KOC

Abdulaziz Ashkanani

BMBCh, FRCPC, CSCN (EMG), FAAN

Ministry of Health
Consultant

CURRICULUM VITAE

Personal Information:

Name: Abdulaziz Ali Qasem Ashkanani

Present Rank: Neurology Consultant
Medical group, Ahmadi Hospital

E-Mail: aashkanany@gmail.com

Current and former official positions:

• Consultant Neurologist and Electrophysiologist: Ahmadi Hospital, and Dar Al-Shifa Hospital
• General Secretary of the International League Against Epilepsy’s Eastern Mediterranean Region (ILAE-EMR): 2017-2021
• Head of the Kuwait League Against Epilepsy (KLAE): 2011-Present
• Consultant Neurologist and Electrophysiologist: Amiri Hospital: 2007-2016
• Head of the Kuwait Neurological Society (KNS): 2012-2014

Professional Associations Memberships:
• Fellow of the American Academy of Neurology (FAAN): 2017-Present
• Canadian Society of Clinical Neurophysiologists.
• Canadian Neurological Society (CNS). 2002-2007
• Kuwait Medical Association.
• Kuwait Neurological Society.
• Kuwait League Against Epilepsy.

Qualifications:

1993-97: Basic Medical Science Degree
Kuwait University

June 2000: Bachelor of General Medicine and Surgery (BMBCh)
Kuwait University

2002-07: Adult Neurology Residency Training, Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. University of British Columbia (UBC), Vancouver, BC

June 2007: Specialist Certificate in Adult Neurology
Royal College of Physicians & Surgeons of Canada
June 2007: CSCN Diplomate (EMG)
Canadian Society of Clinical Neurophysiologists, a member of the Canadian Neurological Sciences Federation (CNSF)
October 2013 – April ‘14: Virtual Epilepsy Academy (VIREPA) Distance education course:
EEG in the diagnosis & management of epilepsy - Basic Course.

Teaching Activities (Summary):

• Clinical instructor for medical student (Phase II, Phase III, Fifth year, and Seventh Year): 2007-2016: average 1 day per week.
• Regular hospital teaching sessions for medical staff: Weekly morning sessions, 2008-2009.
• Regular teaching sessions for rotating Kuwait Board of Internal Medicine residents: 2007-2016: including weekly sessions during their rotation through the neurology service.
• Hospital Coordinator for Phase II-year 6 medical student rotating at Neurology unit, Amiri Hospital for the academic years of 2010/2011, and 2011/2012.
• Examiner for Phase II-year 5 medical student’s OSCE , May 2010
• Invigilator of medical students and PGTP exams:
o PGTP internal medicine final exam (Part 2), March 22nd 2009
o Seventh year medical student final exam, 2009
o PGTP internal medicine final exam (Part 2), March 21st 2010
o MRCPII exam (PACES), 2nd November 2010
o MRCPII exam (PACES), 3rd November 2010
o Phase II Year 4 Formative OSCE, May 5th , 2013

Committees:

• Founding member of the Kuwait League Against Epilepsy, March 2011.
• Founding member of the Kuwait Neurology Board (residency program), part of Kuwait Institute for Medical Specialization. 2011.
• Medical department accreditation committee. Amiri Hospital, member, 2011-2013
• Neurological Disorders prevention committee, secretary. Ministry of Health, Kuwait, 2012-2015
• Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Neurological societies council, Founding member and Vice President, 2012-2014
• Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) Neurological Disorders prevention committee. Kuwait’s member, 2008-2013
• Kuwait Neurology Board. Member, 2011-2013

Departmental activities

1. Formulated the following Amiri Hospital Neurological Protocols (2007):
a. Acute Meningitis Protocol
b. Acute Management of Seizures
c. Subarachnoid Hemorrhage Management Protocol
d. Ischemic Stroke Protocols
e. Hemorrhagic Stroke (ICH) Protocol

2. Started and established Amiri Hospital rt-PA in acute ischemic stroke service (2008).
3. Prepared and submitted the Acute Stroke Pathway protocol/admission orders to Amiri Hospital (2008).
4. Introduced SFEMG as a newer testing modality at the EMG/NCS lab in Amiri Hospital (2009).

