University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health
One S. Park St., 7th Floor
Madison WI 53562
(608) 828-72626
Website
Contact is Lisa Arkin and Beth Drolet
Jennifer Kwon, MD - Neurology Pediatric
Jennifer Kwon, MD, is a UW Health Kids pediatric neurologist and the director of the pediatric neuromuscular program. She treats children from birth to age 18 with neurological disorders.
Dr. Kwon’s clinical interest is in pediatric neuromuscular disorders (conditions that affect the muscles and nerves, which cause weakness and motor function difficulties). Her specialty is in working with children living with spinal muscular atrophy and Duchenne muscular dystrophy.
Dr. Kwon’s philosophy is to provide patients with the highest standard of pediatric neuromuscular care. She believes that working together as a team with other health providers is essential for treating complex medical needs.
In addition to her clinical practice, Dr. Kwon is a professor in the Department of Neurology at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. Her research focuses on sponsored clinical trials for new investigative drugs to treat pediatric neuromuscular disorders.
In her free time, Dr. Kwon enjoys knitting, biking, and hiking.
Chris Ikonomidou, MD — Neurology Pediatric
Lisa Arkin, MD — Pediatric and Adult Dermatology
Healing With Light
Director of Pediatric Dermatology Lisa Arkin, MD, specializes in using lasers to treat patients with vascular stains, often called port-wine birthmarks.
Dr. Arkin first became interested in working with lasers when an infant came in desperately ill from an infected infantile hemangioma, a rare complication in a common benign vascular birthmark. The girl was only 5 weeks old, and survived the infection, but was left with permanent facial scarring.
Dr. Arkin searched for a way to help this young patient and ended up training with specialists at Harvard to learn a state-of-the-art laser treatment for patients with scarring. “With their help and mentorship, this beautiful little girl improved,” Dr. Arkin recalls, “and I fell in love with the idea of using light – in the form of lasers – to heal children.”
Now, Dr. Arkin is pushing the boundaries of laser treatment by combining it with new research that shows that vascular stains like birthmarks and port-wine stains are caused by the same genetic changes that cause cancer. The experimental treatment will use genetic testing to develop a personalized treatment plan for each patient. She is hopeful to eventually combine targeted topical drug therapy with a personalized laser plan for each patient in a clinical trial.
“This has never been done before for vascular stains. I am very excited to be offering cutting-edge, precision-based care to patients with birthmarks and vascular stains in our area and beyond. These birthmarks are stigmatizing, and over time they get larger and eventually can begin to inhibit basic functions. Thinking about stigma, and how a child thinks about themselves with a birthmark, is a major part of what we offer as dermatologists.”
Dr. Arkin’s research will enroll patients who meet specific criteria. This research is financially supported by philanthropy and patient advocacy organizations, including the Sturge Weber Foundation, the Pediatric Dermatology Research Alliance, and the Dermatology Foundation.
Beth Drolet, MD — Pediatric and Adult Dermatology
Beth A. Drolet, MD, Chair The Department of Dermatology – School of Medicine and Public Health, University of Wisconsin. Dr. Drolet completed her undergraduate education at Michigan State University, her MD at Loyola University, and residency and fellowship training in Clinical Research and pediatric Dermatology at the Medical College of Wisconsin. She was promoted to professor, Vice Chair, and Chief of Pediatric Dermatology at the Medical College of Wisconsin. Dr. Drolet was the Medical Director of Birthmarks and Vascular Anomalies, VP of Ambulatory services, and Chief Experience Officer at the Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin.
In March 2019, Dr. Drolet became the 4th Chair of UW Dermatology since the position was established in 1946 (history of Dermatology).
Dr. Drolet’s research has focused on discoveries related to birthmarks, vascular anomalies, and infantile hemangiomas. She has published over 150 peer-reviewed manuscripts and established an infrastructure to conduct multidisciplinary and inter-institutional research. She is one of the founding members and past president of the Hemangioma Investigator Group (HIG), a multi-institutional research network consortium. She led several clinical trials and designed longitudinal studies addressing the incidence, demographics, complication rate, and outcomes of vascular anomalies. By leveraging next-generation sequencing technology typically applied to cancer, her team has demonstrated that most vascular anomalies are caused by postzygotic mutations in highly conserved oncogenes. These insights have for the first time revealed potential pharmacologic targets for the treatment of these lesions. Dr. Drolet is past president of the Society for Pediatric Dermatology and serves on the editorial board of Pediatric Dermatology. Her research efforts have been supported by the National Institute of Health, Greater Milwaukee Foundation, Dermatology Foundation, and Pediatric Dermatology Research Alliance (PeD
Yasmin Bradfield, MD — Pediatric Ophthalmology
Yasmin S. Bradfield, MD, specializes in pediatric glaucoma and cataracts, pediatric eyelid surgery, pediatric and adult strabismus, and amblyopia. She enjoys helping children see their worlds better and educating parents about their child's eye diagnosis. In addition, she trains residents and pediatric ophthalmology fellows. Dr. Bradfield earned her medical degree from Northwestern University and completed her residency at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota.
David Allen, MD — Pediatric Endocrinology
David Allen, MD, is a UW Health Kids pediatric endocrinologist and a professor at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Department of Pediatrics. He treats children with problems related to hormones or the endocrine system, including diabetes, thyroid function, improper growth or development, and onset of puberty.
Dr. Allen sees children with excessive or deficient hormones, which can cause numerous issues. and he finds it very rewarding to be able to provide effective treatments. He is particularly interested in pediatric growth patterns, early or late puberty development, and thyroid or adrenal gland problems that are detected through newborn screening.
