth Medical School. The program trains doctors focusing on the care of conditions tied to the central nervous system.

He is a past president of the association dedicated to advancing neurosurgery by providing members with educational and career development opportunities. Day has also served as chairman of the American Board of Neurological Surgery and recently concluded his presidency of the Society of Neurological Surgeons.

Day also treats people with tumors in a pea-sized organ at the base of the brain called the pituitary gland, which manages the body's production of hormones. While the majority of these tumors are benign, they can lead to problems including headaches, nausea and vision problems. It has been estimated that up to 20 percent of people have pituitary tumors but these tumors typically don't cause any problems.

He leads The Pituitary Tumor and Vision Change Clinic that is affiliated with Mischer Neuroscience Associates at Memorial Hermann-TMC. Offering less invasive tumor removal, the clinic's doctors can sometimes remove tumors with the aid of a flexible medical device (an endoscope) inserted through a patient's nose. Other treatment options include surgery, chemotherapy and radiation. The information number is 713-704-7100.

He received his medical degree from Louisiana State University School of Medicine in New Orleans. He completed a neurological surgery residency and a brain tumor immunology/neuropathology fellowship at The University of Florida at Gainesville.