The 76th American Academy of Neurology (AAN) Annual Conference Meeting was held on 13th to 18th April 2024 in Denver, Colorado, USA. It attracted over 10,000 attendees from all over the world with multiple speakers showcasing their research work at various levels of neuroscience, academic neurology and clinical neurology. The conference also included special talks on the influence of climate change on neurology as well as the role of music in neurology care. The key note speaker at this year’s conference was the American neurosurgeon, medical reporter and author Dr Sanjay Gupta, who spoke about the important role neurological diseases will have in public health in years to come, emphasizing the importance of innovations in neuroscience, neurosurgery and neurology.
Dr Mashina Chomba, a Zambian Neurologist and PhD student on the NeuroSolve Study – which is a clinical trial on the efficacy of dual anti-parasitic therapy in the treatment of neurocysticercosis (NCC) in Tanzania and Zambia – was among the attendees this AAN meeting in Denver. Aside from moderating a session on Global Neurology and presenting a poster on stroke care in Zambia, Dr Chomba gave a podium oral presentation on the ongoing NCC work in Zambia, including the NeuroSolve study (Picture 1). In his talk Dr Chomba spoke about the importance of understanding factors that contribute to treatment outcomes in NCC and the many opportunities that studies such as NeuroSolve will provide to answer these questions (Picture 2). Key to this is understanding best anti-parasitic drug choices, monitoring treatment response using serology and other biomarkers and determining patient factors such as HIV status that may impact outcomes.
The meeting provided an opportunity for networking and discussing potential collaborations with researchers in the field of neuro-infectious diseases from North and South America as well as India. Great enthusiasm on learning the future findings of the NeuroSolve study was expressed during and after the talk and the impact that the NeuroSolve study will have on NCC treatment was highlighted on one of the largest stages of neurology research.
Picture 1: Dr Chomba giving his oral presentation
Picture 2: Excerpt from the presentation