July 27, 2022, Filed Under: NewsGettig Awarded Doctor of Nursing Practice Degree Kelly Gettig, APRN, MSN, CPNP-PC/AC Kelly Gettig, APRN, MSN, CPNP-PC/AC, successfully presented her Doctor of Nursing Practice project, “Program Evaluation of a New Initiative in an Interdisciplinary Pediatric Concussion Clinic: Active Rehabilitation Following Sports Concussion,” on July 26, 2022, and was awarded her DNP degree from Duquesne University School of Nursing. Gettig, Co-Director of the Pediatric Neurosciences Traumatic Brain Injury/Concussion Clinic and the lead nurse practitioner for Pediatric Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, also serves as a health professional specialist and an advance practice nurse in the Department of Neurology and as a clinical instructor for UT Austin’s Graduate School of Nursing. She is passionate about providing evidence-based clinical care to children in and out of the hospital setting and ensuring optimal outcomes for her patients. Congratulations, Kelly!
July 1, 2022, Filed Under: NewsPediatric Vascular Autonomic Lab Opens Q-Sweat measurement system in the newly opened lab. Tilt table in the lab. The Pediatric Neurosciences Program recently opened a vascular autonomic laboratory at Dell Children’s Medical Center. The lab offers tilt-table testing with simultaneous electroencephalography, video, electrocardiography, and quantitative sudomotor axon reflex testing (QSART) for evaluating children with suspected positional orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), syncope, pseudosyncope, and other autonomic disorders. It is one of only two pediatric autonomic labs in the Southwest. The laboratory is jointly overseen by Manikum Moodley, MD, who previously served as the director of the pediatric vascular autonomic lab at the Cleveland Clinic, and Veda Vedanarayanan, MD, who oversaw the Electromyography and Autonomic Laboratory at the University of Mississippi Medical Center.
June 25, 2022, Filed Under: NewsHardy Named to the Editorial Board of Pediatric Neurology Duriel Hardy, MD Congratulations to Duriel Hardy, MD, Assistant Professor of Neurology at Dell Medical School, who was recently appointed to the Editorial Board of Pediatric Neurology. “Dr. Hardy’s expertise in the neuroimmunologic conditions of children and young adults is exceptional,” said Yasmin Khakoo, MD, Editor-in-Chief of Pediatric Neurology. “I look forward to working with him as the newest member of our editorial board.” Hardy joined the Pediatric Neurosciences Program in 2021 after completing his pediatric neurology residency and a fellowship in pediatric neuro-immunology at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. “Dr. Hardy’s expertise in the neuroimmunologic conditions of children and young adults is exceptional. I look forward to working with him as the newest member of our editorial board.”—Yasmin Khakoo, MD, Editor-in-Chief of Pediatric Neurology
May 31, 2022, Filed Under: NewsPediatric Neurosciences Program Welcomes Several New Colleagues Welcome to our newest team members! Raynah Lobo, MS, LCGC, is a licensed certified genetic counselor in the Pediatric Neurosciences Program and in the Dell Medical School Department of Neurology. She received her master’s in genetic counseling from the University of Pittsburgh and her master’s in microbiology at The Institute of Science, Mumbai. Her clinical and research interests include inborn errors of metabolism, genetic epilepsies, and neurocutaneous disorders. She is certified by the American Board of Genetic Counseling and is a member of the National Society of Genetic Counselors. Prior to joining our program, she served as a biochemical laboratory genetic counselor at Quest Diagnostics. Christina Roth is the editor of the Pediatric Neurosciences Program. Roth joins the program with 15 years of experience in editing books, journal articles, web content, and government documents. Previously, she was an editor for a dental marketing company and the production manager for a book publisher, where she worked on multiple New York Times Best Sellers and was instrumental in a Wiley acquisition of over 1,000 titles. She has a Bachelor of Arts in English from Lipscomb University. Yingchao Yuan is senior biostatistician in the Pediatric Neurosciences Program. Yuan received his Master of Arts in statistics at the University at Albany, SUNY. Before coming to Austin, he was a researcher for the New York State Department of Health and in data analytics for the New York State Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services. Stephen Deputy, MD, Professor of Neurology at Dell Medical School, focuses on Tourette syndrome, tics, and other movement disorders. He received his medical degree from Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago and completed residency training in pediatric neurology at the University of California, San Francisco. Deputy joins the Dell Medical School faculty after several years at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in New Orleans, where he won numerous student and resident teaching awards.
May 25, 2022, Filed Under: NewsDeputy Named Section Editor of Pediatric Neurology Stephen Deputy, MD Stephen Deputy, MD, Professor of Neurology at Dell Medical School, has been appointed as a section editor of Pediatric Neurology, with expertise in pediatric movement disorders, neuroembryology, and medical education. Deputy joined the Dell Medical School faculty in early 2022 after several years at Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in New Orleans. Congratulations, Dr. Deputy!
