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Mazen M. Dimachkie, M.D.

Mazen Dimachkie portrait
Professor, Neurology

Executive Vice Chairman, Department of Neurology, SOM-Kansas City

Associate Director, Associate Director of the Institute for Neurological Discoveries, SOM-Kansas City, Neurology

Clinical Director, Director, Neuromuscular Division, SOM-Kansas City, Neurology

mdimachkie@kumc.edu

Professional Background

Mazen M. Dimachkie, MD is a tenured Professor of Neurology and Director of Neuromuscular Division at the University of Kansas Medical Center (KUMC). Dr. Dimachkie is ABPN board-certified in Neurology, Clinical Neurophysiology, and Neuromuscular Medicine and holds a UCNS certificate in Clinical Neuromuscular Pathology. He is Executive Vice Chairman and Vice Chairman for Research Program, Department of Neurology. He is the Associate Director of the Institute for Neurologic Discoveries at KUMC. Dr. Dimachkie has national and international reputation as a clinician, educator and researcher.

He was recruited from the UT-Houston to lead the prolific neuromuscular Section, now Division, at the KUMC and has done superbly since 2007. He directs the Neuromuscular Medicine Fellowship which he founded at the KUMC. He directs the Tissue Biopsy Laboratory. He leads the Neuromuscular Clinics which coordinate the care of a large population of patients with muscle, nerve, neuromuscular junction and anterior horn cell disorders. In recognition of accomplishments, he was elected to be a Fellow member of the American Academy of Neurology then elected to the prestigious membership as fellow of the American Neurological Association. He serves on the Medical Advisory Board of the Myasthenia Gravis Foundation of America (MGFA) and has served on the IMACS Scientific Committee. He is recognized as a Partner of care with the MGFA.

He is a frequently invited lecturer in the fields of inflammatory muscle disorders, Pompe disease, myasthenia gravis, the Lambert-Eaton myasthenic syndrome, ALS, peripheral neuropathies and other neuromuscular topics. He has authored or co-authored 200 full-length published articles, more than 300 meeting abstracts, and 28 book chapters. His work is frequently cited by others. His Google Scholar H-index score is 36 which is outstanding.

Education and Training
  • BS, Chemistry with Distinction, American Univ. Beirut
  • MD, American Univ. Beirut
  • Other, Saint Agnes Hospital of Baltimore, Baltimore, MD
  • Other, Saint Agnes Hospital of Baltimore, Baltimore, MD
  • University of Texas Health Science Center - Houston, Houston, TX
  • University of Texas Health Science Center - Houston, Houston, TX
  • University of Texas Health Science Center - Houston, Houston, TX
Licensure, Accreditations & Certifications
  • Clinical Neurophysiology, American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology
  • Kansas Medical License, Kansas Board of Healing Arts
  • Neurology, American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology
  • Neuromuscular Medicine, American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology
  • Subspecialty Certification in Clinical Neuromuscular Pathology, United Council for Neurologic Subspecialties
Professional Affiliations
  • Muscle Study Group, Other, 2017 - Present
  • Peripheral Nerve Society, Member, 2004 - Present
  • National ALS Study Group, Member, 2003 - Present
  • Neuromuscular Section, American Academy of Neurology, Member, 1998 - Present

Research

Overview

Dr. Dimachkie the Vice Chairman for Research Program, Department of Neurology. He has leadership experience in maintaining large volumes of studies that require a great deal of communication among team members. He is well trained in regulatory compliance requirements. He has the expertise and time commitment to successfully serve on the leadership team for this study and enroll at our KUMC site in important studies. He assists investigators in developing a recruitment strategy at the KUMC prior to study initiation.

