Elliot S. Krames MD, DABPM

President & Editor-in-Chief, Neuromodulation

Elliot S. Krames, MD, is a board-certified anesthesiologist who has been practicing pain medicine solely for the past 20 years. He is a pioneer and one of the leading experts in the field of intraspinal analgesia. He is a worldwide-recognized leader and educator in the field of neuromodulation for pain control. He has written extensively on implantable technologies for pain management and has conducted national and international symposia related to this topic.

Dr. Krames, for over 10 years, has been the Medical director of Pacific Pain Treatment Centers in the San Francisco Bay Area, an organization of pain clinics dedicated to interdisciplinary pain medicine. He is co-founder of the National Pain Foundation, a founding member of the American Neuromodulation Society and he participates on the Boards of the International and American Neuromodulation Societies, World Institute of Pain, and the American Academy of Pain Medicine. He serves as scientific advisor and is on the speaker's bureaus of several major medical corporations. Dr. Krames was the Chairman of the Worldwide Pain Conference of the International and American Neuromodulation Societies the World Institute of Pain and the World Society of Pain Clinicians, held July 15 - 21, 2000 in San Francisco, USA.

Simon J. Thomson MBBS, FRCA, FIPP

President-Elect

Dr. Simon Thomson was appointed as Consultant in Anaesthesia and Pain Management services at Basildon and Thurrock University NHS Trust in October 1992. He holds a particular interest in multidisciplinary pain management, education, refractory angina management and neuromodulation for pain and other disorders.

He was founding president of the Neuromodulation Society of UK and Ireland (NSUKI) in 2001 and is Secretary of the International Neuromodulation Society (INS) since 2003 and is website editor. He was elected onto council of the British Pain Society since 2005.

Current research interests are of a large multicentre prospective randomised nature to demonstrate clinical and cost effectiveness of SCS when added to the management of failed back surgery syndrome and critical stable limb ischaemia. He was the first in the UK to publish long term outcomes of SCS in a large personal series and has contributed chapters to textbooks on pain management and  neurostimulation for pain.

He is a faculty member of ECMT (European Continuing Medical Training) and is medical director of annual hospital based workshops on neuromodulation.

He has developed care pathways for neuromodulation, back pain, chronic refractory angina, critical limb ischaemia and is currently embarked on a model for primary care pain management education.

When not working he likes to ski, play tennis both Real and Lawn, cycle, cook and entertain.

Damianos Sakas, MD

Secretary, and
National Chapter President, South Eastern Europe

Professor of Neurosurgery and Chairman, Department of Neurosurgery, University of Athens, Evangelismos General Hospital, Athens, Greece (2000 –). Graduate of Ionnidios School of Piraeus (1972) and Medical School, University of Athens (1978). Certificate of Educational Commission for Foreign Medical Graduates USA (1979). Military service in the Greek Navy (1979 -1981).

Specialty Training: Department of Surgery, General Hospital of Mytilene (1981-1982), Department of Neurology, University of Athens, Eginition Hospital (1981-1982) and Department of Neurosurgery, Evangelismos General Hospital, Athens (1983-1986). Completion of Specialty Training in Neurosurgery, Athens (1986). Neurosurgical Fellow, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, USA (1986 -1989) M.D. Thesis, University of Athens (1988). Neurosurgical Registrar, Institute of Neurological Sciences, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, Scotland (1990-1991). Neurosurgical Registrar, National Centre for Neurosurgery, Dublin, Ireland (1991-1993).

Senior Appointments: Consultant Neurosurgeon Walsgrave Hospital, Coventry, England (1993), Midland Centre for Neurology and Neurosurgery, University of Birmingham, England (1994), and University Hospital Coventry and Warwickshire, England (1995-1999). Honorary Senior Clinical Lecturer, University of Warwick, England (1995-1999). Lead Clinician, Dept. of Neurosciences, University Hospital Coventry and Warwickshire, England (1997-1999).

Editorial Work: Associate Editor, Yearbook of Neurology and Neurosurgery (1997-). Associate Editor, Yearbook of Medicine (2003-), Reviewer in Neuromodulation (2003-) and Acta Neurochirurgica, The European Journal of Neurosurgery (2003-). Editor of the textbook: An Introduction to Neurosurgery, Parissianos Medical Publishers (in Greek), Athens, (2003).

