Keynote Speakers

Dr Ali Rezai

Executive Chair, Vice President of Neuroscience, Associate Dean West Virginia University Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute, Morgantown, USA

Dr Rezai leads the comprehensive and integrated clinical and research programs in the neurosciences at the West Virginia University Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute. He also serves as Associate Dean and the John D. Rockefeller IV tenured professor in neuroscience at the WVU School of Medicine. His clinical areas of expertise include the neurosurgical and neuromodulation management of patients with Parkinson’s disease, dystonia, chronic pain, brain and spinal cord injuries, as well as severe mood and anxiety disorders. Dr Rezai has published more than 175 peer-reviewed articles and 40 book chapters. He serves on the editorial board of five scientific journals, and has edited a book on surgery for psychiatric disorders and the two-volume textbook, Neuromodulation.

Prof. Rezai will speak on: “Chronic pain sensing, Monitoring and Analytics to improve neuromodulation therapies”

Ted Kaptchuk

Professor of Medicine
Harvard Medical School,
Boston, USA

Dr Kaptchuk is a Professor of Medicine and Professor of Global Health and Social Medicine at Harvard Medical School. He is the director of the Program in Placebo Studies and herapeutic Encounter (PiPS) hosted at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. PiPS is a multi-disciplinary network of Harvard-wide researchers from a broad range of disciplines. Ted has over 200 publications have made significant contributions to what we know (or think we know) about placebo effects.

Prof. Kaptchuk will speak on : “Harnessing the effect of Placebo”

Robert M. Levy

MD, PhD

Dr. Robert M. Levy, MD, PhD, an internationally known neurosurgeon, is currently holding the post of President of the International Neuromodulation Society (INS). He is a Ph.D. in Neurosciences from Stanford University, and has done post-doctoral fellowships from Stanford and UCSF, and obtained his medical degree at Stanford Medical School.

He has served as Professor and Chairman of the Department of Neurological Surgery and Co-Director of the UF Health Jacksonville Neuroscience Institute at the University of Florida College of Medicine in Jacksonville, FL. He most recently served as the Founding Director of the Marcus Neuroscience Institute and Director of the Harvey Sandler Center for Neurosurgery in Boca Raton, FL. He has been the recipient of many national and international honors and awards and has been listed in the Best Doctors in America. He has authored several textbooks and published 300 peer review journal articles

His current research involves novel applications of neurostimulation and targeted drug delivery to the brain. In addition he has assisted with the design and implementation of multiple neuromodulation technologies and instruments.

He will deliver the Keynote address on: “Cortical stimulation for motor recovery”

Konstantin Slavin

MD

Konstantin V. Slavin, MD, is a Professor of neurosurgery in the University of Illinois at Chicago where he heads the section of Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery. He is currently holding the post of Secretary of International Neuromodulation Society.

Dr. Slavin has received many clinical and professional awards, including “Most Compassionate Doctor,” and has been included in the prestigious “Top Surgeons” and “Best Doctors” lists in USA, for several years. He is past president of the American Society for Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery and at present the Vice president of the World Society for Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery (WSSFN). He is also past secretary of the North American Neuromodulation Society. For many years, he was an executive committee member of the Joint Section on Pain of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons and Congress of Neurological Surgeons. He also serves on the Medical Advisory Board of the Facial Pain Association (formerly Trigeminal Neuralgia Association).

His clinical interests are diverse applications of surgical neuromodulation and functional neurosurgery. This includes treatment of pain, movement disorders, epilepsy, and psychiatric diseases with a particular interest in the treatment of facial pain, cancer-related pain, Chiari malformation, stereotactic radiosurgery, brain tumors, and spinal problems.

He will deliver the Keynote on: "Evolution of Neuromodulation in the next decade: As I see"

Dr. Marc Russo

MD

Dr. Marc Russo is founding Director of Hunter Pain Clinic, Hamilton Day Surgery Centre, Genesis Research Services and Co-Director of the Innervate Pain Management Program.

He is the incoming President of the INS starting September 2021.

He established the Australian chapter of the INS on which he has served as Secretary and President. He established the Australian Pain Research Center and has conducted several devices and analgesia trials.

He is a reviewer for the journals Neuromodulation and Anaesthesia & Intensive Care. He has lectured nationally and internationally and led teaching courses in several countries.

Dr. Russo's vision was to provide a multidisciplinary approach to pain management and developed Australia’s first private successful multidisciplinary pain management model. His current interests are in CRPS management, new frontiers in neuromodulation and combination pharmacology of neuropathic pain. He intends to expand the reach of Neuromodulation, especially for pain, in Asia and Australia and plans to work on this in his tenure.

He shall be delivering the Keynote on: “Delivering neuromodulation in an Emerging Economy”

Timothy Deer

MD

Dr. Deer is the President and CEO of The Spine and Nerve Centers of the Virginias and the Center for Pain Relief, Inc. He is also a Clinical Professor of Anesthesiology at the West Virginia University School of Medicine.

Dr. Deer is the Past President of the International Neuromodulation society. He was the force behind the starting up of the Indian chapter, of INS. He is the President of the WVIPP and Chairman of American Society of Pain and Neuroscience. He has also been Chairman of the American Society of Anesthesiologist committee on Pain Medicine. Dr. Deer is the author of more than 100 peer-reviewed articles on the topic of interventional pain treatment, has edited a critically acclaimed atlas on implantable devices, and edited a best-selling comprehensive textbook on multidisciplinary pain treatment “Deer's Treatment of Pain: An Illustrated Guide for Practitioners”. In addition he has been active in peer review and is on the editorial committee for the journals -Neuromodulation: Technology at the Neural Interface (Associate editor), Pain Medicine and Pain Physician.

Dr. Deer is in true sense an Iron Man. "IRONMAN” is a statement of excellence, passion, commitment. It is a test of physical toughness and mental strength. IRONMAN is about persevering, enduring and being a part of something larger than ourselves. It shows the heights that can be achieved when we push beyond our boundaries and go the distance to earn the title, and Dr. Deer is in true sense an Iron man. He has participated in Ironman event 21 times, including participating in the world Ironman competition in Kona on six occasions, has run more than 60 Marathon and also a the high altitude 100 mile Leadville run 3 times and recently ran the world's hardest race, The Badwater 135 Mile run through Death Valley.

He will deliver the Keynote on: “Work life balance: From Ironman to INS president”.