Working together with families is very important to Dr. Allen. He listens to his patients and their families to gain insight into a particular problem or illness. He recognizes that there are several ways to approach a health concern and that being honest and upfront is the best way to determine the next steps in care.
In his free time, Dr. Allen enjoys playing jazz piano and providing music for numerous local charity fundraisers. He is an avid cyclist, skier, and runner.
Kim Keppler-Noreuil, MD — Pediatric Geneticist
Raheel Ahmed, MD, PhD — Neurosurgeon
Raheel Ahmed M.D., Ph.D., is a pediatric neurosurgeon at the American Family Children’s Hospital.
He earned his medical degree at the Aga Khan University Medical College, Pakistan. He completed Neurosurgery residency training at the University of Iowa, followed by fellowship training in Endoscopy at Radboud University, Nijmegen, Netherlands, and a Pediatric Neurosurgery fellowship at the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto.
Dr. Ahmed specializes in all aspects of pediatric neurosurgery and has a focused interest in the surgical management of pediatric epilepsy and congenital pediatric spinal disorders.
As Director of Pediatric Surgical Epilepsy, he closely collaborates with colleagues in Pediatric Neurology, Neuropsychology, and Neuroradiology to evaluate and treat all aspects of epilepsy in children. Continuing seizures have a disabling, cumulative impact on a child’s development. The Surgical Epilepsy program is privileged to provide noninvasive, robotic-assisted depth electrode and invasive subdural grid monitoring to accurately localize seizures. These investigations are then formulated into a comprehensive treatment plan that may include surgery or laser interstitial thermal therapy for resection of seizure focus and neurostimulation through NeuroPace or vagal stimulators to limit seizure generation. A multidisciplinary team of social workers, rehabilitation therapists, and nursing staff members helps in providing all aspects of medical care and assistance for pediatric patients.
Bermans Iskander, MD — Pediatric Neurosurgeon
Dr. Iskandar is recognized for his clinical expertise and experimental work in congenital diseases that alter CSF hydrodynamics, in particular hydrocephalus, Chiari malformations, and syringomyelia. Led by Dr. Iskandar and funded by the Theodore W. Batterman Family Foundation, the Wisconsin Hydrocephalus Group (WHP) of engineers, physicists, neurologists, and neurosurgeons aims to determine the etiology of ventricular shunt malfunction and optimize the devices used to treat it. As well, Dr. Iskandar also directs a translational research laboratory previously funded by the NIH and the March of Dimes that has discovered an important link between single carbon folate and cobalamin metabolism, epigenetic influences, and axonal regeneration after central nervous system injury. Dr. Iskandar has served on national neurosurgical committees and boards, and currently serves as Vice-Chair of the Board of Directors of the American Board of Pediatric Neurological Surgery and as Chair of the AANS/CNS Section on Pediatric Neurosurgery.
Susan Rebsamen, MD — NeuroRadiologist
Dr. Susan Rebsamen is a board-certified radiologist with additional qualifications in Neuroradiology.
She is a founding member of the American Society of Pediatric Neuroradiology and maintains her interest
in Pediatric Neuroimaging in her clinical work and resident/fellow teaching responsibilities. She is
also currently active in the Wisconsin Radiological Society.
Susan came to the University of WI in 2007 from Radiology Associates of Orlando, a large full-time private practice group in Orlando, Florida, where she specialized in Adult and Pediatric Neuroimaging with emphasis on tumor imaging, in conjunction with the Disney Cancer Institute.
Interests: Medical History, painting, the performing arts
Jason Brucker, MD — NeuroRadiologist
Justin Brucker, MD joined the department in July 2017 as an assistant professor in the Neuroradiology Section. An upstate New York native, Dr. Brucker completed his medical degree at the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, Rochester, NY, and his residency at the University of Rochester’s Strong Memorial Hospital. His studies included a dedicated year of neuroscience research. He completed his fellowship in neuroradiology at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health.
Laura Eisenmenger, MD - NeuroRadiologist
Laura Eisenmenger, MD, is an Assistant Professor of Radiology (tenure track) in the Neuroradiology Section. Dr. Eisenmenger graduated summa cum laude from Illinois Wesleyan University, Bloomington, IL. She earned her MD at Ohio State University College of Medicine, Columbus, graduating magna cum laude. She completed an internship at Riverside Methodist Hospital, Columbus, and a Diagnostic Radiology residency at the University of Utah, Salt Lake City. Dr. Eisenmenger was President of the Utah Medical Association Resident Executive Committee in 2016-2017. She has received multiple research grants including the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) Resident Research Grant in 2017, the Roentgen Resident Research Award in 2017, and the RSNA Fellow Research Grant in 2018. Dr. Eisenmenger completed her Neuroradiology fellowship at the University of California-San Francisco in the Department of Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, where she was a Chief Fellow in 2017-2018.
Dr. Pinchot's clinical and research interests include minimally invasive oncologic interventions (including Y-90 radioembolization and transarterial chemoembolization), image-guided tumor ablation, uterine fibroid embolization, and biliary interventions.
Beverly Kienitz, MD – Neuro-Interventional Radiology
Dr. Kienitz is a professor of radiology and neurological surgery at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health. She earned her medical degree at the University of California, Davis. She completed her surgical internship and radiology residency at the University of California, San Francisco; neuroradiology fellowship at the University of Washington, Seattle; and neuro-interventional fellowship at Columbia University, New York. Dr. Kienitz specializes in neuroendovascular/neuro-interventional treatment of stroke, cerebral aneurysm, AVM embolization intracranial/and extracranial stenting, and percutaneous sclerotherapy.
Catherine Garland, MD – Vascular Anomalies Co-Director Plastic Surgery