Membership of Societies: President, Hellenic Neurosurgical Society (2001-2003). President, SouthEast European Chapter, International Neuromodulation Society (2004-). Member, Executive Committee, European Society for Functional & Stereotactic Neurosurgery (2000-). American Congress of Neurological Surgeons (1995-). Society of British Neurological Surgeons (1995-), Society for Research into Higher Education (1995-), Training Committee, European Association of Neurosurgical Societies (2003-).

Special Neurosurgical Interests: epilepsy surgery, movement disorders surgery, vascular surgery, neurotrauma, skull base surgery and neuromodulation.

Liong Liem, MD

Treasurer

Dr.Liem was born in Leiden, The Netherlands and then moved to Indonesia and lived there until 1964. He returned to The Netherlands where he finished high school in 1970.

After completing medical school in 1977 at the Free University of Amsterdam he joined the Royal Dutch Navy as a medical officer from 1977 to 1979. From 1979 to 1982 he was a resident in anaesthesiology at the St.Antonius Hospital in Utrecht. During this time he implanted one of the first spinal cord stimulators in the Netherlands. From 1982 to 1985 he was a consultant anaesthesiologist in Arnhem and was actively involved in interventional pain treatment. He was especially interested in invasive percutaneous treatment of trigeminal neuralgia and percutaneous cordotomy for malignant pain.

Since 1985 Dr.Liem has been a consultant in anaesthesiology and pain medicine at St. Antonius Hospital, now located in Nieuwegein. He has extensive experience in spinal cord stimulation and neuro-implantable techniques for spasticity and pain. His practice is part of a multidisciplinary clinic which is one of the major pain clinics in the country, with patients being referred from all over The Netherlands.

Dr.Liem was one of the founders of the Benelux Neuromodulation Society (BNS) and was elected as the first president in 2002. He has been elected Treasurer of the INS executive board to start 2006. He is married and in his spare time enjoys skiing, cycling, travelling and collecting the latest gadgets.

Brian Simpson MD, FRCS

IFESS Liaison / Ex-Officio (until 6/07)

Brian Simpson studied Medicine at Cambridge University (Trinity Hall) and at The Royal London Hospital, qualifying in 1973. After basic general surgical training he became a Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of England in 1978. The award of a Wellcome Trust Surgical Research Fellowship enabled him to spend nearly three years in full-time research studying the functions of the cerebral dopamine systems. His thesis led to the Doctorate of Medicine degree (University of Cambridge). During an intensive neurosurgical training in London he developed his interest in stereotactic and functional neurosurgery including brain and spinal cord stimulation and now has more than 25 years’ experience in this subspecialty field.

Brian moved to Cardiff to take up a consultant post in 1988 and was Clinical Director of Neurosciences at the University Hospital of Wales, Cardiff from 1999 until 2004. In addition to a wide referral base for his specialist interests, he and four consultant colleagues provide a busy general neurosurgical service for a local population of 1.5 million.

Brian has been a Board Member of the INS since 1996, having been a member since the Society’s inception. During his Presidency (2000 – 2003) his main goals were to strengthen the structure and constitution of the society and to develop national chapters. His current role is to act as liaison with the International Functional Electrical Stimulation Society (IFESS). Brian’s wife Ann is also a doctor, working in General Practice (Primary Care). They have two daughters, Emma and Rachel. Apart from family and work, and periodic attempts to prevent Mother Nature from reclaiming his large garden, he has a keen interest in motor racing.

Tia Sofatzis

Executive Director

Tia Sofatzis graduated from the University of California at Berkeley, with a B.A. in American and English Literature. During a Thanksgiving party in 1996, Tia had the great fortune of meeting Dr. Elliot Krames, who had been searching for a Managing Editor to help him initiate the INS’ journal, Neuromodulation, and to organize the Worldwide Pain Conference. They’ve been working together on many projects, and running the journal’s Editorial Office ever since their serendipitous introduction.

In October of 2001, The Board of the International Neuromodulation Society selected Tia for the position of Executive Director. Tia appreciates the wonderful people with whom she works, and the diverse nature of her occupation - especially traveling, and interacting with the international neuromodulation community.

Tia loves visiting with her family and friends all over the world, and enjoys alpine skiing, dancing, hiking, and practicing yoga.

