Doris Wang, MD, PhD
Associate Professor
Neurological Surgery
School of Medicine

Wang uses deep brain stimulation devices – implantable devices that can send electric signals to specific areas of the brain – in her research to better understand the dynamics of neural networks that develop as humans learn motor skills. Her goal is to develop targeted treatments that restore motor skill learning in patients with brain diseases and injuries.

Wang earned her doctorate in neuroscience and her medical degree at UCSF, where she also completed a residency in neurosurgery. During her residency, she developed an interest in functional neurosurgery, which utilizes a variety of techniques to restore or improve brain function. Also at UCSF, she completed a fellowship in stereotactic and functional neurosurgery, which involves using advanced imaging techniques such as computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging to guide neurosurgical procedures.

A member of the UCSF community since 2004, Wang shares the institution's values and commitment to advancing patient care while deepening scientific understanding of neurological disorders. She belongs to the Congress of Neurological Surgeons, American Association of Neurological Surgeons and American Society for Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery.

• Proceedings of the 10th annual deep brain stimulation think tank: Advances in cutting edge technologies, artificial intelligence, neuromodulation, neuroethics, interventional psychiatry, and women in neuromodulation.
  Frontiers in human neuroscience 2023 Wong JK, Mayberg HS, Wang DD, Richardson RM, Halpern CH, Krinke L, Arlotti M, Rossi L, Priori A, Marceglia S, Gilron R, Cavanagh JF, Judy JW, Miocinovic S, Devergnas AD, Sillitoe RV, Cernera S, Oehrn …
• Improved psychotic symptoms following resection of amygdalar low-grade glioma: illustrative case.
  Journal of neurosurgery. Case lessons 2022 Andrews JP, Wozny TA, Yue JK, Wang DD
• Cortico-Subthalamic Field Potentials Support Classification of the Natural Gait Cycle in Parkinson's Disease and Reveal Individualized Spectral Signatures.
  eNeuro 2022 Louie KH, Gilron R, Yaroshinsky MS, Morrison MA, Choi J, de Hemptinne C, Little S, Starr PA, Wang DD
• Seizure outcome after resection of insular glioma: a systematic review, meta-analysis, and institutional experience.
  Journal of neurosurgery 2022 Zhang JJY, Lee KS, Wang DD, Hervey-Jumper SL, Berger MS
• Targeting Accuracy and Clinical Outcomes of Awake versus Asleep Interventional Magnetic Resonance Imaging-Guided Deep Brain Stimulation for Parkinson's Disease: The University of California, San Francisco Experience.
  Neurosurgery 2022 Lee AT, Han KJ, Nichols N, Sudhakar VR, Burke JF, Wozny TA, Chung JE, Volz MM, Ostrem JL, Martin AJ, Larson PS, Starr PA, Wang DD
• Ventral Intermediate Nucleus of the Thalamus versus Posterior Subthalamic Area: Network Meta-Analysis of DBS Target Site Efficacy for Essential Tremor.
  Stereotactic and functional neurosurgery 2022 Kondapavulur S, Silva AB, Wang DD
• Use of Topical Vancomycin Powder to Reduce Surgical Site Infections after Deep Brain Stimulation Surgery: UCSF Experience and Meta-Analysis.
  Stereotactic and functional neurosurgery 2021 Kondapavulur S, Burke JF, Volz M, Wang DD, Starr PA
• Epidural Spinal Electrogram Provides Direct Spinal Recordings in Awake Human Participants.
  Frontiers in human neuroscience 2021 Burke JF, Kunwar N, Yaroshinsky MS, Louie KH, Shirvalkar P, Su P, Henry M, Pasvankas G, Poree L, Jacques L, Wang DD
• Long-term wireless streaming of neural recordings for circuit discovery and adaptive stimulation in individuals with Parkinson's disease.
  Nature biotechnology 2021 Gilron R, Little S, Perrone R, Wilt R, de Hemptinne C, Yaroshinsky MS, Racine CA, Wang SS, Ostrem JL, Larson PS, Wang DD, Galifianakis NB, Bledsoe IO, San Luciano M, Dawes HE, Worrell GA, Kremen V, …
• DBS targeting for essential tremor using intersectional dentato-rubro-thalamic tractography and direct proton density visualization of the VIM: technical note on 2 cases.
  Journal of neurosurgery 2021 Morrison MA, Lee AT, Martin AJ, Dietiker C, Brown EG, Wang DD
• Freezing of Gait in Parkinson's Disease: Invasive and Noninvasive Neuromodulation.