 
Conferences and meetings

Organizer role:

1. Epilepsy Beyond Medical Therapy Seminar. 9/6/2012, Kuwait
2. The 8th GCC neurology meeting. 15-17/11/2012, Kuwait
3. The 1st Kuwaiti-Lebanese Epilepsy Conference. 5/1/2013, Kuwait
4. The 1st Kuwait MS Consensus Guidelines Meeting. 25/1/2014, Kuwait
5. The 3rd Kuwaiti-Lebanese Epilepsy Conference. 1/2/2014, Kuwait
6. Neuro Club: Regular scientific meeting:
a. Epilepsy. 18/3/2014, Kuwait
b. Movement disorders. 20/5/2014, Kuwait
7. Movement disorders meeting: Diagnosis strategy for Parkinsonism. 24/6/2014, Kuwait
8. Bi-monthly (5 per year) Epilepsy meetings under Kuwait League Against Epilepsy Chapter: 2015-present

Speaker role:

Date Title Meeting Place
24/03/2008 Epilepsy Seizure disorders in Kuwait Kuwait
29/10/2008 Update on Prevention of Stroke Stroke Treatment and Rehabilitation symposium Kuwait
16/05/2009 Presentation of MS Clinical Approach to MS Kuwait
14/11/2009 Alternative Therapies in MS Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Conference Kuwait
12/12/2009 MS Therapy update The first Amiri Medical Department Day Kuwait
22/05/2010
Interactive workshop on the diagnosis, workup and management of facial palsy The first Kuwait Neurology Update Kuwait
22/05/2010
Updates in diabetic peripheral neuropathy The first Kuwait Neurology Update Kuwait
07/05/2011 Posterior Reversible Leukoencephalopathy The second Kuwait Neurology Update Kuwait
05/03/2012 Epilepsy Facts Adan Hospital medical department meeting Kuwait
05/01/2013 Medically refractory Epilepsy The 1st Kuwaiti-Lebanese Epilepsy Conference Kuwait
15/06/2013 Medically refractory Epilepsy The second Kuwaiti-Lebanese Epilepsy Conference Beirut, Lebanon
10/09/2013 Medically refractory Epilepsy Dar Al-Shifa Hospital weekly rounds Kuwait
13/11/2013 Updates in Neurogenetics The 4th Kuwait Neurology Update Kuwait
01/02/2014 Debate: First seizure to treat or not to treat The 3rd Kuwaiti-Lebanese Epilepsy Conference Kuwait
13/1/2015 First Seizure Dar Al-Shifa Hospital weekly rounds Kuwait
31/1/2015 Epidemiology, etiologies and classification of Status Epilepticus The 4th Kuwaiti-Lebanese Epilepsy Conference Beirut, Lebanon
10/04/2015 EEG in Encephalopathy The 5th Kuwaiti-Lebanese Epilepsy Conference Kuwait
09/11/2015 TLE: Case presentation The 1st GCC and 5th annual Saudi Epilepsy Conference Dammam, KSA
16/01/2016 Epidemiology of seizures in CVD The 6th Kuwaiti-Lebanese Epilepsy Conference Beirut, Lebanon
07/05/2016 Epidemiology, etiologies and classification of SE The 7th Kuwaiti-Lebanese Epilepsy Conference Kuwait

Session chair role:

