Education

Educational And Professional History

Higher Education

• 1989 B.S. (Physics) American University of Beirut, with high distinction
• 1993 M.D. American University of Beirut, with distinction

Post-graduate Medical Education

• 1993-1994 Internship in Internal Medicine, Saint Louis University, PGY1
• 1994-1995 Residency in Neurology, Saint Louis University, PGY2
• 1995-1997 Residency in Neurology, Baylor College of Medicine, PGY3&4
• 1997-1999 Fellowship in Behavioral Neurology, Univ of Iowa Hospitals & Clinics
• 2001-   2001 Post-Graduate Training in Neuro-Otology, University of Pittsburgh
• 2003-2004 Audited ethics course with Dr Robert Weir
• 10/ 2011 Workshop on Evidence Based Medicine, Academy of Neurology
• 06/2013 Workshop on Evidence Based Medicine, McMaster University

Current Licensure/Certifications

• Medical & Surgical Licensure, Iowa Board of Medical Examiners, 1997-present, State of Iowa Certification in Botulinum Administration, since1998
• American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology Certification, 2000-2020
• Qualification to interpret Vestibular testing (videonystagmography, posturography), since 2001

Profile

Research Interest

Dizziness, Gait, Normal Pressure Hydrocephalus, Resident Education

Professional Activities:

Professional and Academic Positions

1997-1999 Fellow
Department of Neurology

1999-2002 Associate-Clinical Staff
Division of Behavioral Neurology; Department of Neurology
University of Iowa College of Medicine

07/01-present Director, Balance Disorder Clinic
Division of Neuro-Otology
University of Iowa College of Medicine

08/02-06/09 Assistant Professor, Clinical
Division of Neuro-Otology, Department of Neurology
Division of Behavioral Neurology; Department of Neurology
University of Iowa College of Medicine

07/09-present Associate Professor, Clinical
Division of Neuro-Otology, Department of Neurology
Division of Behavioral Neurology; Department of Neurology

2012-present Director of neurology consults service, Neurology Department, University of Iowa College of Medicine

2014-present Associate Director of Residency Program, Neurology Department, University of Iowa College of Medicine
Veterans Administration Medical Center; Iowa City IA:
10/05-present Staff Physician and Clinical Consultant
Honors and

Teaching Assignments

• 1997-present Clinical teaching of medical students and neurology residents, The University of Iowa and VAMC- Iowa City
• 1998-9, 2002-05 Teaching Neuroanatomy to first year medical students, University of Iowa
• 2003-04 Medical Ethics Course to medical students, University of Iowa
• 2003-07 & 09 Foundation of Clinical Practice IV: Clinical Mentoring of medical students; University of Iowa
• 2005-present Lecturing on Vegetative State, Health Care Yearly Seminar for Law Students, University of Iowa
• 2001-present Supervising geriatric fellows who rotate in the Balance Disorders Clinic
• 2003-04 Organized mini series of neuro-ethics lectures for residents
• 2006-07 Organized series on neurological exam for residents
• 2006-present created laminated Cards for residents to use; very popular; include vascular territory cards, mini-neuropsychological testing, balance building card, UPDRS, etc; cards are periodically add to them.
• 2009-present Supervising Journal Club for Neurology Residents
• 2009-present resident Wiki editor, a teaching website for residents Bicn.neurology.uiowa.edu/reswiki
• 2010-present Teaching basics of statistics to Neurology Residents
• 2011-present Contributor to Core curriculum for Neurology residents’ series
• 2011-present Organized lecture series on Evidence Based Medicine to residents (total 20 lectures)- given every other year
• 2012-2013 Monthly lectures to medical students on evidence based medicine
• 2012-2013 Monthly lectures to medical students on Nystagmus
• 2013-2014 Bi- Monthly lectures to medical students on evidence based medicine
• 2013-2014 Bi- Monthly lectures to medical students on nystagmus
• 2014-present Monthly lectures to medical students on evidence based medicine
• 2014-present Monthly lectures to medical students on nystagmus
• June 2014 Dizziness Workshop; given to emergency medicine department, University of Iowa
• July 2014-present Teaching medical students, Early Clinical Experiences (CAPS I and II), University of Iowa
• July 2014-present patient based assessments: teaching neurology exam to medical students via standardized patients

