Session Description: This session will provide a practical overview of how to navigate pain medicine fellowship training while adapting to the evolving landscape of neuromodulation and interventional pain management. Topics will include optimizing clinical and procedural experience, balancing research and education, and understanding career pathways in academia, private practice, and industry. Speakers will also discuss mentorship, networking, and how fellowship training is adapting to advancements in neuromodulation technology. The session will conclude with a moderated Q&A, offering attendees the opportunity to engage directly with program directors and recent graduates.
Session Description: The objective of this session is to explore and implement effective strategies for onboarding and supporting the wellness of advanced practice providers (APPs). It aims to provide practical solutions and resources that enhance the onboarding process, foster professional growth, and promote overall well-being for APPs, ensuring their success and long-term engagement in the healthcare field. The concurrent session will also focus on the integration of wellness initiatives to prevent burnout, improve job satisfaction, and promote work-life balance for Advanced Practice Providers.
Session Description: This breakfast session will explore the key clinical, technical, and patient-specific factors that guide the decision-making process in selecting among various spinal cord stimulation (SCS) platforms. Experts will discuss comparative attributes of current technologies, patient selection criteria, and strategies for aligning device capabilities with individualized treatment goals. We will discuss how to navigate the complex landscape of:
o Multiple waveforms & stimulation frequencies
o Closed-loop vs. open-loop systems
o Battery types & device programming options
o Anatomical considerations and MRI compatibility
Real-world case examples and practical pearls will be emphasized to equip attendees with actionable insights for optimizing therapy selection.
Session Description: Deep brain stimulation (DBS) is evolving beyond static anatomical targeting toward precision neuromodulation. This shift has been guided through simultaneous advancements in computational modeling, signal processing, and targeting. This session brings together leading neurosurgeons and neuroengineering experts to discuss the latest advancements in precision neuromodulation from preoperative planning to stimulation optimization to recording to closed-loop DBS.
Attendees will gain insights into:
State-of-the-art computational tools for predicting DBS network effects
Multimodal strategies combining anatomy, tractography, electrophysiology, and machine learning
Clinical applications of model-driven DBS for individualized therapy
Future directions for closed-loop and adaptive stimulation
By integrating expertise in neurosurgery, computational neuroscience, and neuromodulation, this session will provide actionable insights for clinicians, researchers, and engineers working to advance the field of DBS.
Session Description: It is challenging to start and maintain an independent medical practice. Details on an initial steps, financial needs and practice development will be provided. Making business sense in incorporating and developing clinical research in medical practice and steps to achieve that will be described. Furthermore, guidelines on how to provide leadership in turbulent times will be provided. Finally, steps on how to sell your practice, especially to private equity would be detailed.
Session Description: Explore the clinical impact of closed loop neuromodulation across multiple therapies as this long awaited technology begins to move into the clinical mainstream.
Session Description: The field of brain-computer interfaces (BCIs) is revolutionizing neuroscience and neuromodulation, unlocking unprecedented possibilities for restoring communication, movement, and other functions in patients with neurological impairments. This plenary session, Decoding the Mind: Breakthroughs and Ethics in BCI, will showcase transformative advances in BCI technology, from reenabling speech to controlling robotic limbs, while grappling with profound ethical questions these innovations raise.
This session will begin with a brief overview of how we are rapidly overcoming technical hurdles related to electrode design, hardware creation, and computational barriers in creating advanced BCI interfaces. Eddie Chang, a neurosurgeon and worldwide leader in speech BCI, will discuss his groundbreaking work unlocking the ability to communicate in patients with devastating neurological conditions affecting language. Richard Andersen, a neuroscientist and pioneer in developing novel BCI interfaces, will discuss his work in decoding movement intentions to restore functional independence in patients with spinal cord injury or stroke. Dr. Nita Farahany, a renowned neuroethicist and author of The Battle for Your Brain: Defending the Right to Think Freely in the Age of Neurotechnology, will deliver the keynote address, exploring the ethical imperatives of BCI, including privacy, autonomy, and cognitive liberty in clinical and societal contexts. Her talk will challenge attendees to consider how to balance rapid technological advancements with the protection of individual rights in an era of neural interfaces. The session will conclude with an engaging panel discussion with all speakers.
