Dr. Robert Meyer PHD
After completing his bachelor's degree, Dr. Meyer applied to two
schools with tremendous Neuroscience Ph.D. programs, and was accepted to
both: The University of Mississippi (Ole Miss) and Northern Illinois
University (NIU). He was recruited, as an undergraduate, by the
Department of Neuroscience faculty at both schools as well as several
others, with which Dr. Meyer shared specific neuroscience interests with
key faculty members. Dr. Meyer chose NIU and, in 1986, was awarded a
full scholarship (plus complete stipends) into their doctoral program.
Out of more than 400 applicants in 1986, only three were selected into
the Neuroscience Ph.D. program.
As an undergraduate, Dr. Meyer received the Sigma Xi research award
(rarely awarded to undergraduates) and then received another one for his
research at NIU. While at NIU, he was accepted into the International
Society for Neuroscience Association and began presenting his (and his
colleagues) research on specific neurodegenerative diseases at meetings
held all over the world. Dr. Meyer completed his Masters degree in 1990,
and his Ph.D. in 1993.
Dr. Meyer then applied for, and was awarded, a postdoctoral fellowship
at the University of Michigan School of Medicine, in the Department of
Neurology. During his three years there, he entered into, and helped
develop, an experimental neurosurgical program involving first both cats
and monkeys. The goal of this research was to elucidate the basal
forebrain neuronal mechanisms of learning and memory as they applied to
neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and
Huntington's diseases. Dr. Meyer was awarded several federal government
grants during this period. He was also invited as a Keynote Speaker,
annually, in the Department of Neurology and gave numerous other
presentations.
In 1996, Dr. Meyer applied for, and received, a coveted Intramural
Research Fellowship Award at the National Institutes of Health, National
Institute on Aging on the campus of Johns Hopkins University. Dr. Meyer
was responsible for helping to run a Neurodegenerative Diseases program
within the Molecular Physiology and Genetics Section of the Neuroscience
Core. During his time at NIH, Dr. Meyer authored numerous articles in
peer-reviewed journals. His work focused primarily on the
acetylcholinergic/butyrlcholinergic mechanisms of Alzheimer's disease,
but it was his work with the glutamatergic hypothesis of Alzheimer's
disease that won him the esteemed NIH Fellows Award for Research
Excellence in 1998. While at NIH, he helped develop three different
drugs (currently in clinical trials) for Alzheimer's disease.
In 2001, Dr. Meyer, with his expertise in autonomic nervous system
dysfunction, temporarily left NIH in order to lead the American
Institute for Hyperhidrosis, the latter a medical condition that he was
not only very familiar with, but also had suffered from throughout his
adult life. After his own successful surgery, he decided to take a leave
from NIH in order to help others who suffered from this disabling
condition. Now, the Director of the American Institute for Hyperhidrosis,
Dr. Meyer oversees the Institute's workings and spends hours both
consulting with prospective patients as well as physicians in an effort
to educate such individuals on hyperhidrosis and its effective
treatments.
Dr. Meyer is also researching the etiology of this condition (with
fellow colleagues) and is the lead investigator of a study tentatively
aimed to be published within two years, with a book to follow.
In his work with the American Institute for Hyperhidrosis, Dr. Meyer is
responsible for leading the scientific direction of the Institute, as
well as advising the Institute's surgeons of new and developing
treatment trends as they pertain to hyperhidrosis. The bulk of Dr.
Meyer's work involves consulting with prospective patients from all over
the world, and advising the Institute's surgeons as to their reasonable
candidacy for ETS surgery and the method of treatment. Dr. Meyer spends
approximately 90% of his time consulting with patients both before and
after surgery, with the remainder being devoted to educating the medical
community as to this condition as well as researching the condition from
a neurophysiological perspective.
Dr. Meyer is one of the most respected authorities in the field of
hyperhidrosis and has written invited articles on the topic. He's been
featured in the New Yorker magazine as an expert on the topic, and has
been interviewed by Hugh Downs of 20/20 as well as Dateline NBC. He has
traveled extensively to participate in the training of ETS surgeons, as
well as to attend conferences specifically devoted to hyperhidrosis.
Since 1998, Dr. Meyer has, without question, established himself as a
respected expert in the field of autonomic nervous system dysfunction;
particularly hyperhidrosis, and its underlying mechanisms and treatment
modalities.
Note: This synopsis of Dr. Meyer was co-authored by Dr. Goran Claes of
Sweden; himself one of the leading pioneers of the ETS surgical
procedure for hyperhidrosis.
