Dr. V. Rajshekhar

Dr. Vedantam Rajshekhar is a distinguished neurosurgeon, clinician-scientist and academician with more than four decades of service in neurosurgery at Christian Medical College (CMC), Vellore. He joined the faculty of the Department of Neurosurgery in 1987 after completing his M.Ch. Neurosurgery at CMC Vellore. His clinical and academic interests have included stereotactic and functional neurosurgery, cervical spine and craniovertebral junction surgery, spinal dysraphism, neuro-oncology, and neurocysticercosis. He has developed extensive expertise in complex neurological conditions through a combination of surgical practice, clinical research and protocol-based patient care.

During his career, Dr. Rajshekhar played a significant role in establishing and advancing stereotactic and functional neurosurgery at CMC Vellore. He developed stereotactic morphological and lesional surgery for Parkinson’s disease and was instrumental in establishing the institution’s stereotactic radiosurgery programme in 1995. He also contributed to endoscopic pituitary surgery and advanced techniques for cervical spine disease. His work in neurocysticercosis was particularly influential: through stereotactic biopsy of solitary enhancing lesions in patients with seizures, his team identified the entity now known as solitary cysticercus granuloma, helping distinguish these lesions from conditions previously treated empirically with antituberculous therapy.

Dr. Rajshekhar established a dedicated neurocysticercosis research team at CMC and contributed to international efforts to develop diagnostic and management guidelines. His academic work has resulted in more than 340 publications and over 12,000 citations. He has held leadership positions in national and international professional societies and has contributed to neurosurgical education, research methodology, patient-safety initiatives and academic publishing. He retired from CMC Vellore on 15 April 2024 after completing four decades of service.

Educational Qualifications

• M.Ch. in Neurosurgery, Christian Medical College (CMC), Vellore
• Fellow of the Indian Academy of Sciences, elected in 2011
• Fellow of the National Academy of Medical Sciences, awarded in 2008

Fellowship & Areas of Interest

• Cerebrovascular Research Fellowship, Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, USA — 1989–1991
• Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery
• Cervical Spine and Craniovertebral Junction Surgery
• Neurocysticercosis
• Spinal Dysraphism
• Endoscopic Pituitary Surgery
• Neuro-Oncology and Radiosurgery

Research Contributions & Publications

Dr. Rajshekhar has made major contributions to clinical neurosurgery and academic research, particularly in neurocysticercosis, stereotactic surgery and cervical spine disease. He has more than 340 publications with more than 12,000 citations. His research has frequently focused on clinically relevant problems and has contributed to changes in treatment protocols and patient-care practices.

• Advanced stereotactic approaches for morphological and lesional surgery, including procedures for Parkinson’s disease.
• Contributed to the recognition and understanding of solitary cysticercus granuloma through stereotactic excision biopsy of solitary enhancing lesions in patients with seizures.
• Established and developed a neurocysticercosis research programme with international collaborations.
• Contributed to international committees involved in diagnostic and management guidelines for neurocysticercosis.
• Published extensively on cervical spine disease and uninstrumented cervical corpectomy.
• Contributed to stereotactic radiosurgery, endoscopic pituitary surgery and spinal dysraphism.
• Research supported by organisations including ICMR, the Government of Belgium, DBT/NIH and NIH.

Awards, Honours, and Recognitions

• Shakuntala Devi Amir Chand Award for Young Scientists, Indian Council of Medical Research — 1996.
• Fr. Lourdu F. Yeddanapalli Award for Outstanding Research, Christian Medical College — 1999.
• Basanti Devi Amir Chand Award, Indian Council of Medical Research — 2007.
• Fellow of the National Academy of Medical Sciences — 2008.
• Fellow of the Indian Academy of Sciences, Bangalore — 2011.

​​​​​Specialization

• Neurosurgery
• Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery
• Cervical Spine Surgery
• Craniovertebral Junction Surgery
• Neurocysticercosis
• Spinal Dysraphism
• Neuro-Oncology
• Radiosurgery

Dr. Rajshekhar joined the Department of Neurosurgery at Christian Medical College, Vellore, as faculty in 1987 following completion of his M.Ch. training. He served the institution for four decades, combining clinical neurosurgery, teaching, research and academic leadership, before retiring on 15 April 2024.

• Faculty, Department of Neurosurgery, Christian Medical College, Vellore — from 1987.
• Cerebrovascular Research Fellow, Dartmouth Medical School, Hanover, New Hampshire, USA — 1989–1991.
• Senior academic and clinical neurosurgical leadership at CMC Vellore.
• Developed stereotactic neurosurgical services and contributed to CMC Vellore’s stereotactic radiosurgery programme.
• Contributed to endoscopic pituitary surgery and advanced cervical spine surgery at CMC.
• Retired from Christian Medical College, Vellore, on 15 April 2024 after four decades of service.