Naila Makhani, MD, MPH

Naila Makhani, MD, MPH, created Yale Medicine’s Pediatric Multiple Sclerosis Program to meet the challenges of diagnosing central nervous system diseases in children, who account for up to 10 percent of all cases. She also treats children and adolescents who suffer from central nervous system inflammatory disorders. Dr. Makhani expects new insights into MS to improve the outlook for pediatric patients. “We are starting to learn why MS occurs in children and how they are different from adults with this disease,” she says.

An assistant professor of pediatrics and of neurology at Yale School of Medicine, Dr. Makhani focuses her research on biomarkers for pediatric MS, and is a site investigator for a clinical trial sponsored by Novartis, a Switzerland-based pharmaceutical company. “This is an exciting time for both advances in clinical care and research,” she says. “We have many new treatments for MS that can improve symptoms and long-term outcomes. The number of medications available to children with MS is ever-increasing.”

An advocate for the eradication of MS, Dr. Makhani works closely with the Connecticut chapter of the National MS Society, and is a recipient of a Race to Erase MS Junior Investigator Award.