Lawrence Wechsler, MD, chair of the department of neurology at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, is director of the UPMC Stroke Institute and has been very active in the treatment of stroke and its debilitating effects. He was among the first doctors to report on the direct intra-arterial injection of urokinaseuse of urokinase to dissolve blood clots in brains of people suffering stroke.
He is co-editor of one of the leading texts on transcranial doppler ultrasound, a method that uses a microprocessor-controlled adjustable probe that records blood flow in intracranial arteries. This technique has been used to clarify the pathophysiology of arteries involved in stroke and provides a new, noninvasive technique to continuously monitor circulation during surgery.
Dr. Wechsler also played an instrumental role in the UPMC Stroke Institute's participation in a clinical study to test a new drug, Lubleuzol, which is designed to protect brain cells following acute stroke. Doctors at Pitt studied Lubleuzol to determine whether it would improve neurological and functional recovery if administered within eight hours of stroke onset. Dr. Wechsler's team also is involved in testing the infusion of clot-busting drugs directly into blocked arteries and other agents that protect the brain during stroke.
Currently, Dr. Wechsler is part of the first research team in the world to implant LBS-Neurons within a stroke patient's brain to restore nerve function.
Dr. Wechsler earned his bachelor's degree in biology from Harvard College and his medical degree from the University of Pennsylvania. He completed an internship and residency in internal medicine at UPMC Presbyterian and two a residencyies in neurology at Massachusetts General Hospital, where he also completed a fellowship in clinical neurophysiology and in clinical stroke service.
Dr. Wechsler holds memberships in several organizations, including the Society for Neuroscience, the American Academy of Neurology and the American Medical Association. He is board certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine and the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. He has served as lead author on numerous studies and secondary author on many others.