Media Coverage

A feature story on Bianca Weinstock-Guttman, MD, professor of neurology, showcases her work with multiple sclerosis patients. The article interviews colleagues who include Ralph H. Benedict, PhD, professor of neurology.

Bianca Weinstock-Guttman, MD, professor of neurology, has received the Impact Award from the National Multiple Sclerosis Society for her research and patient care in the field.

Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences researchers are working on ways to improve multiple sclerosis patients’ cognitive function and to repair damage to the myelin coating that protects nerve cells. The studies are being led by Janet L. Shucard, PhD, associate professor of clinical neurology, and Fraser J. Sim, PhD, associate professor of pharmacology and toxicology.

Michael G. Dwyer, III, PhD, assistant professor of neurology and biomedical informatics, was interviewed about a group of Americans and Canadians in Cuba who in September suffered symptoms that included hearing loss, dizziness, headache, fatigue, cognitive issues and difficulty sleeping, which prompted concerns their symptoms were caused by a neural toxin. Dwyer said the brain is made up of gray matter and white matter. “The gray matter is kind of like the actual computational units, the neuronal cell bodies,” he said. “The white matter is the wiring closet of the brain, composed almost entirely of axons that helps connect different parts of the brain.”

Bianca Weinstock-Guttman, MD, professor of neurology, is the principal investigator of clinical trials exploring potential therapeutic applications of cannabinoids in progressive multiple sclerosis. Weinstock-Guttman is executive director of the New York State Multiple Sclerosis Consortium.

An article about New York State’s 10 Centers of Excellence for Alzheimer’s Disease, including the Western New York center based at the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, interviews Bruce R. Troen, MD, center co-director and professor of medicine and chief of the Division of Geriatrics and Palliative Medicine, and Kinga Szigeti, MD, PhD, associate professor of neurology and center co-director.

Robert Zivadinov, MD, PhD, professor of neurology, is interviewed in MD Magazine about the TOPIC multiple sclerosis study and Aubagio’s effect of cortical gray matter atrophy (CGMA) loss. The article includes a video interview with Zivadinov, director of the Buffalo Neuroimaging Analysis Center.

David W. Hojnacki, MD, assistant professor of neurology, received the Stephen H. Kelly Award as a “Professional on the Move” at the “Champions on the Move” event sponsored by the Upstate Chapter of the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.

Gil I. Wolfe, MD, professor and Irvin and Rosemary Smith Chair of neurology, talks about myasthenia gravis, a chronic autoimmune neuromuscular disease that often gives people difficulty operating muscles they should be able to control. He said said many people diagnosed with the disease have never heard of it. “In general, people with MG do very well,” he said. “They can hold jobs, they can exercise, they can be active in their family lives.”

An article about a local 17-year-old with congenital muscular dystrophy and his everyday routine of countering the obstacles posed by the disease interviews Nicholas J. Silvestri, MD, clinical associate professor of neurology and a specialist in neuromuscular disorders. “The absence of a particular protein (merosin) forming the muscle membrane leads to progressive destruction of muscle cells over time which are not able to fully repair themselves,” he said.

An article about managing symptoms of multiple sclerosis while pregnant interviews Bianca Weinstock-Guttman, MD, professor of neurology, who said when trying to conceive, it’s generally recommended that women stop taking medications that stave off MS relapses. “But going off medication increases the risk for relapse. So you have to determine which therapy is safest for the mother and baby,” she said.

UB’s Alzheimer’s Disease and Memory Disorders Center is expanding its clinics in Buffalo and Williamsville, and the center, part of UBMD Neurology and the Jacobs School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, began seeing patients twice weekly in April, up from once a week. “We treat all stages of dementia, but more and more research is being conducted on mild cognitive impairment and early signs of Alzheimer’s disease with the goal of slowing or even stopping progression of this neurodegenerative disease,” said Kinga Szigeti, MD, PhD, associate professor of neurology and director of the center.

Articles about a study that showed that multiple sclerosis is more likely to progress to advanced disease among patients who suffer from fatigue and limited use of their legs quote Bianca Weinstock-Guttman, MD, professor of neurology.

An article about UB’s Clinical and Translational Science Institute interviews Timothy F. Murphy, MD, director of the institute and senior associate dean for clinical and translational research, and Gil I. Wolfe, MD, professor and Irwin and Rosemary Smith Chair of neurology, about how it is reshaping medical research in Western New York.

Bianca Weinstock-Guttman, MD, professor of neurology, was quoted while commenting on new research that found that patients with multiple sclerosis and other neurological diseases may be at risk of developing problems with bone mineral density.