Naoum Issa, MD, PhD, FAES is a neurologist specializing in the treatment of epilepsy. He works closely with patients to control their seizures and is passionate about offering advanced options for epilepsy that is resistant to anti-seizure medications.
Dr. Issa is the section chief of epilepsy at the University of Chicago. His research focuses on detecting and diagnosing neurologic disorders using painless, electrophysiological techniques. He and his co-workers are developing ways to identify seizure footprints in deep brain structures without having to implant electrodes. Through collaborations with neuromuscular specialists, he is applying some of the same techniques used for seizure diagnosis to detect other neurological disorders like ALS.
Dr. Issa has published over 90 scientific papers and book chapters and is a reviewer for multiple neurology and neuroscience journals. His work has appeared in journals such as Nature Communications, Neurology, Epilepsia, Journal of Neuroscience, Nature Protocols, and Neuron.
Dr. Issa has taught extensively at the Pritzker School of Medicine and is a Fellow of the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine Academy of Distinguished Medical Educators. He has been recognized for excellence in teaching with the L.D.H. Wood Preclerkship Teaching Award, the Arnold P. Gold Foundation Humanism and Excellence in Teaching Award, an A.B. Baker Teacher Recognition Award from the American Academy of Neurology, and he was a faculty honoree of the Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society for clinical teaching.
University of Chicago
Chicago
- Epilepsy (CNP) Fellowship
2016
University of Chicago
Chicago
- Neurology Residency
2015
University of Chicago
NorthShore
- Internship (Medicine)
2012
University of California
San Francisco
- Postdoctoral Fellowship, Physiology
2001
University of Texas -- Southwestern
Dallas
MD - Medicine
1997
University of Texas -- Southwestern
Dallas
PhD - Neuroscience
1997
Southern Methodist University
Dallas
BS, BA - Chemistry, Biology
1989
Insula Injury and State Change Predict Outcome in Cooled Neonatal Hypoxic Ischemic Encephalopathy Patients: A Pilot Study.
Insula Injury and State Change Predict Outcome in Cooled Neonatal Hypoxic Ischemic Encephalopathy Patients: A Pilot Study. Pediatr Neurol. 2026 Oct; 183:189-197.
PMID: 42607447
Intermuscular coherence as a candidate biomarker for primary lateral sclerosis.
Intermuscular coherence as a candidate biomarker for primary lateral sclerosis. Amyotroph Lateral Scler Frontotemporal Degener. 2026 Jul 13; 1-12.
PMID: 42439089
Neonatal Seizure Detection Using Combined aEEG and Compressed Spectral Array Features: A Machine-Learning Proof-of-Concept Study.
Neonatal Seizure Detection Using Combined aEEG and Compressed Spectral Array Features: A Machine-Learning Proof-of-Concept Study. medRxiv. 2026 Jul 10.
PMID: 42465892
Validation of aEEG-CSA Neonatal Seizure Detection Algorithm on Hypothermia Treated Infants with HIE.
Validation of aEEG-CSA Neonatal Seizure Detection Algorithm on Hypothermia Treated Infants with HIE. medRxiv. 2026 Jul 06.
PMID: 42465904
Intermuscular coherence from muscle pairs in the leg as a biomarker for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.
Intermuscular coherence from muscle pairs in the leg as a biomarker for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Clin Neurophysiol. 2025 Nov; 179:2110986.
PMID: 40896928
Clinical Implications of Small Sharp Spikes in Mesial Temporal Lobe Epilepsy: Controversies and Opportunities.
Clinical Implications of Small Sharp Spikes in Mesial Temporal Lobe Epilepsy: Controversies and Opportunities. J Clin Neurophysiol. 2025 Nov 01; 42(7):616-625.
PMID: 40302021
Closed-loop control of theta oscillations enhances human hippocampal network connectivity.
Closed-loop control of theta oscillations enhances human hippocampal network connectivity. Nat Commun. 2025 Apr 30; 16(1):4061.
PMID: 40307237
A Systematic Review of EEG and MRI Features for Predicting Long-Term Neurological Outcomes in Cooled Neonates With Hypoxic-Ischemic Encephalopathy (HIE).
A Systematic Review of EEG and MRI Features for Predicting Long-Term Neurological Outcomes in Cooled Neonates With Hypoxic-Ischemic Encephalopathy (HIE). Cureus. 2024 Oct; 16(10):e71431.
PMID: 39539899
Significance of small sharp spikes in mesial temporal lobe epilepsy.
Significance of small sharp spikes in mesial temporal lobe epilepsy. Clin Neurophysiol. 2024 Sep; 165:180-181.
PMID: 39047670
Intermuscular coherence as an early biomarker for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: The protocol for a prospective, multicenter study.
Intermuscular coherence as an early biomarker for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: The protocol for a prospective, multicenter study. PLoS One. 2024; 19(5):e0303053.
PMID: 38776297
Fellow of the Academy of Distinguished Medical Edu
University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine
2021
A.B. Baker Teacher Recognition Award
American Academy of Neurology
2021
L.D.H. Wood Preclerkship Teaching Award – Pritzker School of Medicine
University of Chicago
2019
Faculty Honoree; Alpha Omega Alpha – Beta Chapter, Class of 2019
University of Chicago
2018
American Epilepsy Association EpiPORT Fellowship
American Epilepsy Society
2015 - 2016
Arnold P. Gold Foundation Humanism and Excellence in Teaching Award
University of Chicago
2015
Alfred P. Sloan Research Fellow
University of Chicago
2003 - 2005