Sun editorial:

Excellence in the making

Soon-to-open brain clinic in Las Vegas already making invaluable contributions

Tuesday, June 2, 2009 | 2:05 a.m.

Three seminars that have drawn experts from across the country have provided insight into the value of the newly built Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health, which will begin seeing patients next month.

The Ruvo Center, which anchors the Medical Office District of downtown Las Vegas’ Symphony Park, will provide not only the latest research and treatment methods for brain disorders, such as Alzheimer’s and Lou Gehrig’s disease, but also information that patients’ family members and friends will need.

The Ruvo Center has twice hosted its Leon Thal Symposium on the Prevention of Dementia. Thal, who was killed in a 2007 plane crash, was a medical doctor and renowned Alzheimer’s expert on the staff of the University of California, San Diego.

The symposiums attracted world-class researchers who discussed the latest and most effective ways of treating brain disorders. An equally distinguished gathering occurred last week at the invitation of the Lou Ruvo Center. Two dozen experts from across the country discussed how best to meet the numerous, but often neglected, special needs that patients, their personal caregivers and their family members encounter following the diagnosis of a brain disorder.

As Las Vegas Sun reporter Marshall Allen reported in Monday’s paper, such reform-minded symposiums result in what the medical field calls “best practices” guidelines, which may help shape congressional legislation and may result in unified treatment strategies among doctors and social workers.

With all of this happening even before patients are admitted, it is intriguing to think of the coming contributions the center will make.