DYSTONIA CENTER OF EXCELLENCE MOVEMENT DISORDER FELLOWS

Dr. Rivka Sachdev

After graduating from Mount Sinai School of Medicine and completing an internship year in general internal medicine at SUNY Downstate Medical Center, I completed my neurology residency training at Tufts Medical Center in Boston. My interest in movement disorders developed during the latter part of residency when more of my time was spent in the outpatient setting. I decided to pursue this interest at the fellowship level and entered the program at the Center for Movement Disorders at Beth Israel Medical Center in July of 2008. As I enter my second year of fellowship, I am honored to be the first Bachmann-Strauss Dystonia Center of Excellence dystonia fellow. With this distinction, I have begun working with Drs. Susan Bressman and Rachel Saunders-Pullman on efforts to define the genetic etiologies of dystonia. My project focuses specifically on a gene for ataxia-telangiectasia and delineating the role this plays in the development of early onset and adolescent onset dystonia. I am grateful for the opportunity to develop as a movement disorders specialist at an institution that encourages both clinical and academic growth. My work caring for patients has been a rewarding learning experience as well and I look forward to my second year of fellowship.

Dr. Matthew Barrett

In early July, I began my movement disorders fellowship at Beth Israel after completing my neurology residency at the University of Virginia. My interest in neurology began during my first year in medical school. This interest led to research in a lab focusing on neurodegenerative diseases. In the lab I investigated how mitochondrial dysfunction leads to neuronal cell death. Along with my interest in neurodegenerative diseases, during residency I found encounters with patients with movement disorders to be the most rewarding. There have been incredible advances in the field and treatment options have multiplied, but there is still plenty of work to be done. Having chosen to pursue a fellowship in movement disorders, I chose Beth Israel because I realized it would be an excellent place to develop my clinical skills and research interests. By better understanding what causes this group of diseases, I hope to contribute to advances in the field that can be applied to patient care. I am specifically interested in dystonia and Parkinson Disease. At this time I will be investigating the association between Gaucher Disease mutations and Parkinson Disease. As the Bachmann- Strauss dystonia fellow next year, I look forward to developing a research project that investigates the dysfunctional neural networks that lead to dystonia.