Neurology Electives (4th year)
*University of Louisville Neurology Program is not accepting Visiting Student Electives, Observerships or shadowing experiences for 2024-2025*
Saad Hasan, MD
Neurology Clerkship Director
saad.hasan@louisville.edu
Cullen Marshall, MD
Assistant Clerkship Director
cullen.marshall@louisville.edu
Lilia Lawson, Program Assistant, Sr.
502-852-5536
The core goal of all clinical rotations within the Department is to acquire knowledge and skills that will enhance the function and quality of life of patients who have neurological diseases. Toward this end, we hope students will be able to (1) obtain a detailed and relevant neurological history; (2) conduct a neurological examination that is comprehensive yet tailored to the patient’s symptoms; (3) recognize the presence of impaired neurological function upon examination; (3) identify what site within the nervous system is responsible for the functional impairment, i.e. lesion localization; (4) define the most likely underlying etiology, in addition to a reasonable differential diagnosis; (5) describe which ancillary tests might clarify the localization and/or etiology; (6) recommend appropriate, evidence-based treatments; (7) counsel patients regarding their diagnosis and prognosis; (8) identify clinical questions that should be the focus of further reading and possibly further research within the field.
Like all fields in medicine, it is not possible to master clinical neurology during medical school. The primary aim of the neurology rotations is provide you with core clinical skills, to pique your interest in the field and encourage further learning. We offer the following electives:
- NEUR-910 AMBULATORY NEUROLOGY
Prerequisite: MS4;NEUR-901 is required or prior approval by the Clerkship Director. Students must be in good academic standing.
The ambulatory neurology rotation allows the student to be exposed to all areas of outpatient neurology, including, but not limited to, stroke, epilepsy, neuromuscular disorders, neuro-oncology and headache. In addition, students will attend the neurology residents' continuity clinic during the rotation. The teaching technique will be 1:1 preceptor to student ratio with assigned readings. Approval must be obtained in advance prior to beginning the rotation from the Neurology education programs office. Students may choose to take this elective for 2, 3, or 4 weeks.
- NEUR-911 STROKE
Prerequisite: MS4;NEUR-901 is required or prior approval by the Clerkship Director. Students must be in good academic standing.
The stroke elective provides exposure to inpatient management of acute ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke as well as outpatient clinics focused on secondary stroke prevention. Students learn cerebrovascular anatomy, common stroke syndromes, interpretation of imaging studies (including MRI and ultrasonography) and the NIH stroke scale. The evidence supporting various medical and surgical treatment options is discussed in the setting of patient care. There is also instruction in neurocritical care topics such as elevated intracranial pressure. Students interested in interventional neurology may attend endovascular procedures such as intra-arterial thrombolysis. Students may choose to take this elective for 2, 3, or 4 weeks.
- NEUR-912 INPATIENT NEUROLOGY SUBINTERNSHIP
Prerequisite: MS4;NEUR-901 is required or prior approval by the Clerkship Director. Students must be in good academic standing
The four-week neurology subinternship aims to prepare fourth-year medical students for residency training in neurology or related fields. The clerkship emphasizes skills needed to independently manage inpatients with neurological diseases. Subinterns work under the supervision of neurology inpatient faculty and senior residents, and complete functions similar to interns and junior residents. The experience can be tailored for individual needs, including the addition of outpatient clinic time. The faculty will happily provide mentorship in regards to further training for those who are contemplating a career in neurology.
- NEUR-914 EPILEPSY
Prerequisite: MS4;NEUR-901 is required or prior approval by the Clerkship Director. Students must be in good academic standing.
The epilepsy elective is designed to provide an introduction to the diagnosis and management of seizure disorders. Students will attend epilepsy clinics at the University of Louisville, follow patients admitted to the epilepsy monitoring unit, and participate in the emergency management of status epilepticus. All activities will be supervised by the clinical neurophysiology faculty. At the end of this elective students will be able to distinguish between seizures and other paroxysmal phenomena that may mimic seizures and understand the classification of seizures and epilepsy syndromes. Students will have exposure to EEG and other neurophysiological studies, such as evoked potentials. Students may choose to take this elective for 2, 3, or 4 weeks.
