Emory University School of Medicine
Emory University School of Medicine
Department of Neurology

Fellowships section navigation

Department of Neurology

Epilepsy

Number of Fellows

4 - 2 adult, 2 pediatric



Length

1 year



Accreditation

ACGME



Salary Level

PGY-5 or PGY-6 Level, as applicable



Program Overview

This one-year ACGME-accredited fellowship is designed to enhance the technical skills and clinical application of epilepsy and produce outstanding epileptologists. The fellow will work closely with the Neuromuscular and Epilepsy services. Under the guidance of these services the fellow will become proficient at the performance and interpretation of nerve conduction studies, electromyography, electroencephalography, long-term video/EEG monitoring and evoked potentials. Experience is also available for intraoperative monitoring (IOM) and sleep disorders, but these modalities are not available as an area of concentration.  Clinical experience is obtained in our outpatient Epilepsy and Neuromuscular specialty clinics, as well as inpatient services.

At completion of the program, fellows are eligible for the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology (ABPN) Epilepsy Boards. 

For those that are interested, the Epilepsy Fellowship may be coupled with a Clinical Neurophysiology Fellowship for a two-year experience. The second year complements the first, providing additional time for more in-depth pursuits, both clinical (e.g. in surgical epilepsy, including stereo-electroencephalography, Neurostimulation, stimulation mapping, electric source imaging, Wada testing and more) and research.



Overall Program Objectives

  1. The fellow’s training includes significant didactic and clinical experience, and by the end of fellowship will demonstrate competence in:
    1. the diagnostic evaluation, medical management and surgical evaluation of patients with epilepsy and seizures,
    2. interviewing and examining patients with epilepsy and seizures,
    3. determining the differential diagnosis of the various clinical presentations of epilepsy and seizures,
    4. determining the appropriate investigations for the diagnosis of epilepsy and seizures, including laboratory, pathologic, radiologic and neurophysiologic testing (including both medical and surgical investigations),
    5. inpatient and outpatient management of patients with epilepsy and seizures,
    6. working in multidisciplinary teams and coordinating patient care
  2. Fellows will be able to perform all medical, diagnostic and surgical procedures considered essential for the area of practice.
  3. Fellows will demonstrate knowledge of established and evolving biomedical, clinical, epidemiological and social-behavioral sciences, including scientific inquiry, as well as the application of this knowledge to patient care. This will include competence in:
    1. the basic science of epilepsy and seizures,
    2. the genetics of epilepsy and seizures,
    3. the epidemiology of epilepsy and seizures,
    4. neuroimaging and other diagnostic modalities in epilepsy,
    5. neuropsychology,
    6. pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic treatment of epilepsy,
    7. co-morbidity in epilepsy and seizures,
    8. ictal and interictal EEG patterns across the lifespan,
    9. prognosis in epilepsy and seizures.

Emory University Hospital is a quaternary care center, specializing in the care of acutely ill adult patients from the state of Georgia, as well as surrounding states. It has over 700 beds, and is a comprehensive stroke center, as well as one of the highest volume centers for subarachnoid hemorrhage in the Southeast United States. It is one of the only National Association of Epilepsy Centers (NAEC) Level 4 epilepsy centers in the southeastern United States, with over 8,500 patients annually.

Epilepsy/EEG services offered include the following:

  • Epilepsy clinic at the Brain Health Center, including a continuity clinic and time in a dedicated neurostimulation clinic (cumulatively >15,000 encounters per year)
  • Outpatient EEGs at our Brain Health Center (>1100 routine and 330 ambulatory EEGs/year) and inpatient routine/stat EEGs within Emory Healthcare (>1400 studies/year)
  • Epilepsy Monitoring Unit at Emory University Hospital, including on the intracranial EEG service (>1600 patient days/year, including 50 intracranial cases, contributing to approximately 50 laser ablations/resections and one of the most robust sites of neurostimulation device placement nationally)
  • ICU EEG monitoring throughout Emory Healthcare

After completion of the fellowship, the physician will be eligible to take the board certifications offered by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology.

Didactic conferences include the following:

  • Clinical Neurophysiology Fellowship Lecture Series (Friday afternoons, July-October)
  • Weekly Combined Neurophysiology Conference (Thursday mornings, October-June)
  • Weekly Epilepsy surgery conference (Tuesday mornings, adult and pediatric)
  • Weekly Epilepsy Lectures (Friday afternoons, November-June)
  • Weekly EMG Conference (Friday mornings, September-June)
  • Weekly Neurology Grand Rounds (Friday mornings, September-June)

Fellows are offered the annual American Association of Neuromuscular & Electrodiagnostic Medicine Electrodiagnostic Medicine In-Service exam, and the annual American Clinical Neurophysiology Society In-Service Exam.

Successful completion of an ACGME-accredited residency in neurology, child neurology, neurodevelopmental disabilities or psychiatry is required.



Epilepsy with Emphasis in Pediatric Epilepsy

Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta (CHOA) offers a one-year Pediatric Epilepsy Fellowship program that provides extensive and focused training in all areas of clinical neurophysiology, with an emphasis on epilepsy diagnosis and therapy.

This fellowship is a pediatric epilepsy track under Emory University's Epilepsy Fellowship. These fellows will spend approximately 10 months within the Children’s Hospital of Atlanta (CHOA), gaining exposure to neonatal EEG, ICU EEG, pediatric stereo-EEG and more. They are fully integrated with the adult Epilepsy fellows for didactics. The program is accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education.

Visit the Pediatric Epilepsy Fellowship page for more information. 

To learn more about the Emory Training Program policies, benefits and University Affiliated Hospitals, please refer to Emory's Graduate Medical Education website.