Our Panel of Experts

This is an ongoing opportunity for physicians to consult face-to-face virtually with leading experts in the field of neuroimmunology.

Many clinicians struggle with challenging cases of presumed inflammation-mediated neuropsychiatric deteriorations (with or without preceding infection) that do not fit a defined diagnosis. Without clear biomarkers and clinical treatment pathways, many clinicians are unsure how to proceed. Even in quaternary care centers with multiple physicians working together on these cases, these highly specialized teams struggle with next steps. Our panel has expertise in autoimmune encephalitis, multiple sclerosis, CNS vasculitis, neuropsychiatric lupus, Behcet’s disease, Sydenham chorea, PANS/PANDAS, autism deteriorations, and other post-infectious, inflammatory, and autoimmune brain disorders and is eager to share what they’ve learned from their experiences treating complex patients.

Our intention for establishing the Neuroimmune Consultation Panel is to help clinicians think through cases in a multi-disciplinary team setting. Our goal is to learn from each other and share what we learn. The panel will review the data submitted by the referring team and discuss (with the referring clinician) potential pathways for next steps. The panel discussion will be recorded and catalogued in a restricted educational area of Neuroimmune Foundation’s website. There may be times when the referring MD may want to write the case up for publication in order to disseminate knowledge. The panel is willing to help with this process in some cases after obtaining consent/assent from the family/patient.

This panel is being offered thanks to a grant from the state of North Carolina to help children with PANS/PANDAS. Therefore, through June 2023, priority will be granted to North Carolina physicians submitting cases of children who have/appear to have a PANS/PANDAS-like presentation.

Since patients with psychiatric presentations of neuroinflammatory disorders are often underserved with regards to the medical system, priority will be given to cases with a psychiatric presentation.

Because this panel of experts are a “quaternary” care team, preference will be given to cases coming from tertiary care centers where full evaluation has been completed but there are still puzzling or unanswered questions. We welcome case submissions from community physicians but want to acknowledge acceptance probability will increase after the patient has already had a full evaluation at a tertiary care center, and the team members and/or institution who evaluated the case is included in the case submission. Because a core mission of Neuroimmune Foundation is to improve access to care for all individuals regardless of income, priority will be given to physicians accepting Medicaid as well as insurance and who treat underserved populations.

The panel will meet the second Tuesday of every month at 4:00 – 5:00 pm PT/7:00 – 8:00 pm ET. Upcoming dates are listed below in the form.

Each session will focus on one patient. Physicians wishing to submit a case for consideration may do so below at least two weeks prior to the scheduled meeting. Prior to submitting a case, patient/guardian’s assent/consent must be obtained (per your institution’s rules). Adult or child cases may be submitted. If the child does not have capacity to assent, this may be waived per your institution’s rules. Please remove any identifying information or PHI from the submission. If any identifying information is shared, the data will be redacted immediately upon review and you may need to report this data/privacy breach per your institution’s guidelines.The panel of experts/learners will receive the data from the submitted case prior to the panel meeting.

Please provide a clear, thorough, and concise summary of the case on the form.  Panel members will simultaneously review the detailed data. The goal is to present the data efficiently to allow sufficient time for the panel to interpret findings and discuss the differential diagnosis and next steps towards evaluation and/or treatment.

We will not be allowing additional participants/viewers other than the Neuroimmune Expert/Learner Panel and the referring team during the live consultation, however, the recordings will be made available to physicians for educational purposes.

The opinions and comments of the panelists are based on their personal experiences with their own patients as well as their interpretation of literature.  Panelists are not offering medical advice, but rather seek to educate and inform colleagues about the various considerations applicable to the cases discussed.  Their goal is to help treating physicians be in a better position to assess and treat patients.  Treating physicians must always make the ultimate determination of “next-steps” (evaluation and treatment).  Each child/case is unique, and such determinations should only be made after comprehensive examinations following direct interaction with families and patients.  By attending, you understand and agree to the terms of this disclaimer.

Panel Members

Sam Pleasure, MD, PhD

Glenn W. Johnson, Jr. Memorial Endowed Chair in Neurology, University of California, San Francisco — Read More

David B. Lewis, MD

Chief, Division of Allergy, Immunology, and Rheumatology, Department of Pediatrics, Stanford University School of Medicine — Read More

Mark Pasternack, MD

Chief of Pediatric Infectious Disease, Massachusetts General Hospital Associate; Professor of Pediatrics, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard — Read More

Jennifer Frankovich, MD

Associate Clinical Professor in the Department of Pediatrics, Division of Immunology & Rheumatology, Stanford University — Read More

Elizabeth Tong, MD

Assistant Professor of Radiology (Pediatric Radiology), Stanford University Read More

Chris Pittenger, MD, PhD

Professor of Psychiatry in Yale Child Study Center — Read More

Herbert M. Lachman, MD

Professor, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Medicine, Genetics, and Neuroscience, Albert Einstein College of Medicine — Read More

Richard Frye, MD, PhD

Director of Research, Neurologist, Rossignol Medical Center, Phoenix, AZ — Read More

Submitting a case

Please fill out the form below if you’d like to submit a case to present to the panel for consultation. If your case meets initial guidelines for the panel, you will be invited to submit patient data in Redcap a minimum of two weeks prior to the meeting. This process will take 15–30 minutes, however, the opportunity to consult with the panel is not guaranteed and will be reviewed following submission in Redcap. This brief form below is to screen cases that may not meet all the above criteria or that have a smaller likelihood of selection in order to save physicians time. You will receive a follow up email with a Redcap link if additional information is requested.