Committees
Neurology Department’s Drug Sample Control, 2008-2009
Member of ad hoc Committee to Enhance Communication with House Staff, 2000-2001
Search Committee (member), UI Radiology Department Head Search, 2013-present
Committee to Review Emergency Medicine Department, member, February 11-12, 2014
Medical Peer Review Committee, University of Iowa, October 2013-present
Since 2013- present: part of leadership committee to evaluate milestones for residents.
Aging Mind and Brain Initiative, AMBI, affiliate, 2014-present

UIRCC (University of Iowa Regional Coordinating Center)
Role: Member since 2013
There are 25 RCCs across the US, with the National Coordinating Center at the University of Cincinnati.

PhD Committee Member
-Student Nora Riley, Physical Therapy Department- graduated in 2009-2010
-Thesis Supervisor for Rosalind Smith, Engineering Department, University of Iowa, graduated with masters in summer 2010;
Thesis title: QUANTIFICATION AND LOCALIZATION OF GAIT VARIABILITY AS
BIOMARKERS FOR MILD TRAUMATIC BRAIN INJURY

Honors and Awards

Honors and Awards and Service

• 1989 B.S. in Physics with High Distinction
• 1993 M.D. degree with Distinction 1995-97 Award of the resident with outstanding teaching, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas
• 2001-2008 Oral Board Examiner for American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology
• 2002 Above and Beyond Call of Duty Award, University of Iowa
• 2004-05 Director, Balance and Gait Disorders, American Academy of Neurology Annual Meeting
• 2004-present Medical Care Seminar to Law Students, presenter: the Vegetative State, University of Iowa
• 2005-present Annual Refresher Course for the Family Physician, presenter: Primary Care Evaluation of Dizziness, University of Iowa
• 2006 Federal Award (Veterans Administration Medical Center): position performance upgrade for patient care and teaching.
• 2010 Faculty Educator of the Year, Neurology Department, University of Iowa
• 2011 Faculty Educator of the Year, Neurology Department, University of Iowa
• 2007-present Best Doctor
• 2013-present Medical Peer Review Committee, member, University of Iowa
• 2014-present Aging Mind and Brain Initiative, UIHC, affiliate

Publications

Peer-Reviewed Papers 

• Fattal D. Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada syndrome. Baylor College of Medicine, Department of Neurology Website, 1997. (I prepared the whole manuscript).
• Reardon M, Fattal D. Obsessive-Compulsive Behavior secondary to an Anterior Thalamic Infarct. JINS 6(2):212, 2000. (I edited the manuscript).
• Razavi M, Rizzo M, Fattal D, Jones RD. Visual Hallucinations in Temporal Arteritis. JINS 6(2):230, 2000. (I edited manuscript and contributed to it).
• Razavi M, Razavi B, Fattal D, Afifi A, Adams HP. Hemiplegic Migraine Induced by Exercise. Archives of Neurology 57(9), 1363-1365, 2000. (I edited manuscript and contributed to it).
• Razavi M., Jones R.D., Fattal D., Manzel K., Rizzo M. Steroid-responsive “Charles Bonnet Syndrome” in Temporal Arteritis. Journal of Neuropsychiatry & Clinical Neuroscience; 16(4):505-8, 2004. (I edited manuscript and contributed to it).
• Karimi M, Razavi M, Fattal D. Rubral Lateropulsion Due to Vertebral Artery Dissection in a Patient With Klippel-Feil Syndrome. Arch Neurol; 61: 583 – 585, 2004. (I edited manuscript and contributed significantly to it).
• Hsu S, Chaloupka J, Fattal D. Rapidly Progressive Fatal Bihemispheric Infarction Secondary to Moyamoya Syndrome in Association with Graves’ Thyrotoxicosis: Case Report and Review of the Literature, American Journal of Neuroradiology, 27, 643-47, 2006. (I edited manuscript and contributed to it).

