Prof. Etminan's career began with medical studies at the Heinrich Heine University in Düsseldorf and the Technical University of Munich. After completing his doctorate on glioblastomas, a common and aggressive type of brain tumor, he continued his specialist training in neurosurgery. In 2009/2010, he deepened his surgical experience and research in vascular neurosurgery and skull base surgery at the renowned University of Toronto. Back in Germany, Prof. Etminan specialized in the surgical treatment of cerebrovascular diseases and brain tumors in Düsseldorf and later in Mannheim. Since 2020, he has headed the various working groups of the European Stroke Organization and the German Society of Neurology/AWMF, which develops guidelines for the treatment of brain aneurysms and aneurysmal subarachnoid haemorrhage. A central focus of his scientific work (see below) is research into aneurysms, i.e. bulges in the walls of blood vessels that can cause potentially life-threatening cerebral haemorrhages. His research has led to new insights into the development and treatment of these vascular anomalies and he has been instrumental in the development of drug therapies. In 2017, Prof. Etminan initiated the world's first Phase III study on the drug treatment of aneurysms, a milestone in this field. His scientific excellence is demonstrated by numerous publications, review activities and memberships in international specialist societies.
The personal focus of Prof. Etminan's clinical work includes the treatment of complex neurovascular diseases (e.g. aneurysms, arteriovenous malformations or occlusions of cerebral arteries requiring EC-IC bypass surgery), skull base surgery (e.g. meningiomas) and the surgical treatment of brain or spinal cord tumors in adults and children.
In addition to his passion for neurovascular diseases, Prof. Etminan has specialized over the last 15 years in the surgical treatment of brain tumors, particularly in the area of the so-called cerebellopontine angle. The most common tumors at this location include vestibular schwannomas (also known as “acoustic neuromas”) and petroclival meningiomas.
These tumors, which are often diagnosed primarily due to increasing symptoms of dizziness or hearing loss, require a high degree of “manual” skill and specialization - similar to the surgical treatment of cerebrovascular diseases. Thanks to the highly specialized team and the use of state-of-the-art technologies, in particular neurophysiological monitoring, the treatment of these tumors can now be carried out very effectively and safely (with regard to facial paralysis and/or hearing loss) at the Neurosurgery Clinic at the UMM.
The Neurosurgery Clinic at the University Medical Center Mannheim is one of the most modern clinics in Germany in terms of equipment and has high-tech technologies, such as robot-assisted surgical microscopes with augmented reality or intraoperative angiography systems. These technologies make it possible, for example, to visualize tumors, adjacent brain, vascular or spinal structures in real time during the operation and thus maximize the safety of neurosurgical procedures.
Through his outstanding clinical-surgical and scientific expertise, his highly focused specialization and his interdisciplinary approach, Prof. Etminan has decisively shaped vascular neurosurgery and skull base surgery and established the University Medical Centre Mannheim as a leading center for the treatment of patients with neurovascular diseases and skull base tumors.
