Multiple Sclerosis Fellowship | NYU Langone Health

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Neurology Fellowships Multiple Sclerosis Fellowship

Multiple Sclerosis Fellowship

At NYU Langone’s Multiple Sclerosis Comprehensive Care Center, our focus is on compassionate patient care, clinical and translation research, and physician education. Our center offers two fellowship tracks: multiple sclerosis (MS) clinical care and MS research.

Adult and Pediatric Multiple Sclerosis and Neuroimmunology Fellowship

The Multiple Sclerosis Comprehensive Care Center, located in bustling Midtown Manhattan, serves an incredibly diverse population of patients with MS and related disorders from New York City and the tristate area. Founded in 1992 by Dr. Joseph Herbert, the center houses within its walls NYU Langone’s Pediatric Multiple Sclerosis Center and Neuromyelitis Optica Spectrum Disorder (NMOSD) and Myelin Oligodendrocyte Glycoprotein antibody-associated Disease (MOGAD) Treatment and Research Program, and is part of NYU Langone’s highly acclaimed Department of Neurology. NYU Langone has been ranked No. 1 in neurology and neurosurgery in the country by U.S. News and World Report in 2022–23 and 2023–24. Our center’s clinicians completed over 9,000 patient visits in 2022, of which more than 1,300 were new patient visits.

The clinical staff at the MS Comprehensive Care Center comprises six full-time neuroimmunology attendings, two of whom are double-boarded in neurology and psychiatry, a part-time neuro-urologist, two part-time psychologists, three nurse practitioners, four nurses, and a social worker.

The faculty involved in fellow training include Lauren B. Krupp, MD, center director and internationally recognized authority on pediatric and adult MS; Ilya Kister, MD, fellowship director and clinical researcher; Tyler E. Smith MD, associate fellowship director; Robert W. Charlson, MD, neurologist and psychiatrist; Jonathan E. Howard, MD, neurologist and psychiatrist; Vito P. Arena MD; and Josef (Max) Gutman, MD, all of whom are fellowship-trained neuroimmunologists.

Our center is active in clinical research. The director of research, Leigh E. Charvet, PhD, is highly published in the neuropsychology of MS and is an expert in telerehabilitation and transcranial direct current stimulation. Other clinical faculty contribute widely to different aspects of MS care, as demonstrated by the publications listed in their profiles.

We enroll one to two fellows per year and can offer separate fellowship tracks to best meet the applicants’ needs. We are participating in the SF Match for our one-year clinical track fellowships (program ID 9445), while our application process for the two-year clinical–research track and translational research track will be conducted outside the match (please see the Application Deadlines and Requirements).

Fellowship Overview

Our fellowships provide extensive training in the diagnosis, evaluation, and management of adults and children with MS and related disorders. All fellows will gain expertise in both pediatric and adult neuroimmunology, with the emphasis on which dependent upon the fellows’ interests.

Clinical and Clinical–Research Fellowships

The one-year intensive clinical training fellowship is 80 percent clinical and 20 percent research/educational. Fellows are expected to participate in clinical research conducted at the center, including clinical trials, but will not be required to complete an independent project culminating in a publication (although opportunities are available for those interested). Depending on a fellow’s interest, a second year focused on research may be discussed.

The two-year clinical–research fellowship is 60 percent clinical in the first year and 40 percent clinical in the second year to start, although this distribution will be tailored to the applicant. The balance of time is devoted to clinical research projects under the mentorship of one or more neuroimmunology attendings. Fellows are expected to complete projects that result in at least two peer-reviewed publications, of which at least one is first authored by the fellow. Read a selection of our fellows’ recent publications and presentations.

Translational MS Research Fellowship

The translational research track is a two-year fellowship designed primarily for applicants who have prior training in neurology (completed residency and are board-eligible/certified), have extensive bench research experience (PhD in a relevant field preferred), and wish to pursue advanced training in translational research in neuroimmunology. Fellows will work in a laboratory of established, NIH-funded investigators at NYU Langone’s Division of Infectious Diseases and Immunology or Neuroscience Institute on a project of clinical relevance to the field of neuroimmunology in collaboration with the clinical researchers at the MS Comprehensive Care Center. The translational research fellow will spend four days a week in the lab and will see patients one day a week in the center, and attend didactic sessions/conferences with clinical MS fellows. The research fellow will serve as a liaison between the clinic and the research laboratory.

