Multiple Sclerosis Centers of Excellence
Multiple Sclerosis Regional Specialty Program Directors
If you would like to contact any of the MS Regional Specialty Program Directors below, please send an e-mail to MSCentersofExcellence@va.gov. To learn about the national network of MS care, visit our network webpage.
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Robert Archer, MD - Little Rock, ARDr. Archer grew up in south Arkansas, in El Dorado. He attended college at the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville, graduating in 1978 with a BS in Natural Sciences. He then attended the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences College of Medicine (UAMS), followed by a residency in Neurology. He climbed the academic ranks after finishing residency in 1986, becoming professor and chair of the department in 2016. He continued as chair until 2023, when he stepped down and returned to full time clinical duties. He simultaneously worked 10% of his time at the Little Rock VAMC, staffing the MS clinic from about 1995 to 2016. In August 2024 he returned to the Little Rock VA to again staff the MS clinic. MS treatment and research has been the focus of his career at both the VA and UAMS. |
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Francesca Bagnato, MD, PhD - Nashville, TN
Dr. Bagnato is a general neurologist with special interest in neuroimmunological conditions. She is the Associate Director of Research for MSCoE-East. She sees patients with neuroimmunological diseases at the Neuroimmunology Clinic of Vanderbilt University Medical Center and at the Nashville VA HCS. Dr. Bagnato earned a medical degree at the University of Rome La Sapienza in 1996. She accomplished a dual European and American Residency in Neurology, which she completed at the University of Rome La Sapienza and the University of Maryland in Baltimore, MD. She earned a PhD in neuroscience which she completed while performing her studies at the National Institutes of Health in 2006. In 2015, Dr. Bagnato was recruited to establish the neuroimaging program of the neuroimmunology division at Vanderbilt University Medical Center where she is currently the Associate Vice Chair of Research for the Department of Neurology. Dr. Bagnato continuously serves in numerous national and International Research Advisory Committees and is a standing member of the National Medical Advisory Committee of the National MS Society and the steering committee of the North American Imaging in MS (NAIMS) consortium. |
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Carolyn Bevan, MD - Chicago, ILDr. Bevan is the Associate Director of Clinical Care for MSCoE-West. She received her medical degree from Dartmouth Geisel School of Medicine, then completed her neurology residency at Columbia University followed by a fellowship in MS and Clinical Neuroimmunology at the University of California San Francisco. She is the Director of the Jesse Brown MS RSP in Chicago, IL and maintains an academic affiliation with Northwestern University and University of Illinois Chicago. She serves as the Associate Director for Subspecialty Care for the VA National Tele-Neurology Program. In this role she works to expand access to subspecialty neurology care for Veterans living in rural and underserved areas. |
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Aaron Bower, MD - West Haven, CT
Dr. Aaron Bower is an Assistant Professor of Neurology at the Yale School of Medicine and Director of the MS Center at the West Haven VA Hospital in Connecticut. He is a board-certified neurologist who completed fellowship training in MS and Neuroimmunology at Yale School of Medicine, where he also completed his residency training in Neurology. He specializes in the multidisciplinary management of patients with inflammatory disorders of the central nervous system. Outside of his clinical responsibilities, Dr. Bower has a passion for medical education, facilitating the training of physicians on these unique neurologic conditions. |
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Rachel Brandstadter, MD - Philadelphia, PADr. Rachel Brandstadter is an Assistant Professor of Clinical Neurology at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. She is the Director of the MS RSP at the Corporal Michael J Crescenz VAMC in Philadelphia. Dr. Brandstadter completed her medical school degree at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. She completed her neurology residency at Mount Sinai and she completed a two year clinical fellowship in neuroimmunology at the Corinne Goldsmith Dickinson Center for MS at Mount Sinai. At the University of Pennsylvania she is a provider in the Age-Span Women’s MS Program and is creating a dedicated NMOSD and MOG-antibody disorder program. Dr. Brandstadter has a passion for clinical education and enjoys working with Veterans with neuroimmunologic disorders. |