1. The second Epilepsy workshop. 15/1/2011, Kuwait
2. The First Annual UAE Epilepsy Congress. 14/4/2012, Dubai, UAE.
3. The Regional Conference on Alzheimer’s Disease, 24-25/9/2012, Kuwait
4. Kuwait Neuroradiology Conference, 1-3/2/2013. Kuwait
5. The second annual UAE Epilepsy congress. 27/4/2013, Abu Dhabi, UAE.
6. The first Kuwait North American Neurology Conference, 27-29/4/2013, Kuwait
7. Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Conference, 14/11/2013, Kuwait
8. The first Kuwait MS Consensus Guidelines Meeting. 25/1/2014, Kuwait
9. International Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery Meeting & fourth Saudi Epilepsy Society Conference. 26-27/11/2014. Riyadh, KSA.
10. The Second Kuwait North American Neurology Conference. 12-14/12/2014. Kuwait.
11. Fourth Annual UAE Epilepsy Congress 2015. 12-13/5/2015. Dubai, UAE.
12. The 1st GCC and 5th annual Saudi Epilepsy Conference. 7-9/11/2015. Dammam, KSA
13. The 3rd East Mediterranean & 5th UAE Joint Epilepsy Congress. 4-6/3/2016. Dubai, UAE.
 
Peer-Review Service:

• Annals of Saudi Medicine Journal: 2013 - present.

Publications:

1. Qasem AA, Ashour TH, Al-Abdulrazzaq HK, Ismail ZA. Disclosure of cancer diagnosis and prognosis by physicians in Kuwait. Int J Clin Pract. 2002 Apr;56(3):215-8.

2. Qasem A, Tanha F, Briemberg H. A case of diabetic muscle infarction. Can J Neurol Sci. 2009 Sep;36(5):651-3.

3. Alroughani R, Javidan M, Qasem A, Alotaibi N. Non-convulsive status epilepticus; the rate of occurrence in a general hospital. Seizure 2009 Jan;18(1):38-42.

4. Peripheral neuropathy in patients with Diabetes mellitus. Book chapter in Arabic. Ministry of Health, Kuwait. 2012.

5. Alroughani R, Ashkanani A, Lamdhade S. Clinical characteristics of multiple sclerosis in Kuwait: data from the new MS registry of Amiri Hospital. Int J Neurosci2012 Feb;122(2):82-7.

6. Ashkanani A, Hassan KA, Lamdhade S. Risk factors of stroke patients admitted to a general hospital in Kuwait. Int J Neurosci 2013 Feb;123(2):89-92.

7. Alroughani R, Ahmed S, Behbahani R, Khan R, Thussu A, Alexander K, Ashkanani A, Nagarajan V, Al-Hashel J. Increasing prevalence and incidence rates of multiple sclerosis in Kuwait. Mult Scler. 2014 Apr;20(5):543-7.

8. Lamdhade S, Ashkanani A, Alroughani R. Prevalence of Anti-JC Virus Antibody in Multiple Sclerosis patients in Kuwait. ISRN Neurol. 2014 Jan 22;2014:861091.

9. Stroke. Public awareness booklet in Arabic (Author: K. Hassan, Translator: A. Ashkanani) Ministry of Health, Kuwait. 2015

10. R. Alroughani, A. Ashkanani, J. Al-Hashel, R. Khan, A. Thussu, KJ Alexander, P. Vembu, K. Sharfuddin, S. Lamdhade, JK. John, S. Alkhashan, M. Abualmelh, S. Al-Shmmari.

11. Consensus Recommendations for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Multiple Sclerosis in Kuwait. Clin Neurol Neurosurg. 2016 Apr;143:51-64

12. Uncommon Presentation of Bickerstaff Encephalitis. Hani M. El-Fayed, Abdulaziz Ashkenani, Fady Safwat Gad. Med Sci Case Rep 2017; 4:87-89. DOI: 10.12659/MSCR.905110

13. Acute stroke thrombolysis in infective endocarditis. Ashkanani A, Bitar Z, Maadrani O. SAGE Open Med Case Rep. 2018 Oct 19;6:2050313X18807629.

