pediatricneurotraumalab-v2

PNL Team Receives Generous Check from the Emerging Leaders for Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta!

Wed, 20 May 2026 18:05:44 GMT

On May 12 ^th , 2026, the Emerging Leaders for Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta (ELC) presented the PNL team with a generous check for the lab’s ongoing TBI research projects that aim to improve TBI treatment and outcomes.

This donation will allow PNL to continue to engage in groundbreaking TBI biomarker research that could lead to precision treatment among children with TBIs and reduce unnecessary imaging for children.

PNL Team Attends the 13th Annual ELC Scrubs Party Benefiting our TBI research!

Wed, 22 Apr 2026 17:31:30 GMT

The Emerging Leaders for Children’s aims to advance Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta through community engagement, increasing awareness, and fundraising for high priority initiatives.

The Pediatric Neurotrauma Lab had the great honor of being selected as this year’s beneficiary!

On March 28 ^th , 2026, ELC hosted their 13 ^th annual fundraiser where over $500,000 were raised to support pediatric TBI research!

Thanks to ELC and generous sponsors, our team can continue to make an impact on the lives of children with TBIs!

2026 EANS Webinar: Neuromonitoring in children with traumatic brain injury!

Wed, 22 Apr 2026 17:22:49 GMT

The European Association of Neurosurgical Societies (EANS) is a professional organization that helps improve patient care quality by facilitating the exchange of scientific knowledge through education, trainings, and research.

Dr. Reisner had the pleasure of being invited to speak at the EANS Neuromonitoring in children with traumatic brain injury webinar. He presented “The Role of Biomarkers in Monitoring Children with TBI”.

Check out this heartwarming story about Holland Carlton and her Career at Children’s!

Fri, 03 Apr 2026 15:51:21 GMT

In 2012, Holland Carlton received a concussion diagnosis and received an MRI in the ED as a precaution. That MRI led to the discovery of a 17-millimeter brain tumor.

Dr. Reisner and the neurosurgery team monitored Holland closely for 3 years. In March 2015, the neurosurgery team saw the tumor was beginning to grow and scheduled a surgery to remove the mass.

On St. Patrick’s Day in 2015, Dr. Reisner and Dr. Joshua Chern removed the tumor during a nine-hour surgery and NP Blaire Holbrook provided hourly updates to Holland’s family.

The surgery was successful and after a few days of recovery, Holand began therapy in the Inpatient Rehabilitation Unit to relearn motor skills and later transitioned to Day Rehabilitation.

Holland made a full recovery and returned to an active life taking up cross country and swimming.

Every year since Holland’s surgery, Dr. Reisner and Holland connected through dinners and phone calls. This tradition continued throughout past Holland’s high school and college years.

Holland felt drawn to return to Children’s and wanted to help other kids going through similar experience and joined the Children’s team during the summer of 2025. Holland works with the neurosurgery team scheduling neuro patient care and directly works with the surgeons and team that provided her life-saving care.

“Being back here has been everything I’ve dreamed of,” Holland said. “My desk is in Neurosurgery, and the surgeons who saved me walk by to save others every day. I’ve even met a few patients who have the same type of tumor that I had. It means to world that I get to share a little bit of encouragement with them in those moments.”

“Some moments may seem to feel like luck or chance, but in truth, they are something far deeper,” Dr. Reisner said. “Being part of Holland’s journey—especially on that St. Patrick’s Day—is a privilege I will always carry with me. I’ve witnessed not just good fortune, but courage, resilience and the quiet grace of an extraordinary young lady who has been inspirational to all, myself included.”

Arthur M. Blank Hospital Helicopter Pad Donated in Dr. Andrew Reisner’s Honor!

Fri, 03 Apr 2026 15:42:13 GMT

During the construction of Arthur M. Blank, 3 helicopter pads were installed on the 19 ^th floor of the hospital to transport critically ill patients to the hospital.

One of the 3 helicopter pads at Arthur M. Blank Hospital was donated by the Elaine and John Carlos family in honor of Dr. Reisner !

Get a glimpse of Dr. Reisner and the PNL team up on the helipad!