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Donald Bright, MD - Seattle, WA
Dr. Bright graduated from the University of Washington Medical School in 1992, followed by residency at Wilford Hall Medical Center in San Antonio, TX. While in the Air Force, he served as Assistant Professor of Neurology at the Uniformed Services University School of Medicine at Bethesda, MD and Andrews Air Force Base. From 2000 to 2017 he was in solo private practice in Bremerton, WA. Since 2017 he has been at the Seattle and American Lake VAs with emphasis on headache and MS. |
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Alton Bryant, MD - Salisbury, NCDr. Bryant has been the medical director of the Salisbury, NC VAMC’s MS clinic since 2016. Dr. Bryant attended medical school at Virginia Commonwealth University (Medical College of Virginia) in Richmond, VA. He completed neurology residency at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, NC. He completed fellowship training in epilepsy and electroencephalography at the University of Virginia in Charlottesville, VA. He has worked in private practice, in a not-for-profit integrated HCS, and since 2007 at the VAMC in Salisbury. In addition to the MS clinic, Dr. Bryant works in the general neurology clinics, seeing patients with a wide variety of neurological conditions. Dr. Bryant has a special interest in migraine headaches. He administers Botox injections and several of the newer migraine medications, and prescribes migraine neuromodulation devices. |
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Kathleen Burgess, MD, MS - Seattle, WA
Dr. Burgess has been Director of the MS RSP since 2014 at the Seattle and American Lake campuses of VA Puget Sound HCS, which covers about 400 Veterans with MS. The MS RSP is comprised of a multi-disciplinary team that works closely with Neurology and SCI/D. Some special features of the MS Program include an active telehealth program, weekly care conferences, advanced spasticity management including baclofen pump management and Botox injections, and a monthly Veteran support group. Dr. Burgess is an Associate Professor in the University of Washington Rehabilitation Medicine Department and is active in teaching medical students, residents, and fellows about MS, chronic pain, electromyography, and clinical ethics. |
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Adam Carpenter, MD - Minneapolis, MNDr. Carpenter is a neurologist specializing in MS and other inflammatory conditions of the central nervous system. He did his undergraduate education at Harvard College and medical school, Neurology residency and MS Fellowship training at the University of Minnesota. Dr. Carpenter sees patients at M-Health Fairview and the Minneapolis VA Medical Center. Dr. Carpenter also is involved in research at both the VA and the University of Minnesota. His research interests include clinical trials of therapeutics in MS and related disorders, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and other non-invasive methods of measuring brain structure and function, Gulf War Illness, and neuron culture models of central nervous system disease. |
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Vicky Chen, MD - Mather (Sacramento), CADr. Chen is a neurologist at the Sacramento VA Medical Center and the VA MS Regional Program Director for the Northern California Healthcare System. This encompasses sites from Redding to Modesto, California. She specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of MS and autoimmune conditions of the central nervous system. She completed her undergraduate training at UC San Diego. She obtained her MD at Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston, MA. She completed her neurology residency at Oregon Health & Sciences University in Portland, OR. She completed her fellowship in Neuroimmunology and MS at the Portland VA Medical Center. |
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Sarah Fredrich, MD - Baltimore, MD
Dr. Fredrich is an Assistant Professor of Neurology at the University of Maryland School Of Medicine. She specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of people with autoimmune disorders affecting the brain, spinal cord, and optic nerves. This includes, but is not limited to, multiple sclerosis, neurosarcoidosis, neuromyelitis optica, myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein associate disease, transverse myelitis, optic neuritis, and rheumatologic overlay syndromes. Dr. Fredrich is also involved in MS research and clinical trials investigating new drug therapies. |
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Marinella Galea, MD - Bronx, NY
