Newswise — (New Orleans, LA) – Lawrence H. Phillips, II, MD, will be presented the American Association of Neuromuscular & Electrodiagnostic Medicine’s (AANEM) highest honor, the 2016 Lifetime Achievement Award, at the AANEM 2016 Annual Meeting in New Orleans, LA, September 14-17, 2016.
The Lifetime Achievement Award is the highest honor bestowed by the AANEM. It is given to members who have been major contributors to the fields of electrodiagnostic (EDX) and neuromuscular (NM) medicine through their efforts in teaching, research, and scholarly publications.
A past AANEM Board President, and Editor of Muscle & Nerve since 2008, Dr. Phillips has published extensively in the field of NM medicine, particularly on myasthenia gravis and Lambert-Eaton myasthenia. He served on numerous local, national, and international committees, and was a member of the Executive Committee of the International Federation of Clinical Neurophysiology.
The humble spark to this illustrious career: crickets. "For my senior thesis research at Princeton I did neurophysiologic recordings on crickets to study the role hearing played in regulating aggression," said Dr. Phillips. The interest in stimulating and recording from nerves deepened in medical school at West Virginia University. "My mentor, Dr. Ludwig Gutmann, let me work in his EMG lab. It inspired me to go into neurology, and to be an electromyographer.
" Dr. Phillips trained in neurology at Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, and completed a research fellowship in neurophysiology under the direction of Dr. Edward H. Lambert. He joined the Deptment of Neurology at the University ofVirginia Medical School as Director of the EMG Laboratory, and was later named Director of the NM Center and MDA Clinic at the University of Virginia Medical Center. He was named Professor of Neurology in 1995, Vice-Chair of the Department of Neurology in 1996, and T.R. Johns, MD Professor of Neurology in 1997.
The most significant changes he's seen in the field -"When I started we didn't have much in the way of effective treatment for myasthenia gravis. Now we control disease with immune therapy, to the point where for most people it's a benign disease. Also when I started, there was no treatment for ALS, but we're optimistic about finding a way to control or eradicate the disease." One constant has been his regard for AANEM. "This is the organization I have invested the most significant amount of my time in over the years, and being honored by this organization I've devoted so much to, means everything to me," said Dr. Phillips.
About AANEMFounded in 1953, the AANEM is a nonprofit membership association dedicated to the advancement of neuromuscular, musculoskeletal, and electrodiagnostic medicine. Nearly 5000 physician members—primarily neurologists and physiatrists—are now joined by allied health professionals and PhD researchers working to improve the quality of medical care provided to patients with muscle and nerve disorders. AANEM programs are guided by its five pillars: education, professional standards, advocacy, communications, and research. Its administrative office is located in Rochester, MN. More information about AANEM Achievement Awards and Dr. Phillip’s credentials is available at http://www.aanem.org/Membership/Member-Portal/Achievement-Awards/Current-Award-Recipients
### END ###Media Contact: Laurie MonaAANEM Communications Manager 507.288.0100[email protected]
RSS