Podcast Reporters

Anca Arbune, MD, PhD

Neurology physician and researcher, Fundeni Clinical Institute, Bucharest, Romania

Headshot of Anca Arbune

Research/clinical interests: Epilepsy, invasive presurgical evaluation of epilepsy, epilepsy surgery, autonomic changes during seizures, women with epilepsy, wearable devices for epilepsy, epilepsy secondary to neuroinfections, autoimmune epilepsy, sleep disorders, rare neurological diseases

ILAE/YES activities: Pocket cards and the podcast team

Anything else you would like to share? The epilepsy field is dynamic and intriguing, with new insights into the occurrence, manifestation, and treatment of this disease coming nearly every day. It is just one of the reasons I became so interested in the subject and pursued a career in this direction. I hope that one day I can make a substantial contribution to the field. I also look forward to any collaboration and discussion on any of the above-mentioned subjects of interest: more brains are always better than a single one in brewing up ideas or solutions to old problems.

Podcast episodes:

 

Emma G. Carter, MD

Pediatric Neurologist and Epileptologist, Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt, Nashville, TN, USA

Headshot of Emma G. Carter, MD

Research/clinical interests: My clinical and research interests include drug-resistant pediatric epilepsy, pediatric epilepsy surgery, genetics of epilepsy, fetal and neonatal neurology, and residency and fellow education.

ILAE/YES activities: Sharp Waves Podcast team

Anything else you would like to share? My favorite part of the job is working in a multidisciplinary setting with learners in various stages of their education. The best way to learn is to teach, and I can certainly say I'm always learning from our students, residents, and fellows. Off the job, I love spending time with my family and enjoying the outdoors. 

Podcast episode: An update on SUDEP and SUDEP counseling: Dr. Suvasini Sharma

 

 

Alina Ivaniuk, MD

Epilepsy research fellow, Cleveland Clinic's Charles Shor Epilepsy Center, Cleveland, OH, USA

Headshot of Alina Ivaniuk

Research/clinical interests: Genetics of epilepsy, focal lesional epilepsies, precision medicine in epilepsy

ILAE/YES activities: I am serving on the Technology Task Force and Emergency Response (Ukraine) Task Force of the ILAE. Within YES, I'm a part of the translation team and I'm also involved in the Education Task Force and Membership Task Force activities.

Anything else you would like to share? I am passionate about science communication and teaching. My favorite part of the patient encounter is educating people about their diagnosis and management options, and I just cannot let any younger colleague go without sharing some bits of professional or life knowledge with them. I have also been involved in a couple of popular science projects in the past.

Besides that, I am quite esthetically oriented. My favorite part of drafting a case presentation or scientific poster is selecting a color palette and fonts. If I am not in the clinic, gym, kitchen, or bed, you will likely find me either exploring the local art museum or at my desk busy with drawing or graphic design.

Podcast episodes:

 

Maryam Nabavi Nouri, MSc, MD, FRCPC

Pediatric epileptologist; assistant professor at Western University, Ontario, Canada

Headshot of Maryam Nouri

Research/clinical interests: My clinical and research interests include autoimmune epilepsy, advanced presurgical diagnostics such as multimodal neuroimaging, machine learning and global burden of epilepsy.

ILAE/YES activities: Active member since 2020

Anything else you would like to share? I am an avid biker and snowboarder and believe in efficiency and speed, all of which I need to get better at!

Podcast episodes:

 

Bruna Nucera, MD

Neurologist, Epilepsy Centre of the Department of Neurology, Franz Tappeiner Hospital, Meran, Italy

Headshot of Bruna Nucera

Research/clinical interests: My clinical research is focused on the cognitive aspects of the disease, the study of alternative treatments of medication-resistant epilepsy, and the management of women with epilepsy, including pregnancy. 

ILAE/YES activities: I have been a leader of the Education and Career Development Task Force in the Italian YES chapter since 2019. I am a member of the Gender and Epilepsy Task Force of the Italian League Against Epilepsy, and a member of ILAE’s Pregnancy and Women Task Force.

Anything else you would like to share? I’m the author or co-author of scientific articles in peer-reviewed journals and carry out congresses and research activities in the field of epileptology. In 2021, I taught at the first Evidence-Based Epilepsy School in Meran.

Podcast episodes:

 

Laurent Sheybani, MD, PhD

Post-doctoral fellow of the Swiss National Science Foundation, Department of Clinical and Experimental Epilepsy, University College London, London, United Kingdom 

Headshot of Laurent Sheybani

Research/clinical interests: My focus in research is epileptology, and in particular the link between slow oscillatory activity, neuronal activity and occurrence of epileptic activity, including interictal discharges and seizures. To address these questions, I use advanced neurophysiological tools to probe slow oscillations together with multi- and single unit activity in the human brain. In clinic, I am interested in epileptology and somnology. I am particularly interested in how seizures are modulated by the sleep-wake cycle.

ILAE/YES activities: I am a member of the YES Interactive Media Task Force.

Anything else you would like to share? I like hiking, skiing, and race biking. I also play the piano and saxophone.

Podcast episodes:

 

Past Reporters

Patricia Saletti, MSc, PhD

Program officer, Alzheimer's Drug Discovery Foundation, New York City, USA

Patricia Saletti

Research/clinical interests: Interested in the identification of biomarkers to diagnose epilepsy post-trauma, and potential preventive pharmacological treatment for post-traumatic epilepsy

ILAE/YES activities: Head of YES Interactive Media Task Force

Podcast episodes (2021 - 2022):