Welcome to the UCSF Division of Child Neurology, dedicated to improving the lives of children with neurological disorders since its founding by Dr. Bruce O. Berg in 1968. Nationally recognized as one of the fathers of child neurology, Dr. Berg continued to advance the new field over the course of his 31 year career at UCSF. We now have more than 25 faculty members, with expertise and active research programs in neonatal neurology, stroke and cerebrovascular disease, neuro-oncology, neuromuscular disease, epilepsy, autism, neurogenetics, multiple sclerosis, and movement disorders. Child neurology is a core part of the Pediatric Brain Center at UCSF, established in 2012 to bring together all specialists involved in the care of children with nervous systems disorders, from neurological surgeons to neuropsychologists, and from neuro-critical care physicians to physiatrists. We bring a multidisciplinary approach to all of our core missions: clinical care, teaching, and education. In conjunction with the education division of Neurology, we offer a child neurology residency program as well as clinical fellowships in epilepsy, headache, vascular neurology (stroke), and a research fellowship in pediatric hemorrhagic stroke. Our division was a continuous recipient of the NIH-funded Neurological Sciences Academic Development Award (NSADA K12) since 1994, allowing us to launch the careers of more than 20 physician-scientists in child neurology. Our division chief, Dr. Heather Fullerton, now serves on the National Advisory Executive Committee for the Child Neurologist Career Development Program (CNCDP K12) that is replacing the NSADA to train the next generation of academic child neurologists.
Clinics and Services
The Division of Child Neurology is a key component of the Pediatric Brain Center (PBC) at UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital. We offer integrated clinical care to children across a wide range of neurological disorders. Questions asked at the bedside move rapidly to our active research community, and answers are brought back to the clinical team, creating a tight translational loop. We offer rigorous clinical and research training, producing future leaders in the field of child neurology. Our clinical programs aim to improve the lives of children with neurological disorders today, while our research and training programs aim to improve the lives of affected children of tomorrow.
Research
The Division of Child Neurology performs clinical, translational, and basic science research to improve the lives of the children we care for. To learn more, visit PBC Research and Clinical Trials and the web pages for some of our research programs, below.
Alexander Fay, MD, PhD - The Pediatric Advanced Neurotherapeutics (PANTher) Program helps translate basic science discoveries to clinical trials for the treatment of childhood neurological diseases.
Heather Fullerton, MD, MAS, and Christine Fox, MD, MAS – The Pediatric Stroke and Cerebrovascular Research Program leads international, multicenter clinical research studies aimed at preventing and treating stroke in childhood.
Hannah C. Glass, MDCM, MAS leads several multi-center clinical research studies – including the Neonatal Seizure Registry – that use advanced imaging and brain monitoring to understand outcomes following newborn brain injury.
Sabine Mueller, MD, PhD – The Pacific Pediatric Neuro-Oncology Consortium (PNOC) conducts clinical trials of new therapies for children with brain tumors. Its goal is to improve outcomes by translating the latest findings in cancer biology into better treatments for these children.
Bridget Ostrem, MD, PhD – The Ostrem Laboratory is working to develop treatments and prevention strategies for newborn brain disorders. We also aim to improve prognostication and identification of patients who could benefit from novel therapies.
Elliott Sherr, MD, PhD – The Brain Development Research Program investigates the genetic and biological mechanisms and clinical manifestations of Autism, Epilepsy, and disorders of brain development such as Agenesis of the Corpus Callosum and Aicardi Syndrome.
Zena Vexler, PhD – The Vexler Laboratory aims to enhance long-term recovery from perinatal and childhood stroke by altering local brain microenvironment.
William A. Weiss, MD, PhD – The Weiss Laboratory is researching tumors of the nervous system such as glioma, neuroblastoma and medulloblastoma.
Spotlight: New Center of Excellence for Hemorrhagic Stroke Research
The American Heart Association and the Henrietta B. and Frederick H. Bugher Foundation have recently awarded a grant to researchers at UC San Francisco to create a Center of Excellence for Hemorrhagic Stroke Research – the first-ever Buhger Center dedicated to pediatric hemorrhagic stroke.
Read the Q & A with Dr. Heather Fullerton, Center Director and Training Director.
Faculty in Child Neurology
Danilo Bernardo, Jr., MD
Neurologist and epilepsy specialist
Mauro Caffarelli, MD
Pediatric neurologist and Critical Care Specialist
Qi Wen Fan, MD, PhD
Neuro-oncology research
Alexander Fay, MD, PhD
Neuromuscular disease and neurogenetics
Donna Ferriero, MD, MS
Neonatal neurology
Audrey Foster-Barber, MD, PhD
Pediatric neurology, palliative care
Christine Fox, MD, MAS
Vascular neurology
Carla Francisco, MD
Multiple Sclerosis
Heather Fullerton, MD, MAS
Vascular neurology
Dawn Gano, MD, MAS
Fetal and Neonatal Neurology
Amy Gelfand, MD, MAS
Headache neurology
Ernesto Gonzalez-Giraldo, MD
Neurologist and epilepsy specialist
Hannah Glass, MD, MAS
Pediatric neurology and neonatal neurology
Ana Grijalvo-Perez, MD
Pediatric neurologist and movement disorder neurology
Nancy K. Hills, PhD
Epidemiology, pediatric stroke research
Xiangning Jiang, PhD
Neonatal and childhood ischemic brain injury research
Bethany Johnson-Kerner, MD, PhD
Pediatric neurologist
Mary Karalius, MD
Pediatric neurologist
Virgina Lee, MD
Pediatric Neurologist
Adriana Morell, MD
Pediatric neurologist
Sabine Mueller, MD, PhD
Pediatric neuro-oncology
Kendall Nash, MD
Pediatric neurohospitalist
Adam Numis, MD
Neurologist and epilepsy specialist
Ann Oh, MD
Pediatric Neurologist
Bridget Ostrem, MD, PhD
Pediatric neurologist and Maternal-Fetal and Neonatal Neurology
Alyssa Reddy, MD
Pediatric neuro-oncology
Hannah Shapiro, MD
Pediatric neurology and headache specialist
Elliott Sherr, MD, PhD
Pediatric neurology, neurogenetics
Nilika Singhal, MD
Neurologist and epilepsy specialist
Jonathan Strober, MD
Neuromuscular diseases
Joseph Sullivan, MD
Neurologist and epilepsy specialist
Claire Timbie, MD, PhD
Neurologist and epilepsy specialist
Rachel Vassar, MD
Pediatric Vascular Neurologist
Zena Vexler, PhD
Neonatal and childhood ischemic brain injury research
William Weiss, MD, PhD
Pediatric neurology and neuro-oncology research
Sharon Wietstock, MD, MSc
Pediatric neurohospitalist
Yvonne Wu, MD, MPH
Pediatric neurology and neonatal neurology