Dr. John Neal performs general brain and spinal neurosurgery. He has special expertise in functional and stereotactic neurosurgery, which is a minimally invasive surgery allowing a surgeon precise access to deep areas of the brain.
He utilizes Gamma Knife® radiosurgery, which uses focused radiation to treat tumors, vascular abnormalities, and trigeminal neuralgia (facial pain). He treats patients who have Parkinson's disease, essential tremor, epilepsy and behavioral conditions such as obsessive-compulsive disorder with deep brain stimulation, an implanted device that sends electrical impulses to specific parts of the brain.
He is also trained in and offers Inspire® Sleep Apnea Therapy, a surgically implanted treatment for obstructive sleep apnea.
Dr. Neal was instrumental in bringing the Gamma Knife to central Wisconsin and in establishing the deep brain stimulation program at Marshfield Clinic.
Dr. Neal earned his medical degree from Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, and completed his neurosurgery residency at the University of Southern California, Los Angeles. He served on faculty at the University of California, Irvine, prior to moving to Marshfield.
He believes in public service and was an active sworn law enforcement officer in Wisconsin for 20 years. He is a sworn reserve deputy in California, where he enjoys surfing and skiing when not working in Marshfield.