Unlike the clinical MS fellowships, the research fellowship is not administered through the SF Match. Interested candidates should contact the fellowship director, Dr. Ilya Kister, directly with any questions.

Fellowship Expectations

All fellowship graduates will be expected to become proficient in diagnosing MS and—equally importantly—avoiding MS misdiagnosis; the use of all approved disease-modifying therapies for MS, with emphasis on high-efficacy therapies; and pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic approaches to managing the complex manifestations of MS. Fellows will receive comprehensive training in diagnosing and managing patients diagnosed with NMOSD and MOGAD, neurosarcoidosis, and will learn to collaborate with specialists in neuro-genetics, neuro-ophthalmology, vascular neurology, rheumatology, and other allied fields in challenging cases that require multidisciplinary expertise.

Fellows are provided a competitive salary commensurate with their PGY level. Nearly all our fellows have been funded by the National MS Society or other external sources of fellowship funding. Additional internal resources for fellowship funding are available as well. All accepted fellows will be asked to apply for fellowship funding but are guaranteed their position independent of external funders’ decisions.

Our graduates are widely sought-out by both academic centers and private practices. See our fellows’ current affiliations for the past 15 years.

Fellowship Rotations and Assignments

The critical element of training is the ability to formulate a succinct impression and treatment plan for each patient. The fellow is expected to evaluate patients on their own at first, to formulate their plan independently, and then discuss their impressions and plan with the attending. All patients seen by fellow are also seen by the attending physician.

The Department of Neurology has a very strong Division of Neuro-Ophthalmology, and we follow many of our patients jointly with colleagues from neuro-ophthalmology. All our fellows rotate once a week for half a day in the neuro-ophthalmology clinic, supervised by Steven L. Galetta, MD, department chair; Laura J. Balcer, MD, MSCE, vice-chair; and other senior neuro-ophthalmologists.

Fellows also rotate at the MS center at NYU Langone Huntington Medical Group with Josef M. Gutman, MD, and affiliated clinicians once a month.

Fellows also rotate with neuro-urologist Benjamin M. Brucker, MD, who evaluates patients in our center once a week. Fellows are also encouraged to receive specialized training in spasticity management—including Botox injections—from specialists in physical medicine and rehabilitation at Rusk Rehabilitation, located under the same roof as the MS Comprehensive Care Center.

Fellows will be expected to prepare inpatient consults on MS and neuro-immunology patients at NYU Langone inpatient locations on selected patients (time will be taken off from clinic duties to see inpatient consults on an as-needed basis).

Fellows share phone call duties a few days a month with the attendings.

Didactics

  • Weekly Friday MS Conference: This weekly conference is at the core of our training program. The conference features difficult case discussions, invited speakers, joint seminars with neuropathologists, neuroradiologists, ethicists, journal clubs, and more.
  • Fellows meet once a week with attendings for dedicated sessions on immunology and clinically relevant subjects. At the start of each year, this program includes a boot camp series covering essentials of MS and other neuroinflammatory disorders. Following the boot camp series, fellows continue to meet weekly with individual faculty to discuss key topics, cases, and papers.
  • Neuroradiology Conference: A monthly discussion between all NYU Langone MS neurologists and neuroradiologists. Fellows will prepare five to seven case summaries for this conference.
  • MS Clinical Case Conference: This is a monthly meeting of MS neurologists across the NYU Langone system to discuss management of difficult day-to-day MS symptoms.
  • Fellows attend weekly grand rounds with the Department of Neurology.
  • All fellows attend at least one national or international MS conference during their fellowship.
  • Clinical Research Training Program: Fellows interested in clinical research can participate in the Intensive Program in Clinical Research Methods. This 3.5-week course provides instruction in research statistics, ethics, and protocol informatics and design. Fellows participating in this course will have protected time to attend.

Application Deadlines and Requirements

Our fellowships are highly competitive, and applicants are asked to submit their applications in a timely manner.