  Neuromodulation : journal of the International Neuromodulation Society 2020 Rahimpour S, Gaztanaga W, Yadav AP, Chang SJ, Krucoff MO, Cajigas I, Turner DA, Wang DD
• Brain Network Oscillations During Gait in Parkinson's Disease.
  Frontiers in human neuroscience 2020 Wang DD, Choi JT
• Treatment of Post-Hypoxic Myoclonus using Pallidal Deep Brain Stimulation Placed Using Interventional MRI Methods.
  Tremor and other hyperkinetic movements (New York, N.Y.) 2020 Gao F, Ostrem JL, Wang DD
• Long-term pain outcomes in elderly patients with trigeminal neuralgia: comparison of first-time microvascular decompression and stereotactic radiosurgery.
  Neurosurgical focus 2020 Raygor KP, Lee AT, Nichols N, Wang DD, Ward MM, Barbaro NM, Chang EF
• Eight cylindrical contact lead recordings in the subthalamic region localize beta oscillations source to the dorsal STN.
  Neurobiology of disease 2020 Tamir I, Wang D, Chen W, Ostrem JL, Starr PA, de Hemptinne C
• Comparison of Stereotactic Radiosurgery and Radiofrequency Ablation for Trigeminal Neuralgia in Multiple Sclerosis Patients.
  Stereotactic and functional neurosurgery 2020 Lee AT, Raygor KP, Elefant F, Ward MM, Wang DD, Barbaro NM, Chang EF
• Trends in safety and cost of deep brain stimulation for treatment of movement disorders in the United States: 2002-2014.
  British journal of neurosurgery 2020 Deng H, Yue JK, Wang DD
• Simultaneous cortical and subcortical recordings in humans with movement disorders: Acute and chronic paradigms.
  NeuroImage 2020 Wozny TA, Wang DD, Starr PA
• Local Field Potentials and ECoG.
  2020 Doris D. Wang, Witney Chen, Philip A. Starr, Coralie de Hemptinne
• Cortical Basal Ganglia Network Interactions During Sequence Learning in Parkinson's Disease.
  Neurosurgery 2019 Doris D Wang, Coralie de Hemptinne, Roee Gilron, Philip A Starr
• Pallidal Thermolesion Unleashes Gamma Oscillations in the Motor Cortex in Parkinson's Disease.
  Neurosurgery 2019 Doris D Wang, Coralie de Hemptinne, Svjetlana Miocinovic, Witney Chen, Jill L Ostrem, Philip A Starr
• Pallidal thermolesion unleashes gamma oscillations in the motor cortex in Parkinson's disease.
  Movement disorders : official journal of the Movement Disorder Society 2019 de Hemptinne C, Wang DD, Miocinovic S, Chen W, Ostrem JL, Starr PA
• Long-term pain outcomes for recurrent idiopathic trigeminal neuralgia after stereotactic radiosurgery: a prospective comparison of first-time microvascular decompression and repeat stereotactic radiosurgery.
  Journal of neurosurgery 2018 Raygor KP, Wang DD, Ward MM, Barbaro NM, Chang EF
• Seizure Outcome After Surgical Resection of Insular Glioma.
  Neurosurgery 2018 Wang DD, Deng H, Hervey-Jumper SL, Molinaro AA, Chang EF, Berger MS
• Multiple Subpial Transections for Medically Refractory Epilepsy: A Disaggregated Review of Patient-Level Data.
  Neurosurgery 2018 Rolston JD, Deng H, Wang DD, Englot DJ, Chang EF
• Pallidal Deep-Brain Stimulation Disrupts Pallidal Beta Oscillations and Coherence with Primary Motor Cortex in Parkinson's Disease.
  The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience 2018 Wang DD, de Hemptinne C, Miocinovic S, Ostrem JL, Galifianakis NB, San Luciano M, Starr PA
• 326 Characterization of Synchronization Between Globus Pallidus Neurons and Motor Cortex in Parkinson's Disease.
  Neurosurgery 2017 Doris D Wang, Nicki Swann, Coralie de Hemptinne, Philip A Starr
• 380 Seizure Outcome After Surgical Sesection of Insular Glioma.
  Neurosurgery 2017 Doris D Wang, Shawn L Hervey-Jumper, Edward F Chang, Mitchel S Berger
• Changing Operating Room Culture: Implementation of a Postoperative Debrief and Improved Safety Culture.