Bart Nuttin, MD, PhD

Benelux Countries

Bart Nuttin, born in 1959 in Belgium, is married to Claire Borghgraef and has 4 children (Laura, Bram, Matthias and Dries). After his preliminary studies and Latin-Science High-School, he studied medicine at the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium. During his further training he partly stayed in South Africa and England. He was certified by the board of the Ministery of Public Health in Belgium in 1992. He was first trained in functional and stereotactic neurosurgery by Prof. Jan Gybels in Leuven, and later-on by Prof. Volker Sturm in Köln, Germany and Prof. Peter Black at Children's Hospital, Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, USA. He finished his PhD thesis entitled “Interleukin-6 and spinal cord injury in the rat” with Prof. Jan Gybels as his promoter.

He is currently professor in neurosurgery at the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven, Belgium, and head of the clinic of neurosurgery in the University Hospitals Leuven where he is responsible for functional and stereotactic neurosurgery. Apart from his neurosurgical activities and lecturing in several faculties of the university, he runs a research lab. Currently his main research topics are deep brain stimulation in psychiatric disorders and the development of new stimulation techniques in neuromodulation. He received several scientific awards for his publications.

He has been President of the Belgian Society for Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery and he is President of the BNS and Board member of the INS since November 2005.

Paolo Poli, MD

Italy

Dr. Paolo Poli was born in Pisa on August 17, 1948. He always lived and studied in Pisa, where he completed medical school in 1975. In the same year, he was assistent in the Emergency department of Pontedera Hospital. During his anaesthesiology postgraduate, he was in the Addrenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge for 1 year, where he wrote his thesis of postgraduation in anaestesiology in liver  transplantation. He returned to Italy and he was anaesthesiology assistant in Pisa Hospital.

He worked as consultant in the Department of Civil Defence of the Ministry of Interior and he was special consultant for disaster medicine in Mexico, in Italy, in Yugoslavia, and in the Azores during earthquakes, mass migrations and air disasters. In 1982 he obtained his postgraduate degree in legal medicine. In 1989 he created in Pisa the first pain therapy clinic and from 1991 he became devoted to this discipline: he created and directed a multidisciplinary clinic for pain therapy.

Dr. Poli was one of the founders of the Tuscany Society of Pain Therapy and Palliative Care "Vincere il Dolore Onlus" and one of the founders of the Italian Chapter of INS. He has a lot of hobbies such as diving, flying and sailing.

Japan

Professor Katayama is a board-certified neurosurgeon who has been practicing stereotactic and functional neurosurgery, and brain tumour surgery for the past 30 years. He is one of the leading experts in the field of deep brain and cortical stimulation for intractable pain and movement disorders.

He has been interested in neurosurgical re-engineering of the damaged brain and spinal cord for many years, employing implantation technologies and wide varieties of scientific approaches, and has held national and international symposia related to this new field.

Professor Katayama completed his neurosurgical residency and fellowship training at Nihon University and the Medical College of Virginia. He then
served on faculty at the Medical College of Virginia and University of California in Los Angeles. Since 1995, he has been Professor of Neurosurgery at
Nihon University School of Medicine. He is a past President of the Japanese Congress of Neurological Surgeons.

He is currently President of the International Society of Reconstructive Neurosurgery, Vice-president of the World Academy of Multidisciplinary
Neurotraumatology and Vice-president of the World Society of Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery. He is also a serving associate editor of Journal of Neurotrauma, Brain Pathology and Brain Injury, and is on the advisory board of the International Society for Brain Edema and the International Neurotrauma Society, and the board of directors of the International Society of Cerebral Blood Flow and Metabolism.

Damianos Sakas, MD

South Eastern Europe

Giancarlo Barolat, MD

Denver, USA

Giancarlo Barolat MD was born and raised in Torino, Italy and finished medical school in 1974 at the University of Torino, Italy

Residency in Neurosurgery at the University of Torino - 1974-1979; Fellowship in Functional Neurosurgery and Neurostimulation at the Mount Sinai Medical Center in Miami, Florida - 1978-1979;  Second residency in Neurosurgery at the Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee - 1979-1985; Fellowship in spinal cord injury, Medical College of Wisconsin - 1984-1985; He is certified by both the American and the Italian Board of Neurosurgery.

He was Professor of Neurosurgery at Thomas Jefferson University, Director of Neurosurgical Services at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital (TJUH) and Director of the Division of Functional Neurosurgery at Thomas Jefferson University until December 2004 . He practiced at TJUH from 1985 to 2004 . His practice encompassed cranial and spinal surgery as well as functional neurosurgery. He had extensive involvement with the oncology department in the surgical management of cerebral and spinal metastasis, particularly malignant melanomas. He also functioned as the main paediatric neurosurgeon at TJUH, operating primarily on newborn infants with hydrocephalus and/or spina bifida.

