Epilepsy, Sleep, and Clinical Neurophysiology News

With 18 new peer-reviewed articles from members of our faculty, August 2020 was a record-breaking month for the Duke Neurology Department. Clinical research highlights published in the past 31 days include an analysis of patients presenting with vertigo in Emergency Departments, an essay on the human cost of COVID-19 and how we can help people connect during difficult times, and a study finding new benefits for therapies for myasthenia gravis.

Members of the Duke Neurology Department contributed to 14 new peer-reviewed articles published this July, improving our understanding of neuroscience, charting a course for research in a post-COVID-19 world, and offering opportunities for advancing patient care. Simon Gregory, PhD, and Yong Chen, PhD, respectively co-authored articles offering new therapeutic avenues for muscle repair and chronic pain treatment. Wuwei “Wayne” Feng, MD, MS, was part of a consortium examining the impact of COVID-19 on the NIH’s StrokeNet and offering a vision for resuming clinical trials.

Derek Neupert, MD, was first drawn to neurology after he saw the lasting, devastating impact a stroke had on his grandmother. As a resident, however he became fascinated with the way clinical neurophysiology allowed him to interpret data in real time and then use that data to guide his decisions. In this week’s “Spotlight” interview, our new clinical neurophysiology fellow talks to us about his interests in neurology, his case study that was just published in the Neurohospitalist, and his plans for after he completes his fellowship.

New research from the Duke Neurology Department advanced our understanding of neurological diseases and patient care at the basic science, translational, and clinical levels. Among other topics, our faculty, trainees, and staff found evidence for virtual reality’s potential in neurorehabilitation, tested a wearable device that can help better identify seizures, and reviewed how our understanding of the hippocampus has evolved over the past generation.

This week’s “spotlight” interview shines on Safa Kaleem, a rising fourth-year medical student at the Duke University School of Medicine, as well as a recent graduate of the School’s Clinical Research Training Program. Kaleem talks to us about her master’s project, where she helped validate quantitative EEG, a tool that offers great promise in improving diagnosis and treatment for patients with nonconvulsive seizures.

The Duke Institute for Health Innovation (DIHI) has awarded a $50,000 2020 RFA Innovation Award to Chief Resident Abhi Kapuria, MD, along with Muhammad Zafar, MD (Duke Pediatrics) and Matthew Vestal, MD, MBA (Duke Neurosurgery), for their project titled "Transforming epilepsy surgery with augmented reality."

Sujay Kansagra, MD, decided to focus on neurology and pediatric sleep as a medical student, both because of the room the field offered for research and education. Now at Duke, he’s helping to treat children with troubled sleeping and overseeing the training of the next generation of child neurology residents. In this week’s Faculty Spotlight, Kansagra talks to us about how the sleep needs of children compare to those of adults, and how he’s adapting at work and at home to treat patients, train residents, and care for his own children during the age of COVID-19.

Members of the Duke Neurology Department continued to advance the fields of clinical and translational neuroscience this April. Our faculty contributed to the first major systematic review of self-management programs for epilepsy, helping to answer questions about what makes these programs more or less effective. Another article discussed the benefits of CN-105, a therapeutic agent that may help reduce the harmful neuro-inflammatory response associated with stroke, traumatic brain injury, and other conditions.

What do a genetic analysis of the intersecting pathways between Alzheimer’s disease and depression, a national prize-winning essay examining the ethics of unionization for physicians, and a systematic review of the literature surrounding a new potential form of therapy for stroke recovery have in common? They’re all subjects of peer-reviewed journal articles written or co-written by members of the Neurology Department published this March.

Members of the Duke Neurology Department helped advance the practice and profession of clinical neurophysiology at the 2020 American Clinical Neurophysiology Society (ACNS) Annual Meeting in New Orleans this week. Our faculty, housestaff, and medical students led courses and breakout sessions, presented posters, and played leadership roles within the ACNS. 

Courses and sessions directed by members of our Department included: