Dr. Mohana Rao Patibandla’s Dr. Rao’s Hospital Champions Advanced Neurosurgery in Guntur with National Awards, BrainPath System, and Hybrid OR
Guntur, Andhra Pradesh (May 5, 2025) : Dr. Mohana Rao Patibandla, founder and chief neurosurgeon at Dr. Rao’s Hospital in Guntur, has recently earned top honors and led his institution to multiple pioneering achievements in neurosurgery. At the Sardar Patel Unity Summit & Awards 2025 (Goa, April 11, 2025), the Topnotch Foundation named him “Best Minimally Invasive Neurosurgeon, Spine Surgeon and Endovascular Surgeon in India 2025,” recognizing his “pioneering work in minimally invasive neurosurgery, spine surgery, and endovascular procedures” and his record of improving patient outcomes and access at ciso.economictimes.indiatimes ciso.economictimes.indiatimes. Under Dr. Patibandla’s leadership, Dr. Rao’s Hospital has performed the first-of-its-kind minimally invasive brain surgery in India using the BrainPath system health.economictimes.indiatimes and now boasts the nation’s only integrated neurosurgical hybrid operating theater—a full suite that combines biplane angiography, intraoperative CT, neuromonitoring and neuronavigation for real-time precision cio.economictimes.indiatimes cio.economictimes.indiatimes. These innovations, together with published research and integration with public health schemes, are raising the standard of care and expanding access to world-class neurosurgery in a Tier-3 city like Guntur cio.economictimes.indiatimes. cio.economictimes.indiatimes.
Dr. Patibandla’s journey underscores his commitment to bringing cutting-edge care to underserved regions. After extensive training in minimally invasive neurosurgery, neuro-oncology and endovascular techniques abroad, he chose to return to his homeland rather than pursue a lucrative international career ciso.economictimes.indiatimes. He established Dr. Rao’s Hospital in Guntur to make “world-class neurosurgical care accessible to underserved communities” outside India’s major metros ciso.economictimes.indiatimes ciso.economictimes.indiatime.The awards and press recognition note that his patient-centric innovations have “reduced recovery times and complications”, making high-quality neurosurgery available to a broader population ciso.economictimes.indiatimes cio.economictimes.indiatimes.
Innovation in surgical technique has been a hallmark of Dr. Patibandla’s practice. In April 2024, his team successfully performed India’s first BrainPath-guided neurosurgery to remove a deep-seated brain lesion health.economictimes.indiatimes. By using a small-port “BrainPath” access and advanced MRI tractography and neuronavigation to plan a patient-specific corridor, the procedure dramatically reduced trauma, blood loss and hospital stay for the patient health.economictimes.indiatimescio.economictimes.indiatimes. Dr. Patibandla exclaimed, “We are thrilled to bring the BrainPath system to Guntur and India, offering our patients a safer, more effective, and minimally invasive option for brain surgery. This achievement is a testament to our relentless pursuit of innovation and our unwavering commitment to delivering the highest quality of care ”health.economictimes.indiatimes. He has also presented research on Minimally Invasive Port-Based Parafascicular Surgery (MIPS) for brain tumors at a state neurosurgeons’ conference, demonstrating excellent patient outcomes: among 37 patients the team studied, 90% reported reduced pain and over half showed improved functional status after surgery health.economictimes.indiatimes. According to ET HealthWorld, this study “represents a significant advancement in neurosurgery ”health.economictimes.indiatimes. and confirms that the MIPS technique safely maximizes tumor removal while minimizing complications health.economictimes.indiatimes.
The hospital’s infrastructure is equally state-of-the-art. Dr. Rao’s Hospital features India’s only hybrid neurosurgical OT of its kind, with a built-in biplane cath-lab and intraoperative CT scanner that allow both open and endovascular interventions under one roof cio.economictimes.indiatimes. This enables local physicians to perform complex brain aneurysm coiling, stroke thrombectomy and spine procedures that normally require travel to Delhi or Mumbai. To fully leverage these tools, Dr. Patibandla has invested in training his team on AI-assisted diagnostics, robotic guidance and real-time imaging cio.economictimes.indiatimes. ET CIO reports that “orchestrating a systems-level intervention” – importing global technology and relentlessly upskilling staff – has “redefined what’s possible outside India’s metro corridors” cio.economictimes.indiatimes. The hospital’s surgical suites also include a spine suite and neuronavigation systems, so that procedures like minimally invasive scoliosis correction or deep brain stimulation are done with millimeter precision. In short, Dr. Rao’s Guntur facility now matches or exceeds the capabilities of big-city hospitals, making it “a prototype for the future of neurosurgery in India” cio.economictimes.indiatimes.
Beyond technology, Dr. Patibandla emphasizes education, training and social outreach. His hospital regularly hosts continuing-education workshops for neurosurgeons and nurses on the latest minimally invasive spine and brain surgery techniques, neuro-navigation and intraoperative imaging systems cio.economictimes.indiatimes. These hands-on training initiatives help disseminate best practices across the region’s medical community. The hospital has also enrolled with government health schemes (such as Andhra Pradesh’s Aarogyasri program) to provide subsidized or free surgery for low-income patients cio.economictimes.indiatimes. According to ET CIO, while “alignment with government-backed schemes… signals a commitment to inclusion,” further work remains to integrate telemedicine, digital health records and portable insurance into a truly inclusive model cio.economictimes.indiatimes cio.economictimes.indiatimes. In response, Dr. Rao’s team is building tele-ICU links and state-wide referral networks so that even patients in remote districts can receive specialist consults. As one local health worker observed, the hospital delivers life-saving care with technology “that doesn’t exist in most of India,” illustrating both the breakthroughs achieved and the ongoing challenges of access cio.economictimes.indiatimes.
Dr. Patibandla views these efforts as part of a broader push toward healthcare decentralization and equity. By demonstrating that world-class neurosurgery can thrive in Guntur, he challenges the notion that excellence must be confined to metros cio.economictimes.indiatimes. cio.economictimes.indiatimes. In the words of ET CIO, “Dr. Rao’s hospital is not just a local success story—it’s a benchmark for what Indian healthcare can aspire to” cio.economictimes.indiatimes. Moving forward, his team plans to expand research, further integrate AI diagnostics into care, and train a new generation of neurosurgeons, all while keeping patient outcomes at the center of its mission.
Quote: “We are thrilled to bring the BrainPath system to Guntur and India, offering our patients a safer, more effective, and minimally invasive option for brain surgery,” Dr. Patibandla said. “This achievement is a testament to our relentless pursuit of innovation and our unwavering commitment to delivering the highest quality of care to our patients.”health.economictimes.indiatimes.
Press Contact: Media Relations, Dr. Rao’s Hospital, Guntur, Andhra Pradesh. Tel: +++++++++++++++++++++++++++1800 412 7790. Email: info@drraoshospital.com.