Dr Galea is an Associate Professor of PM&R at Mount Sinai School of Medicine in NY and Assistant Professor of Medicine at New York Medical College. She earned a medical degree at the University of Milan Medical School, Italy. Dr Galea is Board Certified in Internal Medicine and Spinal Cord Medicine. She has been practicing since 2000 at the James J Peters VAMC (JJPVAMC) Spinal Cord Injury and Disorders (SCI/D) Center in NY where, in 2017, was appointed to the position of Chief of SCI/D. During her tenure, Dr Galea has expanded the services offered by the SCI/D Center to include Veterans with MS. Under her leadership, the JJPVAMC has become a MS Regional Specialty Program (MS RSP). As MS RSP Director, Dr Galea leads a multidisciplinary team of brilliant, energetic and dedicated clinicians who provide state-of-the-art care to Veterans with MS. She specializes in the care and rehabilitation of persons with disability; her mission is to empower them to achieve their potential, and best possible quality of life. Her expertise is in rehabilitative interventions to improve function and preventative measures to optimize clinical outcomes. She has received funding, from the DoD SCI Research Program, VA Rehabilitation Service, and industry to conduct research. She has published in numerous peer reviewed journals. |
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Jonathan Galli, MD - Salt Lake City, UTDr. Galli is a neurologist specializing in MS and other demyelinating conditions at both the Salt Lake City VA and the University of Utah. He completed residency and fellowship at the University of Utah. His clinical interests include the care of people with MS and other autoimmune neurological conditions, improving operations and patient access in clinic, and resident education. |
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Carol Gibson-Gill, MD, MSCS - East Orange, NJ
Dr. Gibson-Gill is an Internal Medicine medical doctor who is a MS Certified Specialist and the Chief of Spinal Cord Injury at the VA New Jersey Health Care System. She received her training from Rutgers - New Jersey Medical School. Dr. Gibson-Gill uses Whole Health modalities including Medical Acupuncture and applies Functional Medicine to the care she provides to the Veterans served at their Center. The use of virtual care modalities is integral to the care they provide to increase access to specialty care for Veterans living with MS, SCI, and ALS. She conducts clinical research in MS, SCI, and ALS care. |
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Jennifer Graves, MD, PhD, MAS - San Diego, CA
Dr. Graves is Professor and Vice Chair of Neurosciences and Division Head of Neuroimmunology at the University of California (UC), San Diego. She is also Director of the MS Regional Specialty Program at the San Diego VA and Director of the Rady Children's Pediatric MS Center. She completed an MD and PhD in Biophysics at the University of Texas Southwestern. She trained in Neurology at the University of Pennsylvania receiving the Arthur K Asbury Award for Clinical Excellence. She completed two fellowships in Neuro-ophthalmology at the University of Pennsylvania and MS and Clinical Research Methods at the UC, San Francisco. She has received grant support from the NIH, National MS Society, Race to Erase MS, and Foundation for the CMSC. Her current research focuses on the role of biological age on MS phenotype. She is also developing next-generation digital tools to assess neurological patients, leveraging sensors developed in the computer control industry as well as novel applications in mobile technology. Her other work includes the study of genetic, environmental, and sex-related factors on disease course in pediatric MS and the application of visual outcome measures in the pediatric population. She is a collaborator in several national and international research efforts in MS and participates in multi-center clinical trials. She serves on the board of IMSVisual and the editorial boards of Annals of Clinical and Translational Neurology and Neurology. |
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Robert Gross, MD - Aurora (Denver), CO
Dr. Gross is an Assistant Professor in Neurology at the University of Colorado School of Medicine and Director of the MS Regional Program at the Rocky Mountain Regional VA Medical Center. He attended college at Columbia University and medical school at NYU School of Medicine. He completed an internship in Internal Medicine and his residency in Adult Neurology at Brown University in Providence. He then completed a fellowship in MS/Neuroimmunology at Mount Sinai Hospital. Dr. Gross sees patients with MS and related disorders of the central nervous system. He divides his time between patient care, teaching, and clinical research. |
