Neurosurgery is surgery of the nervous system. A neurological surgeon, or neurosurgeon, is a specialist who is trained in surgery of the nervous system, and can perform surgery on the brain, spinal cord, or other parts of the nervous system. This specialist is sometimes called a brain surgeon. The neurosurgeon also works with patients to diagnose, evaluate, and treat diseases or disorders of the nervous system, and aids in critical care of patients before, during and after surgery.

Physicians in this specialty treat patients suffering from numerous diseases and illnesses, but some of the most common are spondylolisthesis, spinal stenosis, spinal injury, herniated disc, brain tumors, stroke, spinal cord tumors, scoliosis, epilepsy, spinal infection, spinal discectomy, spinal deformity, brain tumor, coma, seizure, alzheimer's disease, cerebral palsy, meningitis, multiple sclerosis, and parkinson's disease.

Once properly diagnosed, practitioners can perform numerous procedures on patients including disc disease / surgery, back / spine surgery , invasive disc surgery, kyphosis surgery, laminectomy, deep brain stimulation, endoscopic surgery, craniotomy, stereotactic radiosurgery, microsurgery, endoscopic management, cordotomy, transphenoidal surgery, and radiation implants.

To diagnose patients with possible illnesses and diseases, specialists will often perform one of many tests including mri scan of the brain, mri scan of the spine, cat scan of the brain, ct scan of the brain, magnetic resonance imaging (mri), computed axial tomography (ct or cat scan), myelogram, spinal tap, lumbar puncture (lp), electromyography (emg), cerebral angiogram, electroencephalography, electronystagmography (eng), nerve conduction velocity (ncv), spinal puncture, positron emission tomography (pet scan), myelography, ocular pressures, evoked potentials studies, and myogram.

Doctor density varies by specialty and location. Florida has 412 practicing neurosurgeons. Broken out by city, neurosurgery doctor density in Atlantis is 3, in Aventura is 4, in Boca Raton is 5, in Bonita Springs is 6, in Boynton Beach is 2, in Bradenton is 5, in Brooksville is 2, in Cape Coral is 10, in Clearwater is 8, in Clermont is 1, in Coral Gables is 1, in Daytona Beach is 5, in Deerfield Beach is 1, in Defuniak Springs is 1, in Delray Beach is 4, in Destin is 4, in Doral is 1, in Dunedin is 4, in Fort Lauderdale is 16, in Fort Myers is 20, in Fort Pierce is 1, in Fort Walton Beach is 5, in Fruitland Park is 1, in Gainesville is 39, in Gainsville is 5, in Gulf Breeze is 3, in Hialeah is 6, in Hollywood is 7, in Immokalee is 2, in Indian Harbour Beach is 1, in Inverness is 1, in Jacksonville is 41, in Juno Beach is 1, in Jupiter is 3, in Kissimmee is 5, in Lady Lake is 1, in Lake Butler is 1, in Lake City is 1, in Lake Mary is 4, in Lake Worth is 3, in Lakeland is 8, in Largo is 1, in Lecanto is 1, in Leesburg is 2, in Longwood is 1, in Margate is 2, in Melbourne is 9, in Miami is 42, in Miami Beach is 4, in Miami Lakes is 1, in Mount Dora is 2, in Naples is 9, in New Port Richey is 4, in Niceville is 2, in North Miami Beach is 4, in Ocala is 7, in Ocoee is 3, in Orange City is 1, in Orange Park is 1, in Orlando is 28, in Ormond Beach is 3, in Oviedo is 1, in Palm Beach Gardens is 5, in Palm Coast is 1, in Palm Springs is 1, in Panama City is 4, in Panama City Beach is 1, in Pembroke Pines is 2, in Pensacola is 9, in Pinellas Park is 2, in Plantation is 5, in Pompano Beach is 7, in Port Richey is 1, in Port Saint Lucie is 2, in Punta Gorda is 1, in Rockledge is 1, in Safety Harbor is 1, in Saint Augustine is 1, in Saint Petersburg is 15, in Sanford is 1, in Sarasota is 14, in Sebastian is 1, in Sebring is 1, in South Miami is 1, in South Pasadena is 1, in Spring Hill is 1, in Stuart is 5, in Sun City Center is 1, in Tallahassee is 5, in Tamarac is 4, in Tampa is 48, in Titusville is 2, in Venice is 4, in Vero Beach is 4, in Weeki Wachee is 1, in West Palm Beach is 7, in Weston is 6, in Winter Haven is 4, in Winter Park is 12, and in Zephyrhills is 1.

Florida’s warm and humid subtropical climate makes it a winter destination for many. Population in 2000 was 15,982,378, according to census statistics. Tallahassee, located in the north panhandle area, is the state capital. Tourism is a major industry in Florida, with Cape Canaveral, Disney World, the Everglades National Park, Universal Studios, the Atlantic coast and the Gulf coast all destinations for visitors and residents. Year-round outdoor activities include camping, golf, scuba diving, snorkeling, fishing and boating.

According to 2005 Census estimates, Florida has a population of 17,789,864. Of this population, 3,975,071 are under the age of 18 and 2,978,335 are at or above the age of 65.