14. Complementary and alternative medicine in epilepsy: A global survey of physicians' opinions. Asadi-Pooya AA, Brigo F, Lattanzi S, Karakis I, Asadollahi M, Trinka E, Talaat El Ghoneimy L, Pretorius C, Contreras G, Daza-Restrepo A, Valente K, D'Alessio L, Turuspekova ST, Aljandeel G, Khachatryan S, Ashkanani A, Tomson T, Kutlubaev M, Guekht A, Alsaadi T, Calle-Lopez Y, Mesraoua B, Ríos-Pohl L, Al-Asmi A, Villanueva V, Igwe SC, Kissani N, Jusupova A. Epilepsy Behav. 2021 Apr;117:107835.

15. An international study of the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on characteristics of functional seizures. Asadi-Pooya AA, Trinka E, Hingray C, Fawaz A, Karakis I, Kishk NA, Farazdaghi M, Höfler J, Tarrada A, Ashkanani A, Risman A, Rizk H. Epilepsy Behav. 2022 Feb;127:108530. doi: 10.1016/j.yebeh.2021.108530. Epub 2021 Dec 29. PMID: 35016054; PMCID: PMC8714296.

16. Counseling about sudden unexpected death in epilepsy (SUDEP): A global survey of neurologists' opinions. Asadi-Pooya AA, Trinka E, Brigo F, Hingray C, Karakis I, Lattanzi S, Valente KD, Contreras G, Turuspekova ST, Kishk NA, Aljandeel G, Farazdaghi M, Lopez YC, Kissani N, Triki C, Krämer G, Surges R, Mesraoua B, Yu HY, Daza-Restrepo A, Alsaadi T, Al-Asmi A, Kutlubaev MA, Pretorius C, Jusupova A, Khachatryan SG, Ranganathan LN, Ashkanani A, Tomson T, Gigineishvili D. Epilepsy Behav. 2022 Mar;128:108570. doi: 10.1016/j.yebeh.2022.108570. Epub 2022 Jan 29. PMID: 35093831.

17. Physicians' beliefs about brain surgery for drug-resistant epilepsy: A global survey. Asadi-Pooya AA, Brigo F, Trinka E, Lattanzi S, Karakis I, Kishk NA, Valente KD, Jusupova A, Turuspekova ST, Daza-Restrepo A, Contreras G, Kutlubaev MA, Guekht A, Rahimi-Jaberi A, Aljandeel G, Calle-Lopez Y, Alsaadi T, Ashkanani A, Ranganathan LN, Al-Asmi A, Khachatryan SG, Gigineishvili D, Mesraoua B, Mwendaweli N. Seizure. 2022 Oct 10;103:18-22. doi: 10.1016/j.seizure.2022.10.012. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 36252422.

 
Abstracts/Posters:

1. Effects of the capacity of dopamine sequestration on the rate of progression in Parkinson’s disease. Abdulaziz Qasem, Michael Schulzer, Vesna Sossi, Thomas J Ruth, Donald B Calne, A Jon Stoessl, Chong S Lee. Platform presentation at the AAN meeting in Miami, 2005.

2. Effects of the capacity of dopamine sequestration on the rate of progression in Parkinson’s disease. Abdulaziz Qasem, Michael Schulzer, Vesna Sossi, Thomas J Ruth, Donald B Calne, A Jon Stoessl, Chong S Lee. Podium presentation of research project at the Residents Research Day of UBC in May 2005.

3. SSPE IN PREGNANCY, A CASE REPORT FROM KUWAIT. SJ Lamdhade, A. Ashkanani, A. Thussu. Abstract A-342-0033-01301. XXth World Congress of Neurology. Nov. 2011

4. Risk factors of stroke patients admitted to a general hospital in Kuwait. Ashkanani A, Hassan KA, Lamdhade S. Abstarct AID 154. XXI. European Stroke Conference. May 2012

5. Increasing prevalence and incidence rates of multiple sclerosis in Kuwait. R. Alroughani, S. Ahmed, R. Behbahani, R. Khan, A. Thussu, KJ Alexander, A. Ashkanani, V. Nagarajan, J. Al-Hashel. Abstract No. 480. ECTRIMS/RIMS meeting. October 2013.