- NEUR-916 NEUROMUSCULAR DISORDERS
Prerequisite: MS4;NEUR-901 is required or prior approval by the Clerkship Director. Students must be in good academic standing. This elective is offered only at specific time periods throughout the year.
The neuromuscular elective is an introduction to diseases of the peripheral nervous system including neuropathies, myopathies and disorders of the neuromuscular junction (e.g., myasthenia gravis). Students will be exposed to electromyography and nerve conduction studies as well as peripheral nerve and muscle ultrasonography. The clerkship includes participation in the motor neuron disease (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) clinic at University of Louisville. The clerkship is held predominantly in the outpatient setting but students follow patients admitted for neuromuscular emergencies (e.g., Guillain-Barré syndrome). The teaching faculty for this elective is Dr. Zeng Wang. Students may choose to take this elective for 2, 3, or 4 weeks.
- NEUR-917 HEADACHE
Prerequisite: MS4;NEUR-901 is required or prior approval by the Clerkship Director. Students must be in good academic standing
The headache elective offers exposure to patients with various cephalgias, including migraine, tension-type headache, cluster headache, cranial neuralgias and secondary forms of headache, (e.g., pseudotumor cerebri). Students will gain knowledge of International Headache Society classification guidelines and learn which historical and examination features facilitate accurate diagnosis of headache disorders. Students will attend the multi-disciplinary headache clinic at the University of . While predominately an outpatient elective, students may assist the University of Louisville inpatient general neurology team in caring for patients who require dihydroergotamine or other intravenous headache therapies. Students may choose to take this elective for 2, 3, or 4 weeks.
- NEUR-918 MOVEMENT DISORDERS
Prerequisite: MS4;NEUR-901 is required or prior approval by the Clerkship Director. Students must be in good academic standing
The movement disorders elective provides exposure to adults and children with various forms of involuntary movement. Disorders seen in this clinic include: Parkinson disease, atypical parkinsonism (multisystems atrophy, progressive supranuclear palsy, corticobasal degeneration), Huntington disease, essential tremor, dystonia (e.g., torticollis and blepharospasm), Tourette syndrome, ataxia, myoclonus, medication-induced movement disorders including tardive dyskinesia, restless legs syndrome, and functional movement disorders. Students will also learn about deep brain stimulation therapy and chemodenervation with botulinum toxin. Students may choose to take this elective for 2, 3, or 4 weeks.
- NEUR-919 CHILD NEUROLOGY
Prerequisite: MS4; NEUR-901 is required or prior approval by the Clerkship Director. Students must be in good academic standing
The child neurology elective aims to provide medical students an overview of child neurology. The elective emphasizes skills needed to independently manage inpatients with neurological diseases. Students work under the supervision of child neurology faculty and senior residents. The experience can be tailored for individual needs and interests. The faculty will happily provide mentorship in regards to further training for those who are contemplating a career in child neurology. Students may choose to take this elective for 2, 3, or 4 weeks
- NEUR-920 RESEARCH IN NEUROLOGY
Prerequisite: MS4;NEUR-901 is required or prior approval by the Clerkship Director. Students must be in good academic standing
The Neurology Research elective is designed to allow the student to engage in clinically guided research with a faculty mentor within the Department. Any neurology research project will be determined by advance discussion with the faculty mentor and may consist of a case report, case series, retrospective chart review, or completion of a review-type article. The project should be completed within the four-week time frame, however, additional time may be required for submission of the article for publication. The scope of the project should be proportionate to the time committed. Students are encouraged to present their findings at a teaching conference within the department. Students may choose to take this elective for 2, 3, or 4 weeks.
Scheduling an Elective:
UofL Students: Please work with Sherri Gary, Assistant Director in Student Affairs to schedule your elective.
Visiting Students: * UofL SOM Dept. of Neurology is not accepting any visiting student elective requests for 2022-2023*
More info and to register, visit:
Visiting Student Elective Program
School of Medicine Policies
To view a listing of all UofL SOM Medical Student Policies, visit:
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