He has extensive experience with surgical spine procedures. He is fellowship trained in spinal cord and spine injuries. He was an integral part of the TJUH Spinal Cord Injury Program for over ten years. As such, he has performed hundreds of complex spine operations. He has also been involved in the surgical management of intractable seizures through implantation of vagus nerve stimulator devices. He was President of the International Neuromodulation Society and is on the Board of the American Neuromodulation Society and on the Editorial Board of the Journal, Neuromodulation. He is currently Director-at-large of the International Neuromodulation Society.

Dr. Barolat is one of the world leaders in the area of neuro-implantable technologies for the management of pain and motor disorders. He is one of the pioneers of spinal cord stimulation for spasticity and pain management. His practice is one of the largest in the country, with patients being referred from all over the United States and the world.

He has performed more than 4,000 neurostimulation implants, has been the author of over 60 medical articles and book chapters and has lectured extensively both nationally and internationally. Dr Barolat is currently practicing neurosurgery and neuromodulation in Denver, Colorado, and is affiliated with Skyridge Medical Center. He is the CEO and Director of the Barolat Institute.

Ross Davis, MD

Editor for Functional Electrical Stimulation, Neuromodulation (indefinite term)

Ross Davis is a Neurophysiologist and Neurosurgeon, who was born in Sydney, Australia. He graduated from the Sydney University Medical School in 1957 and then undertook 3 years of neurophysiology research on the visual system with Professor Peter Bishop (University of Sydney) and 1 year in neuropharmacology with Professor David Curtis, Department of Physiology, Australian National University, Canberra (Chairman: Sir John Eccles).

Dr. Davis' career changed direction in 1961 when he commenced investigations on the neurophysiologic and pharmacologic characteristics of the effects of the cerebellum on the brain stem and thalamus. This work was started in the feline, then the baboon, and from 1973 he had joined in the neurosurgical project of developing cerebellar stimulation for controlling spasticity and seizures in disabled patients, mainly in children.

Dr. Davis trained in neurological surgery at the University of Michigan (1967 to 1971) and was board certified; subsequently he was Assistant Professor of Neurological Surgery and Physiology at the University of Miami Medical School and Chief of Spinal Cord Injury Service at Veterans Administration Hospital, Miami, FL. (1971 to 1974); then Chairman, Department of Neurological Surgery, Mount Sinai Medical Center, Miami Beach, FL. from 1974-1982.

He was an Adjunct Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL. From 1982 in Augusta, Maine, he was in active neurosurgical practice at the MaineGeneral Medical Center until 2002, and Chief of Neurosurgery at the VA Medical Center until 1991.

From 1983-2003, he initiated the development and implantation of multi-functional 22-channel stimulators for functional restoration of individuals with paraplegia.

His research efforts are now in the application of implanted micro-stimulators / sensors to restore function in neurological disabilities.

Timothy Deer, MD

Timothy Deer, MD, was born and raised in Chesapeake WestVirginia, USA. During the last decade, he has originated many ideas which have been incorporated in the mainstream of present day theory and practice of Interventional Pain Management.

Dr. Deer completed his medical school education at West Virginia University where he was an Alpha Omega Alpha honor student at the top of his class.

After medical school Dr. Deer attended the University Of Virginia School Of Medicine where he did his training in Internal Medicine, Anesthesiology, and Pain Medicine. Over the past thirteen years Dr. Deer has held numerous appointments including the Chairman ofthe American Society of Anesthesiologist committee on Pain Medicine. This forty two thousand member group represents more pain clinicians than any other organized body. Dr. Deer has also been President of the West Virginia Society of Anesthesiologists, President of the West Virginia Society of Interventional Pain Physicians, and Representative to the Carrier Advisory Committee to Medicare for Ohio and West Virginia.

In addition to those activities Dr. Deer is on the Board of Directors for the North American Neuromodulation Society. He is also on the editorial committee for the journals Neuromodulation, Pain Medicine and Pain Physician.

Dr. Deer has taught extensively on the topic of neuromodulation. He has lectured on the topic of spinal cord stimulation and intrathecal drug infusions throughout the United States, and also in Europe, Australia and Asia. He has taught cadaver techniques to hundreds of fellows and numerous practicing physicians. Dr. Deer is currently involved in studies approved by the FDA on stimulation for occipital induced migraine, stimulation for peripheral nerve disorders and stimulation for patients after stroke. He is also involved with new product design on a number of new devices.