Chapters

• Fattal D, Rizzo M. The vestibular system and cognition. In: Principles and Practice of Behavioral Neurology and Neuropsychology. Rizzo, Matthew and Eslinger, Paul, Eds. Philadelphia, PA: Saunders, Mosby, Churchill Livingstone, 2004. (I prepared the whole manuscript and all the concepts).
• Fattal D. Balance and Gait Disorders. Publication: American Academy of Neurology, 2004. (I prepared the whole manuscript).
• Fattal D. Balance and Gait Disorders. Publication: American Academy of Neurology, 2005. (I prepared the whole manuscript).
• Fattal D. Balance & Gait Disorders. Medlink Corporation. Retrieved from www.medlink.com/medlinkhome/info_serv.htm. , available January 2004. (I prepared the whole manuscript). I have updated it periodically since; last update 2013
• Fattal D. Dizziness and Nystagmus chapter- as part of Syllabus to medical Students, 2013.
• Bob Eppsteiner , Fattal D, Hansen M. Central vertigo. In: Sataloff’s Comprehensive Textbook of Otolaryngology. Rusko J, Lalwani A, Sataloff R, eds. Jaypee Medical Publishers (submitted 2014). (I contributed to the chapter).

Papers/chapters in preparation

• Chahin S, Fattal D, Cross Anne. Diagnosis and Treatment of Clinically Isolated (Demyelinating) Syndrome. A review.
• Fattal,D, Heckman R, Rahmatalla S. Abnormal Gait parameters in chronic mild TBI.
• Fattal D, Brandt T, Corbett J. Room Tilt Illussion. Review.
• Fattal D, St Louis E, Yamada, T, Brandt T, Corbett J. Room Tilt illusion: case report
• Fritzsch B, Fattal D. Age related hearing and vestibular loss and its consequences on brain function and healthy aging: assessing the problem to point toward a solution. Frontier in neuroscience; abstract already submitted.
• Fattal D, Fritzsch B, Rizzo, M. Balance and Hearing. In:The Wiley Handbook on the Aging Mind and Brain. Rizzo M, Anderson, S, eds. to be published in 2015.

Abstracts

• Reardon M, Fattal D. Obsessive-Compulsive Behavior secondary to an Anterior Thalamic Infarct. J Int Neuropsychol Soc 6(2):212, 2000. (I edited the manuscript).
• Razavi M, Rizzo M, Fattal D, Jones RD. Visual Hallucinations in Temporal Arteritis. J Int Neuropsychol Soc 6(2):230, 2000. (I edited manuscript and contributed to it).
• Fattal D, Smith R, Rahmatalla S. Objective Gait Abnormalities in Chronic Mild Traumatic Brain Injury. 3rd Federal Interagency Conference on TBI, June 13-15 2011.
• Fritzsch B, Fattal D. Age related hearing and vestibular loss and its consequences on brain function and healthy aging: assessing the problem to point toward a solution. Frontier in neuroscience, abstract, submitted summer 2014.

Areas of Research Interest and Current Projects

Current Projects
1) Subjective Visual vertical test in Emergency department dizzy patients.
2) Vestibular migraine versus migraine

Other Areas of Research Interest

• Objective gait analysis of balance and gait disorders
• Improved documentation and diagnosis of dizziness and nystagmus
• Gait analysis of normal pressure hydrocephalus
• Neurology Education: students, residents, non-neurologists

 Reviewer
 Books:

• Functional Neuroanatomy. Afifi and Bergman (Eds). New York: McGraw- Hill Publishing.
• Gait Disorders. Hausdorff J & Alexander N (Eds). Boca Raton: Taylor & Francis.

 Manuscripts:

• Journal Neuropsychiatry, Neuropsychology and Behavioral Neurology, the official journal of Behavioral Neurology, 1999-2007.
• Annals of Otolaryngology, 2005-2007.
• AAN Practice Guidelines 2012-2013:
• Reviews practice guideline manuscripts for AAN
• PLOS One manuscript reviewer June 2014-present