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Christopher Hollen, MD - Portland, ORDr. Hollen is a Staff Neurologist at the VA Portland HCS and Assistant Professor in the Division of General Neurology and MS at Oregon Health & Science University, where he has served since 2019. He completed his medical school and neurology residency at the University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, before completing his fellowship in MS/Neuroimmunology at the VA Portland HCS in 2022. Board certified in neurology, Dr. Hollen's research focuses on imaging biomarkers of neurodegeneration in progressive multiple sclerosis. He has published in peer-reviewed journals on MS-related topics including disease-modifying therapies, COVID-19 impacts on MS patients, and novel imaging techniques. In addition to his clinical and research work, Dr. Hollen is deeply committed to medical education, having received multiple teaching awards and currently serving as Co-director of the Neurology Core Clinical Experience at OHSU. |
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Walter G. Husar, MD - East Orange, NJDr. Husar is a neurologist at the VA New Jersey Healthcare System and has had many roles over the years at the VA Medical Center. He has been the Assistant Chief of the service and is currently the Chief of Neurology. He attended the UMDNJ, now Rutgers New Jersey Medical School and completed his neurology training at the New Jersey/Robert Wood Johnson Medical School program. He was one of the staff neurologists at the Bernard Gimbel MS Comprehensive care center from 1992 to 2004. His research interests include neuroinflammation and neuroimmune modulation. He is currently an Assistant Professor of Neurology and Neurosciences at the Rutgers New Jersey Medical School and is one of the residency program leaders. |
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Elise Johnson, MD - Milwaukie, WIDr. Johnson specializes in the treatment of MS and other immune disorders of the central nervous system. She graduated from Emory University with a BS in neuroscience. She then completed medical school and neurology residency at Loyola University in Maywood, IL. Following residency, she completed further fellowship training in MS and Neuroimmunology at the Medical College of Wisconsin. Following training, she stayed on as faculty at the Medical College of Wisconsin and serves as the Director of the MS Center at the Clement J. Zablocki VAMC in Milwaukee. |
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Demetrios Konstas, MD - Tampa, FLDr. Konstas is a neurologist at the VA Medical Center in Tampa, FL, specializing in neurology (brain and spinal cord disease). He graduated from Florida State University College of Medicine and completed a MS fellowship at the Univeristy of South Florida Health. |
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Janice Leon, MD - Miami, FLDr. Leon is a neurologist at the Miami VA Healthcare System. She received her medical degree from the University of Miami Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine. Dr. Leon completed her fellowship at Yale, New Haven Medical Center and her Residency at the University of Miami, Jackson Health System. |
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Leland Lim, MD, PhD - Palo Alto, CA
Dr. Lim is a neurologist at the VA Palo Alto Health Care System and Co-Director of their MS Regional Specialty Program. He is a Clinical Associate Professor (Affiliated) in the Department of Neurology and Neurological Sciences in the Stanford University School of Medicine, where he also serves on the Medical Student Education Subcommittee. Dr. Lim graduated from the University of Iowa Carver College of Medicine. He completed an internship in Internal Medicine at Barnes-Jewish Hospital of Washington University in St. Louis and his neurology residency and chief residency at Stanford University. |
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Christopher C. Luzzio, MD - Madison, WIDr. Luzzio is a Neurologist who specializes in MS. He develops mechanical assistive devices for disabled persons and is actively involved in clinical research trials related to MS. Dr. Luzzio's medical interests include bioengineering, botulinum toxin treatment for movement disorders, electromyography, general adult neurology, and MS. |