Session Description: : This session explores cutting-edge advances in stimulation waveform design across three major neuromodulation modalities: peripheral nerve stimulation, spinal cord stimulation, and deep brain stimulation. As the field evolves beyond conventional rectangular pulses, novel temporal patterns and waveform shapes are demonstrating enhanced therapeutic efficacy, improved selectivity, and reduced energy consumption. Leading researchers will present their work on innovative approaches including amplitude-modulated high-frequency stimulation for desynchronized yet controllable neural firing in peripheral nerves, computational modeling for optimal temporal pattern design in deep brain stimulation, and dynamic pulse patterns in spinal cord stimulation that expand paresthesia coverage and sensation quality. The session will examine how these waveform innovations fundamentally alter neural recruitment patterns, potentially enabling more precise targeting of specific neural populations while avoiding unwanted activation. Presentations will cover computational modeling approaches that predict neural responses to complex waveforms, preclinical evidence demonstrating physiological effects, and emerging clinical applications. By bringing together experts from different stimulation modalities, this session aims to identify common principles and challenges in waveform design that span different therapeutic applications, fostering cross-pollination of ideas that could accelerate innovation in this rapidly evolving field.
Session Description: In our aging population, more and more patients have degenerative scoliosis. Surgery often can be a large undertaking though sometimes only one portion of the spine can be operated on with meaningful benefit. In other cases neuromodulation is selected. There are newer options offered by pain management.
Session Description: This session will explore the use of peripheral nerve stimulation (PNS) in real-world clinical settings, with an emphasis on discussing variances in practice patterns and utilization.
Using a group discussion format, our panel will discuss and provide key perspectives on selecting nerve targets (including utility of history and physical exams, nerve blocks, and nerve conduction testing), choosing appropriate patients (for indications ranging from osteoarthritis to headache disorders to peripheral neuralgias), and considering device parameters (such as stimulation waveforms, temporary vs. permanent devices, and use of trial-to-permanent paradigms).
This session will follow the highly engaging Pardon the Interruption format, in which panelists will leverage evolving literature to take contrary positions, generating thoughtful discussion while acknowledging the emerging nature of research in this space and its limitations.
This session is directed to trainees and practicing physicians where a multi-disciplinary panel of physicians with various expert insights will discuss various facets of PNS treatments.
Session Description: As the field of neuromodulation continues to mature, it is undergoing a bold transformation, including expansion well beyond its traditional pain indications to address some of medicine’s most complex and under-treated conditions. This plenary session, Breaking Boundaries in Indications for Neuromodulation, will showcase cutting-edge science, patient-centered innovation, and trailblazing clinical applications that are reshaping the boundaries of what neuromodulation can achieve.
From restoring ambulation in spinal cord injury to managing pediatric abdominal pain, urinary retention, and fecal incontinence, this session will feature pioneering researchers and clinician-scientists leading the charge in these emerging indications. In particular, this plenary will highlight the lived experience of Peter Grahn, a scientist and patient with spinal cord injury, whose research and personal journey underscore the vital link between patient perspective and translational breakthroughs.
By convening thought leaders across pediatric pain, urology, and SCI neurorestoration, this session aims to foster cross-disciplinary discussion, spark new collaborations, and inspire attendees to push the frontiers of neuromodulation forward. The session will also end in several NANS award presentations.
Session Description: This session will highlight the emerging applications of spinal cord stimulation (SCS) in areas that are often underexplored in conventional discussions. Experts will present the latest research and clinical developments in the use of SCS for respiratory control, sensory restoration, cardiovascular regulation, and bladder control, applications that are gaining traction but remain less commonly addressed.
Attendees will gain a deeper understanding of how SCS is being leveraged to address complex medical challenges across diverse physiological systems. This session aims to foster new perspectives and stimulate further research on the untapped potential of SCS in these novel applications, offering valuable insights for clinicians, researchers, and professionals interested in advancing the field of neuromodulation.
Explore and discuss the Abstract Paper Posters featured at the meeting. During this reception, five Paper Poster Abstracts and five Early Career Paper Poster Abstracts will be recognized as award recipients, marked with a distinctive ribbon.
Sponsored by Abbott, Boston Scientific, Medtronic, Nevro, a Globus Medical Company, Saluda Medical, and SPR Therapeutics. This reception, hosted by the NANS Women in Neuromodulation (WIN) committee, will feature a conversation among leaders in neuromodulation. This is the second part of a discussion that first took place at NANS 2025. Join us in hearing firsthand from those at various stages of their careers and professional journey to hear how they overcame, led the way, and continue to impact the field. Guests/speakers: Ellen Air, MD, PhD; Rosa Garcia, MD; Robin Mata, DO, MPH; Stephanie Vanterpool, MD, MBA, Melissa Murphy, MD Show your support for WIN’s mission to educate, inspire and encourage women working in the field of neuromodulation by attending this reception. Hear from WIN leadership and learn about new mentorship initiatives.