Our speaker for the November meeting of the Metro DC Area Peripheral Neuropathy Support Group was Dr. Brett McCray, assistant professor of neurology at Johns Hopkins Medical Center.
Dr. McCray’s research seeks to understand and treat peripheral neuropathy with a particular focus on hereditary neuropathy and Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease (CMT). He believes that some of the lessons learned from studying CMT might ultimately help in the treatment of non-genetic forms of neuropathy. While forms of CMT are due to a single genetic change, he believes there are likely to be a collection of genetic risk factors that contribute to cases of “idiopathic” neuropathy. In addition, some recent research suggests there might be important overlaps between problems that arise in CMT and non-genetic forms of neuropathy.
So, even if you have been diagnosed with “idiopathic” peripheral neuropathy, research on genetic causes of neuropathy might still lead to improved understanding of your condition.
After Dr. McCray’s presentation, there was a question and answer session which garnered additional information specific to our group members’ concerns.
A recording of Dr. McCray’s presentation can be found at https://youtu.be/OlL4SaheWv0 . The recording was edited with sections and a table of contents that allows the viewer to watch or rewatch sections of specific interest.