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Erin Longbrake, MD/PhD

Associate Professor of Neurology
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Additional Titles

Director, Clinical Research, Neuroimmunology

Director, Fellowship Program, Multiple Sclerosis & Other Inflammatory Brain Disease

About

Titles

Associate Professor of Neurology

Director, Clinical Research, Neuroimmunology; Director, Fellowship Program, Multiple Sclerosis & Other Inflammatory Brain Disease

Biography

Dr. Longbrake is an associate professor in the Department of Neurology. She graduated summa cum laude from Cedarville University in 1998, then earned combined MD/PhD degrees at the Ohio State University. Her dissertation research focused on the neuro-immune response to traumatic spinal cord injuries. Dr. Longbrake then completed her neurology residency at Washington University in St. Louis. From 2013-2016, Dr. Longbrake was a Sylvia Lawry fellow of the National MS Society. During her fellowship, she was involved in numerous MS clinical trials and focused her research on better understanding the effects of modern MS disease modifying drugs. Dr. Longbrake is a member of the Alpha Omega Alpha Society and the American Academy of Neurology. She joined the Yale faculty in 2016. At Yale, she is Director of Clinical Research in the Neuroimmunology division, designing and implementing numerous clinical trials and other human research studies. She is also the Program Director for the Neuroimmunology Fellowship at Yale.

Dr. Longbrake's research focuses on working towards personalizing management strategies for patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) and detecting the disease at the earliest physiologic signs of damage, before clinical symptoms develop. MS is a heterogeneous disease which at times causes minimal disability and at other times is neurologically devastating within years, despite appropriate treatment. By the time the first symptoms emerge, the disease has already caused permanent neurologic damage. No predictive algorithms or biomarkers currently exist to detect pre-clinical disease or to stratify risk and guide treatment decisions at the time of diagnosis. Dr. Longbrake's current work focuses on early-stage MS and identifying the earliest immunologic and radiologic changes associated with disease. One area of particular interest is the microbiome/metabolome and how it relates to the immune system and MS clinical course. Dr. Longbrake has extensive experience in designing/implementing clinical trials, both investigator-initiated and industry-sponsored.

Appointments

Education & Training

Multiple Sclerosis Fellow
Washington University (2016)
MS
Washington University, Clinical Investigation (2016)
Resident
Washington University (2013)
Intern
Washington University (2010)
MD/PhD
The Ohio State University (2009)
BA
Cedarville University, Biology (2001)

Research

Overview

Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)

Autoimmune Diseases of the Nervous System; Multiple Sclerosis; Neuromyelitis Optica

Research at a Glance

Yale Co-Authors

Frequent collaborators of Erin Longbrake's published research.

Publications

Featured Publications

2024

Clinical Trials

Current Trials

Academic Achievements & Community Involvement

  • activity

    Annals of Neurology

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    Journal of Neuroimmunology

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    Neurology: Neuroimmunology & Neuroinflammation

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    ACTRIMS

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    American Academy of Neurology

Clinical Care

Overview

Erin Longbrake, MD, PhD, is a neurologist who specializes in neuro-immune diseases, including multiple sclerosis, neuromyelitis optica, and autoimmune encephalitis.

Dr. Longbrake earned combined MD/PhD degrees at Ohio State University, followed by a neurology residency at Washington University. In 2016, she joined the Yale faculty.

Dr. Longbrake’s interest in neuro-immunology stems from the rapid rate at which the field is changing. “When I was first starting to train, we were told that the immune system didn’t impact the brain, and now we know that couldn’t be further from the truth,” she says. She enjoys being a part of a field that is constantly developing new treatments and discovering new science.

As a neuro-immunologist, Dr. Longbrake develops long-term relationships with her patients. “We take care of people throughout the course of their disease, which means I have patients who first started coming to me in their late teens or early 20s and I continue to see them throughout their whole life,” she says. As a result, Dr. Longbrake gets to know her patients’ families and takes them into account when developing a treatment plan.

Dr. Longbrake’s approach to treating multiple sclerosis is to use the most aggressive treatments as soon as the diagnosis is confirmed. “We want to prevent future brain damage and keep the brain as intact as possible,” she says.

Dr. Longbrake also educates her patients about the nature of the disease. “At the beginning of the diagnosis, it’s particularly important to tell patients that it’s not the doomsday idea that this is going to put you in a wheelchair by the time you’re 30. We have good treatments,” she says.

In addition to treating patients, Dr. Longbrake conducts research on the biological mechanisms behind multiple sclerosis. She is an assistant professor of neurology at Yale School of Medicine.

Clinical Specialties

Neurology; Multiple Sclerosis

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