News

U.S. News & World Report ranked Duke University Hospital as the top hospital in North Carolina and the 23rd best across the nation for neurology and neurosurgery in its 2022-2023 hospital rankings. The annual rankings, which assessed more than 4,500 hospitals nationwide, analyze and integrate dozens of medical and surgical services.

William Powers, MD, went to medical school with the intention of being the local doctor of a small New England town. The logical reasoning, intellect, and clinical showmanship of the then-Chair of Neurology Fred Plum got him hooked in neurology, however. Powers hasn't been bored in the five decades since. For this week’s Spotlight interview, Powers talks to us about how neurology has grown as a discipline since he was a resident.

This June, members of the Duke Neurology Department contributed to 12 new peer-reviewed journal articles as well as two new book chapters. Among other findings these studies uncovered retinal differences that may one day act as early biomarkers for cognitive impairment, population-based studies that will improve treatment for stroke and other conditions, and investigations of hydrogel scaffolds as potential therapies.

Members of the Duke Neurology Department contributed to 13 new peer-reviewed journal articles this May, advancing our understanding of how viruses that kill cancer cells may be used against brain tumors, the optimal treatments for various types of stroke, the origins of Parkinson’s disease, and more. Read the paragraphs below for summaries of our research from the past 31 days, as well as links to the complete articles themselves.

Hospital Neurology

The first month of 2022 saw the publication of 18 new peer-reviewed journal articles from members of the Duke Neurology Department. Highlights include a new article in Lancet Neurology discussing the epidemiology, diagnostics, and  biomarkers of autoimmune neuromuscular junction disorders, case reports describing the progression and treatment options for rare neurological conditions, and a summary of how the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic affects neurology residency programs in the United States.

The life of Bryan Day involves balancing two separate roles. From Monday through Friday, Day acts as a staff assistant for the Neurology Department, answering phone and email requests, and helping patients and providers make and keep their schedules. On weekends and evenings, Day heads over to the Clarksville Station restaurant, which he owns and manages. For this week’s Spotlight interview Day talks to us about his work at Duke, the joys and challenges of running a restaurant, and how he uses lists to keep his busy life in order.

The second half of 2021 was as eventful as the first for the Duke Neurology Department. Story highlights from July through December of this year include our Leonard White, PhD, winning a national award for excellence in teaching, the founding of a joint Duke/UNC Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, two of our hospitals receiving the American Heart Association/American Stroke Association’s highest award for quality stroke care, and the School of Medicine receiving  awards totaling $18 million to uncover the origins of Parkinson’s disease.

The Duke Neurology Department continued to grow and expand its missions of providing excellent clinical care, conducting research to improve our understanding of neurological conditions and how to treat them, and training the next generation of neurologists throughout 2021.

Over the course of a few days in late September of 2021, Carol Cerase of Lumberton, NC, experienced increasing weakness in her legs, trouble swallowing, and several falls. Doctors at her local hospital couldn’t find the cause, so they reached out to Duke Health’s neurology experts, who diagnosed Cerase with Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS). Duke’s team recommended plasma exchange therapy to stop the disease’s progression and allow the nerves to heal. “I was lucky I got the treatment so fast,” said Cerase. “I think it saved me.”

Members of the Duke Neurology Department contributed to 14 new peer-reviewed journal articles written this November. Highlights include an analysis of fragmentation within the delivery of neurological health care, an examination of racial disparities in the use of telehealth, and a discussion of the best ways to use social medicine to share news on epilepsy and clinical neurophysiology. Read the paragraphs below for short summaries of each of these 14 articles, as well as links to the original entries themselves.

Memory Disorders