Wright State alum, faculty member Adam Deardorff leads new ALS clinic at Miami Valley Hospital South

Ten years ago, the global Ice Bucket Challenge brought amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS, to the forefront of the public consciousness.

Thanks to donor support and the vision of Wright State University graduate Adam Deardorff, M.D./Ph.D., a new ALS clinic launched by Premier Health’s Clinical Neuroscience Institute began seeing patients last fall at Miami Valley Hospital South.

The first-of-its-kind facility in the Dayton area has ushered in a new era of integrated care close to home for ALS patients.

“This is the only multidisciplinary clinic in Dayton focusing on neuromuscular disease,” said Deardorff, director of the Neuromuscular Center at the Clinical Neuroscience Institute and clinic medical director. “We are slowly growing our patient volume and, most importantly, bringing much-needed services to our community — services that support not only ALS patients but also their caregivers and their loved ones.”

Funding from ALS United Ohio was essential for establishing the ALS clinic, which aims to improve care for ALS patients by offering a range of services in a supportive, family-friendly environment. In addition to enhancing patient quality of life, studies have shown that regularly attending an ALS clinic can extend life by a year or more.

“I am proud to say that ALS patients and their loved ones will now have a home in the Miami Valley and at Premier Health,” Deardorff said. “And I am exceedingly grateful to ALS United Ohio for their generous investment in time and funding to make this dream a reality.”

Thanks to the vision of Wright State University M.D./Ph.D. grad and faculty member Adam Deardorff, Premier Health’s Clinical Neuroscience Institute has launched a new ALS clinic at Miami Valley Hospital South. (Photos courtesy of Premier Health)

ALS is commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease for the New York Yankees star who died of the disease. It is a progressive and fatal neurodegenerative disease that affects nerve cells in the brain and spine that are responsible for generating movement. Approximately 7,000 new cases are diagnosed each year in the United States.

The idea for the clinic originated after Deardorff made an ALS diagnosis as a neurology resident. He realized the best care for the patient was to refer them to a multidisciplinary ALS clinic. However, the nearest clinics were in Columbus or Cincinnati.

Research opportunities, community-based medical education a draw

Deardorff earned his master’s degree, medical degree and Ph.D. from Wright State. The Cincinnati native also completed his neurology residency at Wright State’s Boonshoft School of Medicine and a fellowship in neuromuscular medicine from Ohio State University.

“Our busy inpatient and outpatient services exposed me to a wide variety of neurologic conditions,” he said. “From ‘bread-and-butter’ cases to rare diseases, I got to manage them all as a resident.”

Deardorff landed at Wright State because the university provides wonderful opportunities to study both clinical and translational neurosciences in which he was deeply interested.

“I would absolutely not be where I am today without the opportunities and training I received at Wright State,” Deardorff said. “I chose and continue to choose Wright State for its kind and supportive faculty, exceptional neuroscience research and community-based medical education.”

He said the opportunity to practice medicine in inpatient and outpatient settings and serve a diverse patient population is a unique experience for medical trainees.

“BSOM’s focus on service-learning and health equity education is invaluable for those interested in addressing health care disparities,” he said.

He is now a fully affiliated faculty member with the Boonshoft School of Medicine and its Department of Clinical Neurosciences and Department of Neuroscience, Cell Biology and Physiology.

As a physician, Deardorff serves as medical director of the ALS clinic and performs electrodiagnostic testing for a range of complex neuromuscular diseases with Premier Health. At the same time, he said he is motivated to find new treatments for neuromuscular diseases through laboratory-based research in the Neuroscience Engineering Collaboration Building at Wright State University.

Additionally, Deardorff remains involved in student and resident education at the Boonshoft School of Medicine, where he teaches principles of neuromuscular disease and electrodiagnostic testing.

Physicians and researchers from Wright State and Premier Health formed the Wright State University and Premier Health Neuroscience Institute in 2010, which was key in establishing the clinic.

The Clinical Neuroscience Institute represents a collaborative effort between Wright State and Premier Health, guided by a 30-year affiliation agreement aimed at advancing academic medicine, enhancing community health and fostering economic growth in the region.

“The ALS clinic has been an absolute success since the launch in late 2024,” said Bryan Ludwig, M.D., chair of the Clinical Neuroscience Institute at Premier Health and endowed chair of the Department of Clinical Neurosciences at the Boonshoft School of Medicine. “Dr. Deardorff continues to expand the resources offered in the clinic to allow him to offer the latest therapies and improve the quality of life for the ALS population. Research trials are forthcoming and will only enhance the options available to our ALS population.”

Deardorff attributes his current successes to his education at Wright State.

“Wright State took me from a college graduate interested in neuroscience and transformed me into a highly trained physician-scientist building independent research and clinical programs,” he said. “This has only been possible because of the outstanding resources and faculty at Wright State University.”

He credits the Department of Clinical Neurosciences for its support of the ALS clinic and the Department of Neuroscience, Cell Biology and Physiology for supporting his scientific work.

“I am only able to do both because of the close collaboration between these departments — a testament to the potential of the new Wright State-Premier Health enhanced affiliation,” Deardorff said.