May 23, 2022, Filed Under: NewsDell Children’s Medical Center Hosts Third Annual Pediatric Neuroscience Symposium Pediatric practitioners care for children with a wide range of neurological disorders, but a lack of extensive training in these conditions can make managing and treating them challenging. The Practical Pediatric Neuroscience Symposium was created to enhance knowledge of common and uncommon pediatric neurological conditions, with the goal of helping providers improve care for children with these conditions. The third annual symposium, held on May 21, 2022, at Dell Children’s Medical Center, featured presentations by 10 Dell Medical School faculty members within the Pediatric Neurosciences Program. Topics ranged from primary care issues in neuromuscular disease to behavioral pain management for pediatric headache. Each interactive presentation provided specific techniques and evidence-based recommendations for diagnosis and management, including the roles of interprofessional teams in improving quality of life and treatment outcomes.
May 1, 2022, Filed Under: NewsEdmond Receives Parks Medal From AAPOS Jane C. Edmond, MD Jane C. Edmond, MD, Professor and Chair of the Department of Ophthalmology at Dell Medical School and a neuro-ophthalmologist in the Pediatric Neurosciences Program, recently received the Marshall M. Parks Bronze Medal from the American Association for Pediatric Ophthalmology and Strabismus (AAPOS). Marshall M. Parks medals are awarded to past AAPOS presidents and other individuals who have made noteworthy contributions to children’s eye care. Edmond completed her two-year term as AAPOS president in 2020. Congratulations, Dr. Edmond!
April 27, 2022, Filed Under: NewsFreedman Selected to Oversee SUDEP Toolkit Development Daniel Freedman, DO Daniel Freedman, DO, Assistant Professor of Neurology at Dell Medical School, has been selected by the Child Neurology Foundation’s Project Advisory Committee as the lead epileptologist to oversee the development of its SUDEP and Epilepsy Mortality Toolkit. Freedman will assist the committee by developing, implementing, and evaluating the toolkit, which will help reduce epilepsy- related deaths by promoting behavior change among providers, patients, and patient families. He will also advise the committee on institutional partnerships that will support the project through research. We look forward to Dr. Freedman’s impact on epilepsy care from this project.
March 31, 2022, Filed Under: NewsRepetitive Valproate Infusion Shows Promise in Reducing Refractory Chronic Headache Pain Sara Pavitt, MD Sara Pavitt, MD, Assistant Professor of Neurology at Dell Medical School and Chief of the Pediatric Headache Center at Dell Children’s, recently described the use of intravenous valproate in significantly reducing pain for children with chronic headache. Pavitt and her colleagues summarized 45 children with refractory headache disorders who completed a standardized four-day inpatient repetitive valproate infusion protocol. Patients with chronic migraine had undergone a median of seven previous migraine prevention trials, and 85% had completed one or more previous intravenous therapies with other agents. One week after completing the valproate infusions, each patient began a new headache preventive agent. The baseline headache frequency did not change significantly for the cohort as a whole, but two-thirds of the patients experienced long-term improvement based on a combined analysis of headache frequency, headache intensity, and diminished use of acute pain medications. Refractory migraine causes substantial discomfort and long-term disability. These children are seldom included in clinical trials, so there is a paucity of objective evidence to guide therapy. Based on this report, valproate infusions may be an encouraging option. Pavitt S, Gelfand AA, Zorrilla N, Allen I, Riggins N. Efficacy and safety of repetitive intravenous sodium valproate in pediatric patients with refractory chronic headache disorders: a retrospective review. Pediatr Neurol 2022;128:52-57. doi: 10.1016/j.pediatrneurol.2021.12.008
March 1, 2022, Filed Under: NewsHardy Discusses Protective Factors in Preventing Pediatric-Onset Multiple Sclerosis Duriel Hardy, MD The diagnosis and treatment of multiple sclerosis has improved dramatically in the last several years, in both adults and children. Most discussions of multiple sclerosis center on secondary prevention with agents intended to prevent disease progression and limit the ultimate severity of neurological disability. Such disease-modifying treatments are particularly important for children, because children with multiple sclerosis have more years to accumulate lesions. What is not often discussed, however, is primary prevention strategies for multiple sclerosis. In a Frontiers in Neurology article, Duriel Hardy, MD, and colleagues take a critical look at the difficult topic of multiple sclerosis risk factors that might be modified in the pediatric population. Concern about exposure to Epstein-Barr virus, inhalation of passive cigarette smoke, and exposure to other environmental toxins is bolstered by considerable statistical evidence. An increased body mass index also seems to increase the multiple sclerosis risk, albeit at a lower level. Although the studies are inconsistent, preliminary evidence suggests that breastfeeding protects against development of multiple sclerosis (possibly by avoiding molecular mimicry between cow milk proteins and brain antigens). Other possible protective factors include sun exposure and higher serum vitamin D levels. Although many of these factors are modifiable, altering them would require extensive public health changes. Hardy D, Chitnis T, Waubant E, Banwell B. Preventing multiple sclerosis: the pediatric perspective. Front Neurol 2022;13:802380. doi: 10.3389/fneur.2022.802380
