EMBARGOED FOR RELEASE UNTIL 12 PM ET, FEBRUARY 21, 2012

American Academy of Neurology Announces 2012 Research Award Winners

NEW ORLEANS – Nearly two dozen scientific research awards are being bestowed on researchers around the world this year by the American Academy of Neurology, the world’s largest association of neurologists. The awards will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology’s 64th Annual Meeting in New Orleans April 21-28, 2012, at the New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center.

This year’s recipients include:

Founders Award Sponsored by the American Academy of Neurology Alliance. Amer Ghavanini, MD, PhD / Toronto

S. Weir Mitchell Award Sponsored by the American Academy of Neurology Alliance. Nandakumar Narayanan, MD, PhD / New Haven, Conn.

Dreifuss-Penry Epilepsy Award Sponsored by the American Academy of Neurology and endowed by members of the Academy’s Epilepsy Section; Abbott Laboratories, Inc.; Cephalon, Inc.; Cyberonics, Inc.; Elan Pharmaceuticals, Inc.; GlaxoSmithKline; Novartis Pharmaceuticals; Ortho-McNeil Neurologics; Pfizer Inc; Shire US, Inc; and UCB Pharma. Tobias Loddenkemper, MD / Boston

John Dystel Prize for Multiple Sclerosis Research Presented by the American Academy of Neurology and the National Multiple Sclerosis Society and made possible through a special contribution from the John Dystel Multiple Sclerosis Research Fund at the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. Richard Ransohoff, MD / Cleveland

Sheila Essey Award: An Award for ALS Research Presented by the American Academy of Neurology and the ALS Association and supported through the philanthropy of the Essey Family Fund and the ALS Association. Christopher Shaw, MBChB, MD, FRACP / London

Norman Geschwind Prize in Behavioral Neurology Sponsored by the American Academy of Neurology and the Academy’s Behavioral Neurology Section and endowed through Dr. Geschwind's family, friends and colleagues; Pfizer Inc; and the Society for Behavioral and Cognitive Neurology. Marco Catani, MD / London

Mitchell B. Max Award for Neuropathic Pain Sponsored by the American Academy of Neurology and endowed by the United States Cancer Pain Relief Committee, the Mayday Fund and friends of Dr. Mitchell Max. Howard Fields, MD, PhD / Emeryville, Calif.

Jon Stolk Award in Movement Disorders for Young Investigators Sponsored by the American Academy of Neurology and endowed by Kyowa Pharmaceutical, Inc., Lineberry Research, Quintiles and Dr. Dennis Gillings. Pedro Gonzalez-Alegre, MD, PhD / Iowa City, Iowa

Medical Student Essay Awards Sponsored by the American Academy of Neurology.

Extended Neuroscience Award Matthew Elrick / Ann Arbor, Mich.

G. Milton Shy Award in Clinical Neurology Tenneille Loo / Toronto

Roland P. Mackay Award Jessica Shields / New Orleans

Saul R. Korey Award in Experimental Neurology Mark Ziats / Houston

Movement Disorders Research Award Sponsored by the American Academy of Neurology, the Parkinson’s Disease Foundation and the Academy’s Movement Disorders Section and endowed by the Parkinson’s Disease Foundation. Caroline Tanner, MD, PhD / Sunnyvale, Calif.

Neuroscience Research Prize Sponsored by the American Academy of Neurology, American Academy of Neurology Foundation and the Child Neurology Society. Sean Oh / Old Westbury, N.Y. John Solder / Westport, Conn. Christie Wang / Roslyn, N.Y.

Child Neurology Neuroscience Research Prize Sponsored by the American Academy of Neurology, American Academy of Neurology Foundation, and the Child Neurology Society. Vincent Shieh / New York

Michael S. Pessin Stroke Leadership Prize Sponsored by the American Academy of Neurology and endowed by Dr. Pessin's family, friends and colleagues. Natalia Rost, MD / Boston

Potamkin Prize for Research in Pick’s, Alzheimer’s, and Related Diseases Sponsored by the American Academy of Neurology, the American Academy of Neurology Foundation and funded through the philanthropy of the Potamkin Family. Takeshi Iwatsubo, MD, PhD / Tokyo

Neuroendocrine Research Award Sponsored by the American Academy of Neurology and supported by friends of Andrew Herzog, MD. Alison Pack, MD / New York

Research Award in Geriatric Neurology Sponsored by the American Academy of Neurology and the Academy’s Geriatric Neurology Section. Gil Rabinovici, MD / San Francisco

Bruce S. Schoenberg International Award in Neuroepidemiology Endowed by GlaxoSmithKline, Inc. Amir Hadi Maghzi, MD / Isfahan, Iran

Sleep Science Award Sponsored by the American Academy of Neurology and the Academy’s Sleep Section and endowed by Cephalon, Inc. Beth Malow, MD, MS / Nashville, Tenn.

Harold Wolff-John Graham: An Award for Headache/Facial Pain Research Sponsored by the American Academy of Neurology and endowed by Endo Pharmaceuticals. Simon Akerman, MD / San Francisco

Wayne A. Hening Sleep Medicine Investigator Award Sponsored by the American Academy of Neurology and endowed by UCB, Inc., Lilly USA, Elite Home Medical & Respiratory, Inc., Raleigh Neurology Associates and friends of Wayne A. Hening, MD. Jeffery Ellenbogen, MD, MMSc / Boston

Patient Safety Award Sponsored by the American Academy of Neurology. Justin T. Jordan, MD / Dallas Katie Wiltshire, MD / Calgary, Canada

Presented by the American Academy of Neurology with financial support from Professional Risk Management Services, Inc.

The American Academy of Neurology, an association of more than 25,000 neurologists and neuroscience professionals, is dedicated to promoting the highest quality patient-centered neurologic care. A neurologist is a doctor with specialized training in diagnosing, treating and managing disorders of the brain and nervous system such as stroke, Alzheimer’s disease, epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease and multiple sclerosis. For more information about the American Academy of Neurology, visit http://www.aan.com or find us on Facebook, Twitter, Google+ and YouTube.

###