Sebastian Pollandt, MD, and Thomas Bleck, MD, MCCM

The Guest Editors of this issue of Seminars in Neurology are Drs. Sebastian Pollandt and Thomas Bleck.

Dr. Pollandt is an Assistant Professor of Neurology at Rush Medical College/Rush University. He received his MD from Humboldt Universität zu Berlin (Charité). He then came to the University of Cincinnati, where he did his internship in Internal Medicine, Residency in Neurology, and Fellowship in Neurocritical Care. He subsequently came to Rush University, where he is a neurointensivist with a special interest in critical care EEG and seizures. He is board-certified in both epilepsy and neurocritical care, and is a rising leader in the field. He currently serves on the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology Epilepsy Article Assessment Continuing Certification Pilot Committee, as well as the American Clinical Neurophysiology Society Resident/Fellow Education Committee. He is well published in the fields of neurocritical care and epilepsy, with a particular focus on seizures in the critical care setting. I have greatly enjoyed working with Dr. Pollandt on this issue, and have found him to be supremely knowledgeable as well as a gifted educator.

Dr. Bleck is a Professor of Neurology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. He was formerly at Rush Medical College, from which he retired as Professor Emeritus of Neurological Sciences, Neurosurgery, Internal Medicine, and Anesthesiology. He was the founding President of the Neurocritical Care Society, and is seen as one of the true “giants” in the field. From 1992 to 2015, he served as the neuroscience section editor for the journal Critical Care Medicine, and is currently an associate editor for that journal. He serves on numerous editorial boards as well, including Annals of Intensive Care and Epilepsy Currents. In 2015, the American College of Critical Care Medicine and the Society of Critical Care Medicine (SCCM) elected him to the highest honor, Master of Critical Care Medicine (MCCM). In 2018, he received the lifetime achievement award of the SCCM. He is an elected fellow of 11 professional societies, and serves on the Board of Directors of the American Neurological Association. Dr. Bleck is known as an expert in a great many things in neurocritical care, including subarachnoid hemorrhage, intracerebral hemorrhage, traumatic brain injury, status epilepticus, neuroinfectious disease, neuromuscular respiratory failure, and intensive care management of potential organ donors. He is extremely well published in the field, and is seen as an international authority. He is simply one of our most esteemed and revered leaders in the field, and is loved and respected by all who know him.

We greatly appreciate the efforts of Drs. Pollandt and Bleck, as well as all of the contributing authors, for their wonderful contributions to this issue of Seminars on Seizures and Status Epilepticus. The issue is thorough yet concise, with something for every practicing neurologist. The authors in this issue have provided very informative and insightful articles with up-to-date, clearly written reviews on a variety of important acute and critical care seizure/status epilepticus topics, including guidance on the care of both adults and children. We hope you enjoy this wonderful issue!

Publication History

Article published online:
24 November 2020