Media Coverage

Research has found that women who have migraines are more likely to suffer heart attacks or strokes later in life, but in a linked editorial, Melissa L. Rayhill, MD, clinical assistant professor of neurology, cautioned that women should not be worried about the link and stressed that individual women were at very low risk, even if they had migraines.

Research shows patients with cluster headaches were generally accepting of placebo-controlled trials of preventive drugs and non-invasive medical devices, but did not support the idea of using a placebo control in preventive surgical trials and abortive treatment trials.

UB hosted a panel discussion on the controversies surrounding the legalization of medical marijuana, featuring Edward Bednarczyk, PharmD, chair of the Department of Pharmacy Practice, as keynote speaker.

A UB study of Myasthenia gravis, an autoimmune disease that causes muscle weakness and fatigue, found that surgical removal of an organ called the thymus reduced patients’ weakness and their need for immunosuppressive drugs.

Research led by Gil Wolfe, MD, professor and Irvin and Rosemary Smith Chair of neurology, shows that removing the thymus gland is an effective treatment for the autoimmune disorder myasthenia gravis.

A new study by researchers led by Robert Zivadinov, MD, PhD, professor of neurology, found that leaky blood vessels in the brain called cerebral microbleeds are associated with an increased risk of physical and cognitive disability in patients with multiple sclerosis.

An article spotlights a UB database of brain scans of thousands of multiple sclerosis patients.

An article on a new study that shows that women who suffer migraines have significantly increased risk of cardiovascular disease quotes Melissa L. Rayhill, MD, clinical assistant professor of neurology, who said that “it is time to add migraine to the list of early life medical conditions that are markers for later life cardiovascular risk.”

UB researchers have shown that mechanical forces play a critical role in myelination, the formation of the protective coating that neurons need to function; a finding that could have implications for diseases such as multiple sclerosis and leukodystrophies and how they are treated.

A story about a prominent local lawyer who developed a rare disorder called Miller-Fisher, a type of Guillain-Barre syndrome that mimics a stroke, interviews Nicholas J. Silvestri, MD, assistant professor of clinical neurology. “We caught him before he developed real, big-time respiratory difficulty, and we were able to treat him,” he says.

An article describing how Parkinson’s disease patients are gaining better strength, coordination and balance through boxing training quotes Thomas J. Guttuso Jr., MD, associate professor of neurology, who said that several of his patients are doing it and benefiting; he added: “One patient in particular says he’s kicking the butt of Parkinson’s.”

The University at Buffalo has been awarded a five-year, $2.35 million state grant to launch a Center of Excellence for Alzheimer’s disease. The goal is to improve the screening, diagnosis and treatment of the disease, according to Kinga Szigeti, MD, PhD, associate professor of neurology and director of UB’s Alzheimer’s Disease and Memory Disorders Center.

A new trend that sufferers of migraine headaches are trying for relief is daith piercing, which is on the innermost part of the cartilage of the ear. However, there is no science to back up claims that it is an effective way to stop migraine pain, says Melissa L. Rayhill, MD, clinical assistant professor of neurology.

The annual celebration of Abraham Lincoln’s birthday at the Buffalo History Museum included a lecture on “Neurological Conditions of Presidents” by Nicholas J. Silvestri, MD, clinical assistant professor of neurology.

One of five clinical trial sites for a new study using medical marijuana to treat childhood epilepsy is bring run by Arie L. Weinstock, MD, clinical professor of neurology.