  World neurosurgery 2017 Magill ST, Wang DD, Rutledge WC, Lau D, Berger MS, Sankaran S, Lau CY, Imershein SG
• Neurosurgical "Squeeze Play": Single Incision with Dual Ipsilateral Craniotomies Versus 2 Separate Approaches for Intracranial Aneurysm Treatment.
  World neurosurgery 2017 Burkhardt JK, Haider AS, Rutledge WC, Wang D, Hannegan L, Lawton MT
• Prospective comparison of long-term pain relief rates after first-time microvascular decompression and stereotactic radiosurgery for trigeminal neuralgia.
  Journal of neurosurgery 2017 Wang DD, Raygor KP, Cage TA, Ward MM, Westcott S, Barbaro NM, Chang EF
• Anterior Transposition of Anomalous Tortuous Vertebral Artery Causing Cervical Radiculopathy: A Report of 2 Cases and Review of Literature.
  World neurosurgery 2017 Wang DD, Burkhardt JK, Magill ST, Lawton MT
• Spinal cavernous malformations.
  Handbook of clinical neurology 2017 Clark AJ, Wang DD, Lawton MT
• 206 Spikes, Slowing, and Functional Connectivity.
  Neurosurgery 2016 Dario J. Englot, John David Rolston, Doris D. Wang, Heidi E. Kirsch, Srikantan S. Nagarajan, Edward F. Chang
• 206 Spikes, Slowing, and Functional Connectivity: Multimodal Magnetoencephalography in Epilepsy Surgery.
  Neurosurgery 2016 Englot DJ, Rolston JD, Wang DD, Kirsch HE, Nagarajan SS, Chang EF
• Subthalamic local field potentials in Parkinson's disease and isolated dystonia: An evaluation of potential biomarkers.
  Neurobiology of disease 2016 Wang DD, de Hemptinne C, Miocinovic S, Qasim SE, Miller AM, Ostrem JL, Galifianakis NB, San Luciano M, Starr PA
• The sensitivity and significance of lateralized interictal slow activity on magnetoencephalography in focal epilepsy.
  Epilepsy research 2016 Englot DJ, Nagarajan SS, Wang DD, Rolston JD, Mizuiri D, Honma SM, Mantle M, Tarapore PE, Knowlton RC, Chang EF, Kirsch HE
• Surgical management of medically refractory epilepsy in patients with polymicrogyria.
  Epilepsia 2015 Wang DD, Knox R, Rolston JD, Englot DJ, Barkovich AJ, Tihan T, Auguste KI, Knowlton RC, Cornes SB, Chang EF
• Corpus callosotomy versus vagus nerve stimulation for atonic seizures and drop attacks: A systematic review.
  Epilepsy & behavior : E&B 2015 Rolston JD, Englot DJ, Wang DD, Garcia PA, Chang EF
• 200 Comparison of GPi Local Field Potential Characteristics in Patients With Parkinson Disease, Craniocervical Dystonia, and Generalized Dystonia.
  Neurosurgery 2015 Doris D. Wang, Coralie de Hemptinne, Salman Qasim, Svjetlana Miocinovic, Jill L. Ostrem, Philip A. Starr
• Cervicomedullary neurocysticercosis causing obstructive hydrocephalus.
  Journal of clinical neuroscience : official journal of the Neurosurgical Society of Australasia 2015 Wang DD, Huang MC
• Fast dynamic imaging technique to identify obstructive lesions in the CSF space: report of 2 cases.
  Journal of neurosurgery. Pediatrics 2015 Wang DD, Martin KW, Auguste KI, Sun PP
• National trends and complication rates for invasive extraoperative electrocorticography in the USA.
  Journal of clinical neuroscience : official journal of the Neurosurgical Society of Australasia 2015 Rolston JD, Ouyang D, Englot DJ, Wang DD, Chang EF
• Unilateral holohemispheric central nervous system lesions associated with medically refractory epilepsy in the pediatric population: a retrospective series of hemimegalencephaly and Rasmussen's encephalitis.
  Journal of neurosurgery. Pediatrics 2014 Wang DD, Benkli B, Auguste KI, Garcia PA, Sullivan J, Barkovich AJ, Chang EF, Tihan T
• Pain experience using conventional versus angled anterior posts during stereotactic head frame placement for radiosurgery.
  Journal of clinical neuroscience : official journal of the Neurosurgical Society of Australasia 2014 Wang DD, Lau D, Rolston JD, Englot DJ, Sneed PK, McDermott MW
• Trends in surgical treatment for trigeminal neuralgia in the United States of America from 1988 to 2008.