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Elina Melamed, MD - Long Beach, CADr. Melamed joined the Long Beach VA in the summer of 2022 as the neuroimmunology/MS specialist and currently serves as the MS Regional Program Director. She is affiliated with the neurology programs at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center and UC Irvine and teaches residents who rotate through the VA from both institutions. Dr. Melamed thoroughly enjoys the diverse and dynamic environment of both her general neurology and neuroimmunology clinics. Given that the Long Beach VA hosts a prominent Spinal Cord Injury and Disorders Center, Dr. Melamed plays a vital role in co-managing MS patients who travel to the VA Long Beach SCI/D Center from other parts of the Desert Pacific Healthcare Network, particularly when an MS specialist is not available at their local facility. Dr. Melamed earned her medical degree from SUNY Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn and completed her neurology training at Montefiore Medical Center/Albert Einstein College of Medicine. She subsequently pursued a fellowship in MS and neuroimmunology at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston before relocating to California. |
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Anza Memon, MD - Detroit, MIDr. Memon is a neurologist, clinical researcher, and educator specializing in MS and clinical neuroimmunology. She completed her medical education at Dow University of Health Sciences in Karachi, Pakistan, and her neurology residency at Wayne State University School of Medicine. Dr. Memon is dual fellowship-trained in MS/Neuroimmunology from Wayne State University and in Clinical Neurophysiology/EMG from Henry Ford Health, Detroit, Michigan. Currently, she serves as the interim Director of MSCoE-East at the Veterans Affairs and as the MS Regional Specialty Program Director at the Detroit VA. Additionally, she leads the Neurology Research Program and Neurophysiology Lab at the John D. Dingell VA Medical Center in Detroit and is a Clinical Associate Professor of Neurology at Wayne State University School of Medicine. With extensive expertise in MS, autoimmune neurology, and immune-mediated neuromuscular disorders, Dr. Memon has led numerous clinical trials and investigator-initiated research studies, including biomarker discovery in diabetic peripheral neuropathy and magnetoencephalography (MEG) studies on MS-related fatigue and cognition. Her research interests focus on discovering imaging and blood biomarkers for treating neuroimmune disorders, and she has secured funding from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) and other industry sources at the Detroit VA to advance clinical and translational research in diabetic peripheral neuropathy and MS. Dr. Memon previously served as the Clinical Neurophysiology Fellowship Director at the Henry Ford Health System and has been honored with several teaching accolades, including the prestigious A.B. Baker Teacher Recognition Award from the American Academy of Neurology and multiple Faculty Teaching Awards from Wayne State University. Her leadership extends beyond the academic realm, as she plays a crucial role in national VA initiatives focused on enhancing MS care for Veterans. As an invited speaker at numerous national and international conferences, she discusses advanced topics in neuroimmunology, MS therapeutics, and neurophysiology. Her significant research contributions have also been recognized with the President’s Research Initiative Award from the American Association of Neuromuscular and Electrodiagnostic Medicine, an honor she has received twice. |
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Viviana I. Orozco-Leon, MD - San Juan, PRDr. Orozco-Leon is a board-certified neurologist, and a fellowship trained MS specialist. She was born in San Juan, PR. She completed her medical training and neurology residency at University Puerto Rico Medical Sciences Campus, San Juan, PR. She completed her fellowship on MS at the Maxine Mesinger MS Clinic at Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX. She is certified as Rare Neuroimmunologic Disorders (CRND) and MS (MSCS) specialist from the Consortium of MS Centers. She is currently working as a staff neurologist at the VA Caribbean Healthcare System, San Juan, PR. She is assistant professor at the University Puerto Rico Medical Sciences Campus. |
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Doug Ota, MD - Palo Alto, CA
Dr. Ota is a Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation and Spinal Cord Injury specialist. He is Chief of Spinal Cord Injury at the VA Palo Alto HCS and a Clinical Professor (Affiliated) Orthopaedic Surgery, Stanford University School of Medicine. He provides outpatient clinical care including primary care and management of secondary conditions throughout the lifetime for Veterans with an SCI/D. |
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Carlos Perez, MD - Houston, TX