2026 Pediatric Research for the Future of Children in Geneva, Switzerland!

Thu, 12 Mar 2026 17:17:04 GMT

Dr. Blackwell attended the inaugural meeting of the Paediatric Research for the Future of Children in Geneva, Switzerland.

The forum has 5 main themes: Precision Medicine and Novel Therapies in Paediatrics, Big Data in Paediatric Research, Child Mental Health and Development, Early Life Determinants of Health and Disease, and Promoting Global Paediatric Research and Paediatric Clinician Scientists

Dr. Blackwell presented Transforming Care for Pediatric Concussion: A Focus on Behavioral and Emotional Outcomes.

She served as a speaker for the Child Mental Health and Development session alongside Dr. Constantino, Chief of Behavioral and Mental Health at CHOA.

2026 Pediatric Neurocritical Care Research Group Presentation!

Thu, 12 Mar 2026 17:15:35 GMT

The Pediatric Neurocritical Care Research Group (PNCRG) focuses on advancing knowledge to optimize neurological outcomes in critically ill children by performing clinical and preclinical studies, supporting education, developing, and promoting best practices, and promoting advocacy.

Dr. Reisner and Dr. Fainberg had the pleasure of presenting Biomarkers in Traumatic Brain Injuries in Children at a virtual meeting for PNCRG.

2026 Consensus Conference and 7th Refresher Course of the European Society for Pediatric Neurosurgery (ESPN) and Visiting Meyer Children’s Hospital in Italy!

Mon, 16 Feb 2026 17:26:52 GMT

Dr. Reisner attended the 2026 Consensus Conference and 7 ^th Refresher Course of the European Society for Pediatric Neurosurgery in Rome, Italy.

Dr. Reisner presented Post-traumatic Hydrocephalus; Specific Pediatric Features and The Utility of Biomarkers in Traumatic Brain Injuries in Children: Opportunities and Challenges.

While in Italy, Dr. Reisner traveled to Florence and visited the beautiful Meyer Children’s Hospital that overlooks the city.

Nellie’s Story and the Importance of Pediatric TBI research!

Mon, 16 Feb 2026 17:20:53 GMT

Dr. Reisner explains the work being done at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta to identify biomarkers in children with TBIs and its long-lasting impact.

Check out Nellie’s story and hear about the why behind the work PNL does!

When a child experiences a traumatic brain injury, every moment matters. This video highlights how Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta brings together compassionate care and leading Neurotrauma research to improve outcomes for kids and families.

Through the experience of Nellie and her family, alongside the work of Children’s Neurotrauma team, the video shows how clinical expertise and research, including advancement that help doctors better understand neurotrauma, come together to guide care when families need it most.

About Pediatric Neurotrauma at Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta:

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is one of the leading causes of serious injury in Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta
Care requires rapid diagnosis, specialized expertise, and coordinated treatment
Research helps clinicians better understand brain injury and support recovery
At Children’s, research and care work hand in hand to improve outcomes for patients and families

ELC Scrubs Party 2026 benefiting the Pediatric Neurotrauma Lab!

Mon, 16 Feb 2026 17:12:50 GMT

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The Emerging Leaders for Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta will be hosting the 13th Annual Scrubs Party benefiting the Pediatric Neurotrauma Lab , and our mission to facilitate research to improve TBI treatment and outcomes in children.

The Scrubs Party 2026 will occur on March 28th, 2026 . To see how you can support and sponsor pediatric TBI research, check out the ELC Scrub Party website.

51st Annual Meeting of the ISPN in Lyon France

Thu, 11 Dec 2025 19:25:41 GMT

51st Annual Meeting of the ISPN in Lyon France. Dr. Jacob Lepard received an award for "Best Podium Presentation" for his talk titled "Admission Blood-Based TBI Biomarkers are Predictive of Neurosurgical Intervention."

2024 International Conference on Recent Advances in Neurotraumatology in Jaipur, India!

Sun, 17 Mar 2024 13:38:30 GMT

In line with the theme, Dr. Reisner presented on post-traumatic aneurysms and the value of osteopontin as a biomarker.