  Journal of clinical neuroscience : official journal of the Neurosurgical Society of Australasia 2013 Wang DD, Ouyang D, Englot DJ, Rolston JD, Molinaro AM, Ward M, Chang EF
• Seizure outcomes after temporal lobectomy in pediatric patients.
  Journal of neurosurgery. Pediatrics 2013 Englot DJ, Rolston JD, Wang DD, Sun PP, Chang EF, Auguste KI
• Transmantle sign in focal cortical dysplasia: a unique radiological entity with excellent prognosis for seizure control.
  Journal of neurosurgery 2012 Wang DD, Deans AE, Barkovich AJ, Tihan T, Barbaro NM, Garcia PA, Chang EF
• Relationship between hospital surgical volume, lobectomy rates, and adverse perioperative events at US epilepsy centers.
  Journal of neurosurgery 2012 Englot DJ, Ouyang D, Wang DD, Rolston JD, Garcia PA, Chang EF
• Efficacy of vagus nerve stimulation in posttraumatic versus nontraumatic epilepsy.
  Journal of neurosurgery 2012 Englot DJ, Rolston JD, Wang DD, Hassnain KH, Gordon CM, Chang EF
• Minocycline- and tetracycline-class antibiotics are protective against partial seizures in vivo.
  Epilepsy & behavior : E&B 2012 Wang DD, Englot DJ, Garcia PA, Lawton MT, Young WL
• Comparison of seizure control outcomes and the safety of vagus nerve, thalamic deep brain, and responsive neurostimulation: evidence from randomized controlled trials.
  Neurosurgical focus 2012 Rolston JD, Englot DJ, Wang DD, Shih T, Chang EF
• Rates and predictors of long-term seizure freedom after frontal lobe epilepsy surgery: a systematic review and meta-analysis.
  Journal of neurosurgery 2012 Englot DJ, Wang DD, Rolston JD, Shih TT, Chang EF
• Predictors of seizure freedom after surgery for malformations of cortical development.
  Annals of neurology 2011 Chang EF, Wang DD, Barkovich AJ, Tihan T, Auguste KI, Sullivan JE, Garcia PA, Barbaro NM
• Spontaneous otogenic pneumocephalus presenting with occipital subcutaneous emphysema as primary symptom: could tension gas cause the destruction of cranial bones?
  Journal of neurosurgery 2011 Zhao N, Wang DD, Huang X, Karri SK, Wu H, Zheng M
• Homotopic organization of essential language sites in right and bilateral cerebral hemispheric dominance.
  Journal of neurosurgery 2011 Chang EF, Wang DD, Perry DW, Barbaro NM, Berger MS
• Advanced Neuroimaging for Modern Epilepsy Surgery.
  European Neurological Review 2011 Doris D Wang, Carlos Santos-Sanchez, Paul A Garcia, Edward F Chang
• Advanced Neuroimaging for Modern Epilepsy Surgery.
  US Neurology 2011 Doris D Wang, Carlos Santos-Sanchez, Paul A Garcia, Edward F Chang
• Blocking early GABA depolarization with bumetanide results in permanent alterations in cortical circuits and sensorimotor gating deficits.
  Cerebral cortex (New York, N.Y. : 1991) 2010 Wang DD, Kriegstein AR
• Defining the role of GABA in cortical development.
  The Journal of physiology 2009 Wang DD, Kriegstein AR
• The astrocyte odyssey.
  Progress in neurobiology 2008 Wang DD, Bordey A
• GABA regulates stem cell proliferation before nervous system formation.
  Epilepsy currents 2008 Wang DD, Kriegstein AR, Ben-Ari Y
• GABA regulates excitatory synapse formation in the neocortex via NMDA receptor activation.
  The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience 2008 Wang DD, Kriegstein AR
• Gap junction adhesion is necessary for radial migration in the neocortex.
  Nature 2007 Elias LA, Wang DD, Kriegstein AR
• Bergmann glial GlyT1 mediates glycine uptake and release in mouse cerebellar slices.
  The Journal of physiology 2004 Huang H, Barakat L, Wang D, Bordey A
• GABA depolarizes neuronal progenitors of the postnatal subventricular zone via GABAA receptor activation.
  The Journal of physiology 2003 Wang DD, Krueger DD, Bordey A
• Biophysical properties and ionic signature of neuronal progenitors of the postnatal subventricular zone in situ.
  Journal of neurophysiology 2003 Wang DD, Krueger DD, Bordey A
• Carrier-mediated uptake and release of taurine from Bergmann glia in rat cerebellar slices.
  The Journal of physiology 2002 Barakat L, Wang D, Bordey A