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Access content online from April 5 – May 5, 2021
Learn from some of the world’s foremost experts on Bartonellosis.
Bartonellosis is a term used to encompass all infections caused by pathogenic Bartonella species. Usually vector borne, but can also be transmitted by animal scratches and bites, Bartonella are an emerging bacteria that are highly adapted to living in mammalian hosts and are implicated in a wide spectrum of diseases in humans and animals including: Carrión’s disease, trench fever, cat-scratch disease, bacillary angiomatosis, and peliosis hepatis.
Gain a detailed medical understanding of why chronic Bartonella infection drives many autoimmune diseases. Come away from this educational event with a clear path on how to identify and treat patients suffering from Bartonella.
Topics covered include:
Course Details:
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Alexander Shikhman, MD PhD
IAREF President, Dr. Alexander Shikhman, is board certified in internal medicine and rheumatology. He is also CEO and owner of Institute for Specialized Medicine, a private rheumatology practice in San Diego, CA. He is a highly sought after physician for diagnosing and treating the connection between autoimmune disease and chronic infections.
Dr. Shikhman’s Presentations:
Chronic Infections and Autoimmunity
Bartonellosis and Rheumatic Diseases
Therapy of Bartonellosis
Edward Breitschwerdt, DVM
Dr. Edward B. Breitschwerdt is a professor of medicine and infectious diseases at North Carolina State University College of Veterinary Medicine. He is also an adjunct professor of medicine at Duke University Medical Center, and a Diplomate, American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine (ACVIM). Dr. Breitschwerdt directs the Intracellular Pathogens Research Laboratory in the Comparative Medicine Institute at North Carolina State University. He also co-directs the Vector Borne Diseases Diagnostic Laboratory. For over 30 years, his research has emphasized vector-transmitted, intracellular pathogens. Most recently, his research group has contributed to cutting-edge research in the areas of animal and human bartonellosis.
Dr. Breitschwerdt’s Presentation:
Comparative medical observations relative to bartonellosis in dogs and humans
Jennifer Miller, PhD
Director of Research and Development and Assistant Laboratory Director at Galaxy Labs, Dr. Miller holds a doctorate in microbiology, immunology, and molecular genetics. With over 20 years of experience with vector-borne and zoonotic pathogens, including Borrelia burgdorferi and Leptospira interrogans, the causative agent of Leptospirosis, Dr. Miller leads clinical assay development and the diagnostic test portfolio at Galaxy. Her experience as a professor of microbiology at North Carolina State University, where she developed her own research program and laboratory focused on in vitro and murine studies of vector-borne diseases.
Dr. Miller’s Presentation:
Laboratory diagnosis of bartonellosis: current practices, challenges, and recent developments
Monica Embers, Ph.D.
Monica E. Embers obtained her Ph.D. in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at the Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine in Hershey, P.A., where she studied immune responses to Papillomaviruses. She made the transition to the study of bacterial pathogenesis when performing her postdoctoral research on the Lyme disease spirochete at the Tulane National Primate Research Center (TNPRC). She subsequently joined the faculty at the TNPRC. Dr. Embers is an Associate Professor in the Division of Immunology and the Director of Vector borne Disease Research at the TNPRC.
Dr. Embers’s Presentation:
The Diversity of Bartonellosis Manifestations and Challenges to Treatment
Neenah Grade, PA-C
Neenah Grade is a board certified Physician Assistant with a background in primary care and integrative pain medicine. She received a Bachelor’s degree in genetics, cell and molecular biology from Arizona State University before completing her Masters in Science at Arcadia University in Philadelphia.
She and Dr. Shikhman have developed protocols specific to pediatric infectious and autoimmune conditions.
Neenah’s Presentation:
Bartonella and Pediatrics