My research focus is on the characteristics and limits of functional neuroplasticity in the adult human brain. I investigate how the brain reorganizes itself in response to injury, and whether or not it is possible to enhance the brain’s potential for reorganization in order to speed rehabilitation using noninvasive electrical or magnetic brain stimulation. A second area of interest for me is on the use of noninvasive brain stimulation to elucidate and enhance mechanisms of cognition in healthy individuals, and the biological, social, and ethical implications of neural enhancement.
I principally treat patients suffering from dementia. I also have expertise in evaluating and treating patients with cognitive deficits following stroke.
I am is deeply involved in issues related to diversity in medicine, inclusion, and health equity. I am one of the Assistant Deans for Diversity and Inclusion at the Perelman School of Medicine and I am the Vice Chair for Diversity and Inclusion in the Department of Neurology at the University of Pennsylvania.
Selected Publications
Markman, T.M., Pothineni, N.V.K., Zghaib, T., Smietana, J., McBride, D., Amankwah, N.A., Linn, K.A., Kumareswaran, R., Hyman, M., Arkles, J., Santangeli, P., Schaller, R.D., Supple, G.E., Frankel, D.S., Deo, R., Lin, D., Riley, M.P., Epstein, A.E., Callans, D.J., Marchlinski, F.E., Hamilton, R.*, Nazarian, S.* (* Joint senior authorship): Effect of transcutaneous magnetic stimulation in patients with ventricular tachycardia storm: A randomized clinical trial. JAMA Cardiology Epub ahead of print, Feb 2022.
Devlin, K.N., Brennan, L., Saad, L., Giovannetti, T., Hamilton, R.H., Wolk, D.A., Xie, S.X., and Mechanic‐Hamilton, D.: Diagnosing Mild Cognitive Impairment Among Racially Diverse Older Adults: Comparison of Consensus, Actuarial, and Statistical Methods. Journal of Alzheimer's Disease 85(2): 627-644, Jan 2022.
Mendizabal, A., Fan, J., Price, R.S., Hamilton, R.H.
: Feasibility and Effectiveness Appraisal of a Neurology Residency Health Equities Curriculum. Journal of the Neurological Sciences 15: 431, Dec 2021.
Medgalia, J., Harvey, D., Kelkar, A., Zimmerman, J., Mass, J., Bassett, D., Hamilton, R.
: Language tasks and the network control role of the left inferior frontal gyrus. eNeuro 8(5): ENEURO.0382-20.2021, Sep 2021.
Hill, K., Raney, C., Jackson, K., Murdock, H.M., Dawson, E., Delisser, H., Mamtani, M., Aysola, J.
: A new way of evaluating effectiveness of URM summer pipeline programs. Advances in Medical Education and Practice 12: 863-869, Aug 2021.
Harvey, D.Y., Parchure, S., Hamilton, R.H.: Factors predicting long-term recovery from post-stroke aphasia. Aphasiology Page: Online ahead of print, Aug 2021.
Parchure, S.Y., Harvey, D.Y., Shah-Basak, P.P., DeLoretta, L., Wurzman, R., Sacchetti, D., Faseyitan, O., Lohoff, F.W., Hamilton, R.H.: Brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) gene polymorphism predicts response to continuous theta burst stimulation (cTBS) in chronic stroke patients. Neuromodulation: Technology at the Neural Interface Jul 2021 Notes: doi: 10.1111/ner.13495. Epub ahead of print.
Harvey, D.Y., Deloretta, L., Shah-Basak, P.P., Wurzman, R., Sacchetti, D., Ahmed, A., Thiam, A., Lohoff, F.W., Faseyitan, O., Hamilton, R.H. : Variability in cTBS aftereffects attributed to the interaction of stimulus intensity with BDNF Val66Met polymorphism. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience 15: 585533, Jun 2021.
Schwab, P.J., Miller, A. Raphail, A., Levine, A., Haslam, C., Coslett, H.B., Hamilton, R.H.: Virtual reality tools for assessing unilateral spatial neglect: A novel opportunity for data collection. Journal of Visual Experimentation 169, Mar 2021.
Shah-Basak, P., Harvey, D.Y., Parchure, S., Faseyitan, O., Sacchetti, D., Ahmed, A., Thiam, A., Lohoff, F.W., Hamilton, R.H.: Brain-derived neurotrophic factor polymorphism influences response to single-pulse transcranial magnetic stimulation at rest. Neuromodulation: Technology at the Neural Interface Oct 2020 Notes: e-pub ahead of print.
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Last updated: 06/02/2022
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