Dr. Reisner attended the 2024 International Conference on Recent Advances in Neurotraumatology in Jaipur, India ! As the Chairman of the Neurotrauma Committee at the World Federation of Neurological Surgeons , he helped organize this successful event!

The theme this year was Stimulating Innovations in Neurotrauma, and the conference was well covered by local media!

In addition, he served as a delegate for a discussion about neurotrauma and road safety in India, which was followed by a walkathon for safer roads.

World Federation of Neurosurgical Society's 18th World Congress of Neurosurgery in Cape Town, South Africa!

Sun, 10 Dec 2023 13:22:01 GMT

Dr. Reisner, Dr. Blackwell, Dr. Lepard and PNL Collaborators Dr. Wang and Dr. Alawieh attended the World Federation of Neurosurgical Society's 18th World Congress of Neurosurgery in Cape Town, South Africa!

Dr. Reisner pictured presenting on Traumatic Brain Injury Biomarkers in Children: Opportunities and Challenges , and chairing sessions in Neurotrauma and Masterclass in Research: Neurotrauma. Dr. Reisner served as the Chair of Neurotrauma for 2023 WFNS.

PNL pictured with Dr. James Johnson from UAB Medicine.

Dr. Blackwell pictured presenting on Utilizing Outcome Measures in Pediatric TBI and an abstract on Inflammation Disrupts Networks of Attention and Executive Function after Pediatric Traumatic Brain Injury: A Pilot Study.

Dr. Lepard pictured presenting on Incomplete Atlanta-Occipital Dissociation: Thoughts on Diagnosis and Management. He also presented an abstract on Hindbrain Herniation as a Criteria for Fetal Myelomeningocele Repair: A Natural History Study, and chaired a session on Innovating and Working with Industry: Neurotrauma.

PNL Collaborators Dr. Kevin Wang and Dr. Ali Alawieh were also in attendance and presented!

Dr. Wang pictured giving a plenary adress on How Blood-based Biomarker Tests can Reshape the way we Manage and Treat the Injured Brain. He also chaired sessions in Neurotrauma and Innovating and Working with Industry: Neurotrauma.

Dr. Alawieh pictured presenting on Dissecting the Role of Complement in Triggering Acute TBI and Its Progression to Chronic Encephalopathy. He also presented three abstracts: A Pooled Analysis of Management and Outcomes in Pediatric Infectious Intracranial Aneurysms, Site-specific Suppression of Complement C3 Activation Halts the Progression of Neuroinflammation after Traumatic Brain Injury – A Translational Approach, and The Stroke Thrombectomy and Aneurysm Registry (STAR) - An International Consortium for Advancing Management of Cerebrovascular Disease.

Dr. Blackwell is this month's Emory School of Medicine Research Spotlight

Fri, 01 Dec 2023 13:28:22 GMT

She spoke about her research at PNL and why she's compelled to study TBIs:

“I have seen two patients with very similar traumatic brain injuries, but one patient discharged from the hospital in a disorder of consciousness while the other discharged and was walking, talking, and able to go back to school and home. We have a poor understanding of why kids’ outcomes are so discrepant. So for me, it is important to learn how and why these kids have very different trajectories. We want to be better at understanding outcomes so that it can lead to improved management.”

Read her spotlight article here !

Innovations in Clinical Program Development Award 2023

Tue, 21 Nov 2023 22:42:32 GMT

Dr. Reisner was awarded " Innovations in Clinical Program Development Award 2023 " at Emory Department of Pediatrics and Children's Healthcare of Atlanta's 2023 Pediatrics Physician, Faculty & Staff Awards Celebration! He was awarded for his development of the Concussion Care Program. Congratulations Dr. Reisner!

Also in November, Dr. Reisner attended the Centenial Anniversary of the Serbian Neurosurgery Society Meeting, Belgrade, Serbia!

Dr. Reisner was honored as 1 of 7 international guests who were made honorary Serbian Neurosurgery Society members during the 100th annual Serbian Neurosurgery Meeting.

In addition, Dr. Reisner presented on Post-traumatic Aneurysms.

He also moderated a session on Neurotrauma with Professor Tariq Khan.

