Biography
Alcy R. Torres, MD, FAAP, received his MD degree at Universidad Central del Ecuador in 1990, pediatric residency at Nicklaus Children’s Hospital, Neurology residency at the Longwood Neurology Training Program, Harvard Medical School (Mass General Brigham Hospitals, Beth Israel Hospital, Deaconess Medical Center, Veterans Hospital, Coumadin Clinic at Brockton Hospital and the Spinal Cord Unit and Outpatient Clinic at the West Roxbury Hospital), followed by a Pediatric Neurology Fellowship at Children’s Hospital Boston, Harvard Medical School where he remained on staff for 13 years before becoming the Director of the Pediatric Brain Injury Program at Boston Medical Center.
He is an Associate Professor of Pediatrics and Neurology at Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine. As an educator he has received many Awards including the Joseph Martina Dean’s Award at Harvard Medical School only two years after graduation. Since 2006, Boston Magazine has listed him as Top Child Neurologist. He is the author of over seventy peer-reviewed publications in PubMed and an additional eighty about the diagnosis and treatments of pediatric and neurological conditions in particular pediatric traumatic brain injury. Dr. Torres is a very well-established physician scientist. Throughout his career he has conducted research, received many grants and serves as Director of the Global Health Program and the Spanish Bilingual Programs.
Dr. Torres' extensive publications demonstrate his leadership in pediatric neurology, specifically concerning traumatic brain injury (TBI) and concussion. His work spans a comprehensive range of TBI-related topics, from the definition, classification, epidemiology, and prognosis of concussions to the management, prevention, and assessment of them in children. Dr. Torres has explored factors affecting patient follow-up, return-to-school protocols, and sports-related concussion management, particularly within soccer and professional events. Furthermore, his research addresses disparities in testing and the implementation of concussion regulations in schools, alongside the long-term effects of early exposure to contact sports. This breadth and depth of research solidify Dr. Torres' standing as a world leader in pediatric TBI.
He is very involved in national and international organizations including the Child Neurology Society, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), Brain Injury Association, the International Child Neurology Association (ICNA) and the Iberoamerican Academy of Pediatric Neurology (AINP).
He has founded and volunteered for the Ecuadorian Association of New England since 2004. He Has served on a variety of local, national, and international committees. He is a Board Member of the Wellesley United Soccer Club, member of the Wellesley Club, the American Academy of Pediatrics, Section of Global Health, Neurology Section, ICATCH program, and the Child Neurology Society, International Affairs Committee. Dr. Torres is a member of the Editorial Board of the most prestigious journals of his specialty: The Journal of Pediatric Neurology, Child Neurology and many more and is the Editor of the Newsletter of the section of Global Health (SOGH/AAP).
He has been invited to lecture uncountable times locally, nationally, and internationally in courses, conferences, congresses, grand rounds and in many occassions Key Note speeches consolidating his position as a leader in Pediatric Brain Injury, Global Heath, and Humanism in medical practice.
OTHER SIGNIFICANT CONTRIBUTIONS TO SCIENCE
Torres A, Newton SA, Crompton B, et al. CSF 5-Methyltetrahydrofolate Serial Monitoring to Guide Treatment of Congenital Folate Malabsorption Due to Proton-Coupled Folate Transporter (PCFT) Deficiency. JIMD Rep. 2015; 24:91-96. doi:10.1007/8904_2015_445
Torres, A, Whitney, J, Gonzalez-Heydrich, J. Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder in pediatric patients with epilepsy: Review of pharmacological treatment. Epilepsy Behav 2008; 12(2):217-33. PMID: 18065271.
Torres, A, Shaikh, Z, Chavez, W, Maldonado, J, Brain MRI in Children with Mild Traumatic Brain Injury and Persistent Symptoms in both Sports and non-Sports related Concussion, Cureus, 11(1): e3937. doi:10.7759/cureus.3937
Alosco, ML, Kasimis, AB, Stamm, JM, Chua, AS, Baugh, CM, Daneshvar, DH, Robbins, CA, Mariani,M, Hayden J, Conneely, S, Au, R, Torres, A, McClean, MD, McKee, AC, Cantu, RC, Mez, J, Nowinski ,CJ, Martin, BM, Chaisson, CE, Tripodis, Y, Stern, RA, Age of first exposure to American football and long-term neuropsychiatric and cognitive outcomes. Transl Psychiatry. 2017 Sep 19; 7(9): e1236. doi: 10.1038/tp.2017.197
Torres, A., Brownstein, C, Tembulkar, S, Graber, K, Genetti, C, Kleiman, R, Sweadner, K, Liu, K, Mavrosd, C, Smedemark-Margulies, N, Agrwal, P, Shi, J, Beggs, A, D’Angelo, E, Hope, S, Carroll, D, Berry, G, Gonzalez-Heindrich, ATP1A3 de novo and compound heterozygous NLRP3 mutations in a child with Autism Spectrum Disorder, fatigue/sleep-wake cycle/behavioral disorder, Muckle-Wells syndrome and psychotic-like symptoms responsive to antipsychotic treatment, Molecular Genetics and Metabolism Reports, 2017, YMGMR-00278;No. of pages:6;4C
Torres A, Andrade EO, Christoph CL, Weinberger M. Congenital absence of the superior mesenteric artery. J Pediatr Surg. 1999;34(12):1858-1860. doi:10.1016/s0022-3468(99)90332-9
Current projects with IRB approval at Boston University
Lumbar puncture in patients with Chiari malformation type I
Attitudes And Practice Styles of Humanism Amongst Pediatric Neurologists
To determine the prevalence of objective versus subjective clearance post-concussion in pediatric patients
Concussion Referrals in Pediatrics and Adolescents in the Urban Safety-Net Hospital
Additional Projects
Traumatic Brain Injury: Referrals in a Pediatric Concussion Program in a safety net Hospital
The influence of premorbid conditions in the validity of the SCAT6
Telemedicine to monitor improvement in patients with Pediatric Concussion