FSN President Dr. Teshamae Monteith Oversees Florida Society of Neurology Annual Meeting
Summary
- Dr. Teshamae Monteith presided over her first annual meeting as Florida Society of Neurology president.
- Miller School neurologist Dr. Henry Moore discussed essential tremor at the meeting.
- Dr. Liza Smirnoff presented on cluster headache and said Florida is underrepresented by headache specialists.
University of Miami Miller School of Medicine faculty members in the Department of Neurology joined esteemed colleagues from around the state to present on a spectrum of neurological diseases at the 2025 Florida Society Of Neurology (FSN) annual meeting.
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As FSN president, Teshamae Monteith, M.D., professor of clinical neurology and chief of the Headache Division at the Miller School, led the January 18-19 meeting in Orlando, calling the event a “celebration of neurology.”
“The first year into my two-year term as FSN president, I felt proud of the caliber of this year’s program, thanks to the Florida speakers who presented on all aspects of neurology. Faculty at the Miller School—the largest neurology department in the state—was out in full force to present on and share the latest research in essential tremor, Lewy body dementia, dystonia, chronic headache disorders, migraine and cluster headache,” Dr. Monteith said. “The fact that the University of Miami is leading neurology affairs in the state through FSN by bringing neurologists together with a common goal is phenomenal. This shows our statewide leadership.”
FSN is the state society affiliated with the American Academy of Neurology, the world’s largest association of neurologists and neuroscience professionals.
Essential Tremor
Henry Moore, M.D., associate professor of clinical neurology in the Division of Movement Disorders at the Miller School, presented on essential tremor. He characterized the disease as “by far the most common movement disorder, with more than 10 million people in the U.S. suffering from this disabling condition.”
Dr. Moore noted there have been important and recent advances in essential tremor-related genetics, physiopathology and treatment.
“I talked about the new oral medications in development, which target the cerebellar pathways affected in this disease,” he said. “I also updated attendees in the role of botulinum toxin and other peripheral neuromodulation techniques with wearable devices, as well as discussed advanced essential tremor treatments, including deep brain stimulation and high-intensity focused ultrasound, or HIFU.”
Lewy Body Dementia
Miller School Professor of Neurology James Galvin, M.D., M.P.H., chief of the Division of Cognitive Neurology and director of the Comprehensive Center for Brain Health and the Lewy Body Dementia Research Center of Excellence, presented on Lewy body dementia, the second most common cause of cognitive impairment in older adults after Alzheimer’s disease.
“Despite Lewy body dementia’s high prevalence, there are extreme delays in diagnosis, greater care costs and caregiver burden and no approved treatments,” Dr. Galvin said. “At FSN, we covered advances in recognition and diagnosis of LBD, as well emerging evidence from recent clinical trials that offer the potential for both symptomatic relief and disease modification.”
Dystonia
Corneliu Luca, M.D., Ph.D., professor of clinical neurology in the Division of Movement Disorders, co-director of the Movement Disorders Fellowship and director of the Deep Brain Stimulation Program at the Miller School, presented on dystonia, a complex neurological movement disorder that can significantly impact motor function, communication and daily activities.
“We presented ongoing research into genetic underpinnings and current treatment modalities, including neurotoxin injections and neuromodulation techniques, which underscores a promising future for dystonia management,” Dr. Luca said.
Chronic Headache
Liza Smirnoff, M.D., assistant clinical professor of neurology with a clinical specialty in headache at the Miller School, talked about chronic headache. The malady is common, debilitating and often difficult to diagnose, leaving patients to seek care from multiple treatment centers before finding appropriate treatment.
“We dove into strategies for diagnosing this complex group of disorders, including chronic migraine, hemicrania continua, idiopathic intracranial hypertension and new, persistent daily headache,” Dr. Smirnoff said. “Florida in particular has very few headache specialists, thus knowledge and ability to care for these patients is key to neurologists throughout Florida.”
Migraine/Cluster Headache Management
Dr. Monteith updated FSN attendees on management approaches for migraine and cluster headache.
“There has been tremendous progress and an acceleration of scientific investigations for migraine and cluster headache,” Dr. Monteith said. “We reviewed recent advances and shared ways in which to integrate these advances in complex clinical scenarios.”
Dr. Monteith hopes to increase FSN membership and engage neurologists and other practitioners in the state who treat people with neurologic disorders.
“The impressive participation, collaboration and knowledge sharing that happened at this year’s FSN annual meeting makes it clear that we are harnessing our networks in Florida to support neurology efforts statewide, whether they are clinical practices, health systems, academic and research centers or focused on advocacy,” Dr. Monteith said.
Dr. Monteith reserved special mention for the poster session that featured research from students, residents and fellows across the state.
Monica won a research award for her mentored poster on the relationship between migraine, stress and burnout.
“We had an impressive number of high-quality submissions, and the session was packed with attendees,” she said. “This gives me some reassurance in the pipeline of upcoming neurologists in our state.”
Paying Tribute to a Trailblazer
The 2025 annual meeting celebrated the life and legacy of University of Florida College of Medicine Distinguished Professor Emeritus Kenneth Heilman, M.D., a trailblazer known for his contributions to behavioral neurology.
FSN Immediate Past-President Daniel Jacobs, M.D., professor of neurology at University of Central Florida College of Medicine, said Dr. Heilman had been at the forefront of behavioral neurology research for more than half a century.
“His creative approaches to scientific inquiry about the brain and behavior led to over 650 publications, many conducted with his numerous fellows and trainees, who numbered in triple digits,” Dr. Jacobs said. “He was a leader in all subfields of behavior, including aphasia, apraxia, memory, neglect, emotion and the brain and others. His more recent work dealt with creativity and the brain. His conferences at Shands, national meetings, ski trips and FSN were always worthwhile. He will be missed.”
Top-of-Mind Talks
Amanda Smith, M.D., professor of psychiatry and behavioral neurosciences at the University of South Florida Health Morsani College of Medicine and director of clinical research at the USF Health Byrd Alzheimer’s Center and Research Institute, presented “Advances in the Diagnosis and Treatment of Alzheimer’s Disease.”
“We are in a new era with this illness, where we are able to confirm Alzheimer’s with accurate blood tests and imaging studies, and provide disease-modifying therapies to patients who qualify,” Dr. Smith said. “The FSN meeting is a great forum to showcase these breakthroughs in our field and help community neurologists all over the state learn to incorporate them into clinical practice.”
Among the other featured speakers, University of Florida College of Medicine Neurology Chair and Professor Michael Jaffee, M.D., presented on traumatic brain injury (TBI). He reviewed recent developments in TBI in the context of the evolution of knowledge and practice, with an eye toward anticipated developments in the upcoming year.
“Included in the talk were developments about TBI patient advocacy in Florida and a federal-state-academic-advocacy partnership for a new Florida state plan for those with acquired injury,” Dr. Jaffee said. “FSN is a great opportunity for Florida neurologists with a variety of expertise to share their knowledge with each other to further strengthen neurological care throughout the state.“
Tags: Alzheimer's disease, cluster headache, Comprehensive Center for Brain Health, deep brain stimulation, Deep Brain Stimulation Program, Department of Neurology, Dr. Teshamae Monteith, dystonia, essential tremor, headache medicine, Lewy body dementia, migraine, neurology