Congress of Neurological Surgeons 2023 Annual Meeting, Washington, D.C.

Sat, 16 Sep 2023 12:55:45 GMT

Mulugeta, M, Reisner, A, et al. presented Emerging Risk Factor in Pediatric Intracranial Gunshot Wounds: Age under 5 years, which was awarded Top 3 Posters in Disparities in Healthcare.

Dr. Reisner and Research Assistant Makda Mulugeta attended the Congress of Neurological Surgeons 2023 Annual Meeting, Washington, D.C.

National Neuotrauma Conference 2023 in Austin, TX!

Sun, 30 Jul 2023 21:59:05 GMT

Dr. Blackwell, Dr. Reisner, Senior Research Coordinator Meena Verma, Research Assistants Gabrielle Bailey and Makda Mulugeta, and student Kendall Parsons attened the National Neuotrauma Conference 2023 in Austin, TX!

Bailey, G, et al. presented on Social Determinants of Health as Predictors of Pediatric Concussion Outcomes (poster & oral presentation) and was awarded Top 20 Trainee Posters and Trainee Diversity Award.

Makda Mulugeta, et al. presented on Applying Known Prognostic Factors of Mortality in Pediatric Intracranial Gunshot Wounds to a Younger Cohort.

Kendall Parsons, et al. presented on Socioeconomic Health Disparities in Pediatric Traumatic Brain Injury: Comparisons of Hispanic and Non-Hispanic Children.

PNL attended the Southeastern Pediatric Research Conference, Atlanta, GA!

Tue, 20 Jun 2023 21:48:11 GMT

Image 1 : Ruhika Aguru, et al. Relationship Between Child Opportunity Index and Mortality in Pediatric Patients with Intracranial Firearm Injuries (oral presentation)

Image 2 : Makda Mulugeta & Gabrielle Bailey, et al. Trends in Pediatric Gunshot Wound Cases During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

Dr. Reisner Presenting at ICRAN 2023 in Santa Cruz, Bolivia

Tue, 11 Apr 2023 21:39:09 GMT

The PNL Lab is now participating in the GEO-TBI study, "an international, prospective observational study on traumatic brain injury epidemiology"

Mon, 09 Jan 2023 21:32:19 GMT

The PNL Lab is now participating in the GEO-TBI study, "an international, prospective observational study on traumatic brain injury epidemiology". Read more about it here .

Dr. Reisner Presents at the 2022 Mediterranean Association of Neurological Surgeons

Thu, 01 Dec 2022 21:20:58 GMT

Dr. Reisner Presents at the 2022 Mediterranean Association of Neurological Surgeons

Asian Congress of Neurological Surgeons 2022 Lecture

Wed, 24 Aug 2022 16:52:48 GMT

Dr. Reisner was a guest lecturer for the Asian Congress of Neurological Surgeons and presented on the topic Translational Neurotrauma Program at Children’s Health care of Atlanta: From Bench to Bedside.

Check out Dr. Reisner’s lecture here!

Children’s Study Shows Evidence of COVID-19 and MIS-C Biomarker

Mon, 27 Sep 2021 16:32:59 GMT

PNL found that the biomarker, osteopontin, is elevated in patients with COVID-19 and MIS-C similarly to osteopontin levels in pediatric patients with TBIs and concussions.

The PNL team found that osteopontin was significantly elevated in patients with moderate and severe COVID-19 and MIS-C compared to mild or asymptomatic patients. Additionally, PNL found that osteopontin was correlated with clinical levels of COVID-19 severity while other biomarkers were not.

While larger follow-up trials are needed, PNL is hopeful that biomarkers can help determine the severity of COVID-19!

Check out the article here !

Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta Received Grant to Study Brain Injuries

Wed, 28 Mar 2018 16:37:17 GMT

PNL received a grant from the National Institutes of Health to study blood biomarkers to detect pediatric traumatic brain injuries. Biomarker research in pediatric TBIs could lead to revolutionary changes in detection and treatment, early prioritization in treatment, early intervention for complications, and follow-up rehabilitation planning.

Check out the news article!