Dr. Perez is an Assistant Professor of Neurology at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, TX. He also serves as the Director of the MS Regional Program at the Michael E. DeBakey VAMC. He completed his medical training at the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston, including a five-year residency in pediatric neurology and a two-year clinical and research fellowship in MS and neuroimmunology. He has participated in several NIH-funded research studies and his current research interests are focused on the use of advanced sequencing techniques to identify neural pathways in MS-related tremor, and quantitative data extraction from conventional MRIs to explore health disparities in MS across ethnic/racial groups. He is an active participant in several national, multi-center clinical trials in MS, and serves as a member of the Institutional Review Board at Baylor College of Medicine. |
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Meheroz Rabadi, MD - Oklahoma City, OK
Dr. Rabadi is a staff neurologist at the Oklahoma City VAMC and Clinical Professor of Neurology at Oklahoma University. He is the Director of the SCI program at the Oklahoma City VAMC, a comprehensive program that deals with Veterans with SCI/D, MS, and ALS. The program actively sees around 325-350 Veterans of which around 150-180 have MS. The MS program is comprehensive and includes other disciplines in addition to MS providers (MD, PA-C, SW), Dietician, OT/PT, Nursing for B&B, Pharmacy, Laboratory, and Radiology. The providers publish MS-related data regularly in peer-review journals, with aims of improving the quality of care provided at our facility and informing other clinicians how they can improve the care of Veterans with MS. |
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Megan Raverty, MD - Minneapolis, MNDr. Raverty is a physiatrist at the SCI/D Center of the Minneapolis VAMC. She completed residency in Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation at the University of Minnesota in 2015. She began working at the SCI/D Center at the Minneapolis VA in 2018 and has served as the co-director of MS programming since 2020. |
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John R. Rinker, II, MD - Birmingham, AL
Dr. Rinker is Associate Director of Education for MSCoE and is also Director of the MS Regional Specialty Program at the Birmingham VA Medical Center. He completed his Residency in Neurology and Fellowship in MS and Neuroimmunology at Washington University in St. Louis before joining the faculty of the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) in 2007. Dr. Rinker is currently a Professor of Neurology at UAB, where he also co-directs the UAB MS-Neuroimmunology Fellowship Program. His educational roles have also included medical student education as the Neurology Clerkship Director from 2016-2024, and he also currently chairs the Clinical Fellowship Committee of the National MS Society. |
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Andrew Romeo, MD - Ann Arbor, MIDr. Romeo is a neurologist at the Ann Arbor VA and Clinical Associate Professor of Neurology at the University of Michigan. He directs the MS Regional Specialty Program at the Ann Arbor VA. Dr. Romeo also serves as Associate Service Chief of Neurology and site director for the neurology residency program and neurology clerkship. |
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Suma Shah, MD - Durham, NCDr. Shah is an MS Specialist and Associate Professor of Neurology at Duke University School of Medicine who participates in the care of MS patients both at Duke Health and the Durham VA Hospital. She joined the faculty in 2018 after completing medical school at Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, NY, Neurology residency at Duke, and a fellowship in MS/Neuroimmunology at Duke. In addition to her clinical practice, she serves as the Associate Director of Clinical Care for MSCoE-East, Director of the MS Regional Program for the Durham VA, and the Program Director of the Duke Adult Neurology Residency Program. |
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Bryan Smith, MD - Washington, DC
Dr. Smith is a neurologist at the Washington DC VAMC. He completed his fellowship in MS at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and previously worked at the National Institutes of Health. He currently has clinics both for MS and for neurologic infections at the DC VAMC, where he also supervises training for George Washington University’s neurology residency program. |
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Rebecca Straus Farber, MD - Bronx, NYDr. Farber is an assistant professor of neurology at Columbia University Irving Medical Center, where she sees patients with MS and other autoimmune central nervous system conditions. After earning her BA in psychology from Yale University, Dr. Farber completed medical school and neurology residency at the Mount Sinai Medical Center. She then completed a three year fellowship in MS at the Corinne Goldsmith Dickinson Center for MS at Mount Sinai during which time she was a recipient of the Sylvia Lawry Physician Fellowship from the National MS Society. Dr. Farber is board certified in neurology by the American Academy of Psychiatry and Neurology. |