Eligible candidates must have completed an Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education–accredited neurology residency training and hold a valid New York State license or limited permit to practice medicine in the state of New York at the time of their fellowship start.

July 2025 (and later) start date:

  • One-year clinical track fellowship:
    • Please apply through the SF Match. Our program ID is 9445. Interviews are conducted in January.
  • Two-year clinical–research track fellowship and translational research track fellowship:
    • Applications for these tracks will be conducted outside the SF Match. Please submit a brief statement of interest and future plans, CV, and three letters of recommendation to Dr. Ilya Kister (Ilya.Kister@NYULangone.org), Dr. Tyler E. Smith (Tyler.Smith@NYULangone.org), and Dr. Kimberly Kaloroumakis (Kimberly.Kaloroumakis@NYULangone.org) before December 1 (18 months before the fellowship start date). Interviews are conducted in January.

For any questions, please reach out to us.

Contact Us

Ilya Kister, MD
Fellowship Director
Ilya.Kister@NYULangone.org

Tyler E. Smith, MD
Associate Fellowship Director
Tyler.Smith@NYULangone.org

Lauren B. Krupp, MD
Section Head
Lauren.Krupp@NYULangone.org

Kimberly Kaloroumakis
Fellowship Coordinator
Kimberly.Kaloroumakis@NYULangone.org

Fellow Publications and Presentations

Read selected publications and presentations from projects completed by our multiple sclerosis fellows during their training.

O’Neill KA, Couvreur L, HuJ, ZhangY, PehelS, Sosa A, FadeD, LustbergM, FeldE, ChenJ, BarrosN, BillietT, RibbensA, Krupp LB. Longitudinal Brain Volume Findings in an Outpatient Practice of Young People with MS. Poster presentation at American Academy of Neurology Annual Meeting, April 2023

O’Neill KA, Charvet L, Waltz M, Casper T, George A, Benson L, Gorman M, Goyal M, Mar S, Ness J, Schreiner T, Waubant E, Weinstock-Guttman B, Wheeler Y, Aaen G, Abrams A, Chitnis T, Lotze T, Rensel M, Rodriguez M, Rose J, Shukla N, Tillema J, Krupp L. Longitudinal Cognitive Screening Findings in Pediatric MS vs. Pediatric Controls and Adult MS in a Multi-center Cohort. Oral abstract presentation at American Academy of Neurology Annual Meeting, April 2023

O’Neill KA, Chen J, Denissen S, Pehel S, Sosa A, Lustberg M, Feld E, Couvreur L, Billiet R, Ribbens A, Krupp LB.Incorporation of Brain Volume in the Outpatient Assessment of Pediatric-Onset MS. Poster presentation at ACTRIMS meeting, February 2023.

Parrotta E, Kopinsky H, Abate J, Ryerson LZ, Krupp LB. It's not always an infection: Pyoderma gangrenosum of the urogenital tract in two patients with multiple sclerosis treated with rituximab. Mult Scler Relat Disord. 2023 Feb;70:104483. doi: 10.1016/j.msard.2022.104483. Epub 2022 Dec 23. PMID: 36580875.

Smith, Tyler Ellis; Kister, Ilya. Infection Mitigation Strategies for Multiple Sclerosis Patients on Oral and Monoclonal Disease-Modifying Therapies. Curr Neurol Neurosci Rep. 2021 May 19;21(7):36. doi: 10.1007/s11910-021-01117- y.

Smith, T. E., Madhavan, M., Gratch, D., Patel, A., Saha, V., Sammarco, C., Rimler, Z., Zuniga, G., Gragui, D., Charvet, L., Cutter, G., Krupp, L., Kister, I., Ryerson, L. Z. (2021). Does frequency of COVID-19 differ by disease modifying therapy in MS patients? [Abstract and poster]. American Academy of Neurology 2021 Conference, Online poster presentation. The Consortium of Multiple Sclerosis Centers Annual Conference, 2021, online poster presentation.