Dr. Dimachkie is the director of the Neuromuscular Division Research Program (NDRP) at the KUMC-Neurology Department. As the director of NDRP, he manages arguably the largest and busiest neuromuscular clinical trials units in North America. He has served in 2013-18, as Associate Director for the NIH-Network for Excellence in Neuroscience Clinical Trials for KUMC. He is involved in all aspects, activities and processes relating to Neuromuscular research. He has the experience to lead and participate in a wide variety of federally funded neuromuscular research studies and industry-sponsored studies, nationally and internationally. His participation and/or research leadership portfolio includes trials in a broad range of neuromuscular disorders such as CSPN, CIDP, GBS, diabetic neuropathy, familial transthyretin amyloid neuropathy, myositis, myasthenia gravis, the Lambert-Eaton myasthenic syndrome, congenital myasthenic syndrome, Pompe disease and ALS. He was instrumental in the conduct of the arimoclomol in inclusion body myositis (IBM) pilot study. He is the International Coordinating PI on an FDA-OOPD funded 1RO1FD004809-01A2 multicenter international randomized controlled trial investigating the efficacy and safety of Arimoclomol in IBM. He is also the overall Sponsor and study PI for a multicenter investigator-initiated North American study of SCIg in myasthenia gravis.

Publications
  • Watkins JM, Dimachkie MM, Riley P, Murphy E. 2019. Subcutaneous immunoglobulin therapy for chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy: a nursing perspective. J Neurosci Nurs, 51 (4), 198-203
  • Pasnoor M, Dimachkie MM. 2019. Approach to muscle and neuromuscular junction disorders. Continuum, 25 (6), 1536-1563
  • Ramdharry G, Morrow J, Hudgens S, Skorupinska I, Gwathmey K, Currence M, Herbelin L, Jawdat O, Pasnoor M, McVey A, Barohn RJ, Burns TM, Dimachkie MM, Amato AA, Hanna MG, Machado PM. 2019. Investigation of the psychometric properties of the inclusion body myositis functional rating scale with Rasch analysis. Muscle Nerve, 60 (2), 161-168
  • Ahmed M, Machado PM, Miller A, Spicer C, Herbelin L, He J, Noel J, Wang Y, McVey AL, Pasnoor M, Gallagher P, Statland J, Lu CH, Kalmar B, Brady S, Sethi H, Samandouras G, Parton M, Holto JL, Weston A, Collinson L, Taylor JP, Schiavo G, Hanna MG, Barohn RJ, Dimachkie MM, Greensmith L. 2016. Targeting protein homeostasis as a novel therapeutic approach in sporadic inclusion body myositis. Sci Transl Med, 8 (331)
  • Abuzinadah AR, Jabari D, Jawdat O, Pasnoor M, Glenn M, Herbelin L, McVey AL, Barohn RJ, Dimachkie MM. 2018. Satisfactory response with achieving maintenance low-dose prednisone in generalized myasthenia gravis. J Clin Neuromuscul Dis, 20 (2), 49-59
  • Pasnoor M, Barohn RJ, Dimachkie MM. 2018. Toxic myopathies. Curr Opin Neurol, 31 (5), 575-582
  • Farmakidis C, Pasnoor M, Barohn RJ, Dimachkie MM. 2018. Congenital myasthenic syndromes: a clinical and treatment approach. Curr Opin Neurol, 20 (9), 36
  • Rivner MH, Quarles BM, Pan JX, Yu Z, Howard JR, Jr, Corse A, Dimachkie MM, Jackson C, Vu T, Small G, Lisak RP, Belsh J, Lee I, Nowak RJ, Baute V, Scelsa S, Fernandes JA, Simmons Z, Swenson A, Barohn R, Saka RB, Gooch C, Ubogu E, Caress J, Pasnoor M, Xu H, Mei L. 2020. Clinical features of LRP4/agrin-antibody-positive myasthenia gravis: a multicenter study. Muscle Nerve, 62 (3), 333-343
  • Lewis RA, Cornblath DR, Hartung HP, Sobue G, Lawo JP, Mielke O, Durn BL, Bril V, Merkies ISJ, Bassett P, Cleasby A, van Schaik IN, PATH Study Group. 2020. Placebo effect in chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy: the PATH study and a systematic review. J Periph Nerv System, 25 (3), 230-237
  • Mantegazza R, O'Brien FL, Yountz M, Howard JR, Jr, REGAIN Study Group. 2020. Consistent improvement with eculizumab across muscle groups in myasthenia gravis. Ann Clin Transl Neurol, 7 (8), 1327-1339