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Olaf Stüve, MD, PhD - Dallas, TX
Dr. Stüve is a Professor in the Department of Neurology and Neurotherapeutics at UT Southwestern Medical Center, and Chief of Neurology at the VA North Texas HCS/Dallas VAMC. At the Dallas VAMC, Dr. Stüve attends to Veterans with neurological disorders. In addition to his clinical activities, he has been the principal investigator and site principal investigator for numerous clinical trials. Dr. Stüve also runs a research laboratory at UT Southwestern. His research interests include molecular and cellular markers of autoimmunity, immune tolerance, and experimental therapies for autoimmune disorders, and he has numerous ongoing collaborations with national and international investigators. Dr. Stüve’s research has been supported by grants from the VA, National MS Society, and several Foundations. He has published over 200 research articles, review articles, editorials, and book chapters, and he has given over 200 invited presentations. |
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Andrew Tarr, MD - Decatur (Atlanta), GADr. Tarr is a neurologist at the Atlanta VAMC and the NE Georgia Physicians Group. Dr. Tarr received his medical degree from the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. He then went on to complete a Neurology residency at New York-Presbyterian Weill Cornell Medicine followed by a MS fellowship at Emory University and the Atlanta VAMC. |
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Eric Williamson, MD - Los Angeles, CA
Dr. Williamson is a Professor of Neurology at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and Director of the West Los Angeles VA Hospital's MS Regional Specialty Program, where he also serves as deputy Chief of the Neurology Department. He earned his undergraduate and medical school degrees from The Ohio State University. Thereafter, Dr. Williamson pursued a residency at the University of Chicago before completing a neuroimmunology fellowship at the University of Southern California and then serving on faculty at the University of Pennsylvania, where he previously established and directed the Philadelphia VA’s MS Regional Specialty Program. While Dr. Williamson’s primary focus is patient care, he is also intimately involved in teaching trainees neurology and in clinical research efforts to better treat people with MS and like diseases. He has particular interest and expertise in conditions such as neuromyelitis optica, transverse myelitis, and infectious central nervous system diseases, which he has written and lectured about extensively. Dr. Williamson's ongoing research interests help to better characterize and examine the potential risks and benefits of neuro-immune therapies and to establish new treatments for neuroimmune illnesses. |
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Gregory Wu, MD, PhD - St. Louis, MO
Dr. Wu is an Associate Professor in Neurology as well as in Pathology and Immunology at Washington University in St. Louis. He is a clinician and clinical research investigator with a laboratory dedicated to understanding the regulation of adaptive immune responses in the central nervous system during health and disease. While his lab utilizes an animal system (EAE) to analyze distinct contributions of various antigen presenting cells, Dr. Wu also specializes in understanding the underlying mechanisms of disease-modifying therapies for MS. He is one of four clinicians caring for over 2,000 MS patients at the John L. Trotter MS Center and is the Director of the MS Regional Program at the St. Louis VA Hospital. He has been the site PI for several phase IV clinical trials in MS at Washington University in St. Louis. His basic science and clinical research has been funded by the NIH, National MS Society, Doris Duke Foundation, Barnes Jewish Foundation, and Hope Center for Neurologic Diseases. |
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Islam Zaydan, MD - Pittsburg, PADr. Zaydan’s clinical interest is to provide longitudinal care and treatment for people with neurological and neuro-ophthalmic conditions. As a neurologist and a neuro-ophthalmologist, his research is focused on studying the acute and long-term effect of inflammatory, degenerative, and demyelinating diseases of the nervous system and their effect on the visual pathways and visual function. His major emphasis has been on studying multiple and neuro-myelitis optica new therapeutics and the effects of the diseases on the structure of the white matter tracts using high-definition fiber tractography imaging techniques. Dr. Zaydan completed his fellowship (neuro-ophthalmology) and residency at Virginia Commonwealth University. |