Parrotta E, Kister I. The Expanding Clinical Spectrum of Myelin Oligodendrocyte Glycoprotein (MOG) Antibody Associated Disease in Children and Adults. Front Neurol. 2020 Sep 9;11:960. doi: 10.3389/fneur.2020.00960. PMID: 33013639; PMCID: PMC7509044.

Parrotta E, Kister I, Charvet L, Sammarco C, Saha V, Charlson RE, Howard J, Gutman JM, Gottesman M, Abou-Fayssal N, Wolintz R, Keilson M, Fernandez-Carbonell C, Krupp LB, Zhovtis Ryerson L. COVID-19 outcomes in MS: Observational study of early experience from NYU Multiple Sclerosis Comprehensive Care Center. Neurol Neuroimmunol Neuroinflamm. 2020 Jul 9;7(5):e835. doi: 10.1212/NXI.0000000000000835. PMID: 32646885; PMCID: PMC7357412.

Wallach AI, Waltz M, Casper TC, Aaen G, Belman A, Benson L, Chitnis T, Gorman M, Graves J, Harris Y, Lotze TE, Mar S, Moodley M, Ness JM, Rensel M, Rodriguez M, Rose JW, Schreiner T, Tillema JM, Waubant E, Weinstock-Guttman B, Charvet LE, Krupp LB. Cognitive processing speed in pediatric-onset multiple sclerosis: Baseline characteristics of impairment and prediction of decline. Mult Scler. 2020 Dec;26(14):1938-1947. doi: 10.1177/1352458519891984. Epub 2019 Nov 28. PMID: 31775571.

Gutman JM et al. Total Hip and Knee Arthroplasty in Patients with Multiple Sclerosis. International Journal of MS Care. 2018 Sep-Oct;20(5):244-250. doi: 10.7224/1537-2073.2017-093.

Gutman, Josef Maxwell; Kupersmith, Mark; Galetta, Steven; Kister, Ilya. Antimyelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein (MOG) antibodies in patients with optic neuritis and seizures. Journal of the neurological sciences. 2018:387:170-173.

Gutman, Josef Maxwell; Levy, Michael; Galetta, Steven; Kister, Ilya. Clinical Reasoning: A patient with a history of encephalomyelitis and recurrent optic neuritis. Neurology. 2017:89(19):e231-e234.

Rosales D et al. Common and Rare Manifestations of Neuromyelitis Optica Spectrum Disorder. Curr Allergy Asthma Rep. 2016 Jun;16(6):42. doi: 10.1007/s11882-016-0619-4.

Zhovtis Ryerson, L; Frohman, T C; Foley, J; Kister, I; Weinstock-Guttman, B; Tornatore, C; Pandey, K; Donnelly, S; Pawate, S; Bomprezzi, R; Smith, D; Kolb, C; Qureshi, S; Okuda, D; Kalina, J; Rimler, Z; Green, R; Monson, N; Hoyt, T; Bradshaw, M; Fallon, J; Chamot, E; Bucello, M; Beh, S; Cutter, G; Major, E; Herbert, J; Frohman, E M. Extended interval dosing of natalizumab in multiple sclerosis. Journal of neurology neurosurgery & psychiatry. 2016:87(8):885-889.

Boot Camp Lecture Series Sample Curriculum

Week Topic Lecturer
1 MS and RIS Diagnostic Criteria Dr. Lauren Krupp
2 NMO/MOGAD/ADEM Diagnosis and Overview Dr. Ilya Kister
3 Natural Course of MS Dr. Ilya Kister
4 Invisible symptoms of MS Dr. Robert E. Charlson
5 Pediatric MS Overview Dr. Lauren Krupp
6 MS Differential Diagnosis Dr. Tyler Ellis Smith
7 Psychiatric diseases and MS Dr. Robert E. Charlson
8 DMTs: MOA, starting, stopping, risk mitigation strategies part 1 Dr. Tyler Ellis Smith
9 Preparation for board exam Board prep
10 Board exam Board exam
11 DMTs: MOA, starting, stopping, risk mitigation strategies part 2 Dr. Tyler Ellis Smith
12 Acute Relapse Management: MS, NMOSD, MOGAD Dr. Tyler Ellis Smith

This schedule is adjusted based on the needs of fellows and the board exam.