Dr. Rafael Llinas serves as the Director of Neurology at the Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center. His clinical interests include acute stroke treatments, neurovascular imaging and migraine as related to cerebrovascular disease. He also serves as the associate director of the neurology residency program. He was instrumental in establishing the Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center Stroke Center. In 2005, in recognition of the Stroke Centers organizational efforts in stroke care, the institution was granted certification as a Primary Stroke Center by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations. Dr. Llinas primary areas of research interests include diffusion-perfusion imaging of stroke, intravenous and intra-arterial thrombolysis for stroke, education of physicians and nurses in stroke identification and stroke care, stroke units and stroke centers. Dr. Rafael Llinas received his medical degree from the New York University School of Medicine. He completed a medical internship at the Boston City Hospital and was a neurology resident in the Harvard-Longwood neurology training program. Following his residency, he was a stroke and cerebrovascular disease fellow for two years at Beth Israel Hospital, Harvard University. Dr. Llinas is rated as an Advanced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Familial Hemiplegic Migraine. His top areas of expertise are Stroke, Cerebral Amyloid Angiopathy, Siderosis, Thrombectomy, and Gastrostomy.

Samina Anwar is a Neurologist in Hagerstown, Maryland. Dr. Anwar is rated as a Distinguished provider by MediFind in the treatment of Familial Hemiplegic Migraine. Her top areas of expertise are Sporadic Hemiplegic Migraine, Familial Hemiplegic Migraine, Epilepsy with Myoclonic-Atonic Seizures, and West Syndrome. Dr. Anwar is currently accepting new patients.

Arens Taga is a neurologist specializing in neuromuscular diseases, with a particular focus on amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and other motor neuron diseases. His clinical work aims to improve the quality of care for patients with ALS through biomarker-based, precision medicine approaches that refine disease stratification and facilitate more targeted and efficient enrollment in clinical trials. As a clinician-scientist, Dr. Taga uses patient-derived induced pluripotent stem cells to model ALS, uncover novel disease mechanisms and identify therapeutic targets that are translatable to clinical trials. In recognition of his work in ALS, Dr. Taga was awarded the 2025 Richard Olney Clinician Scientist Development Award, which honors early-career physician-scientists dedicated to advancing ALS research. Dr. Taga earned his medical degree from the School of Medicine and Surgery at the University of Parma, Italy, where he also completed his neurology residency. He subsequently trained at The Johns Hopkins University, completing a postdoctoral research fellowship in the neuromuscular division, an internal medicine internship, a neurology residency and a neuromuscular clinical fellowship. Dr. Taga is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Familial Hemiplegic Migraine. His top areas of expertise are 15q11.2 Microdeletion, Primary Lateral Sclerosis, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS or Lou Gehrig's Disease), and Cluster Headache.

Dr. Barañano earned her M.D. and Ph.D. degrees from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, where she also completed residencies in pediatrics and neurology, along with a fellowship in neurogenetics at the Kennedy Krieger Institute. Dr. Barañano is an Associate Professor of Clinical Neurology. She specializes in the diagnosis and management of rare neurogenetic disorders. She has a particular interest in the genetic control and function of the cerebellum and expertise in childhood-onset and inherited ataxias. She is a member of the multidisciplinary Fetal Management group and is available for prenatal consultations. Dr. Barañano's research includes collaborative efforts with the Johns Hopkins Department of Genetic Medicine and the Division of Neurogenetics at the Kennedy Krieger Institute. Dr. Baranano is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Familial Hemiplegic Migraine. Her top areas of expertise are Hypotonia, Ohdo Syndrome, Say-Barber-Biesecker-Young-Simpson Variant, Focal or Multifocal Malformations in Neuronal Migration, and Hereditary Ataxia.

Dr. David Hale is a fellowship-trained neurologist specializing in neuro-visual and vestibular disorders. He diagnoses and treats patients with symptoms including dizziness, vertigo, oscillopsia, double vision and imbalance. Dr. Hale’s patient evaluations include vestibular testing. Dr. Hale earned his medical degree at Pennsylvania State University and completed a neurology residency at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He remained at Johns Hopkins for fellowship training in vestibular and ocular-motor oto-neurology. Dr. Hale is interested in resident and fellow medical education, specifically the development of ways to make knowledge of subspecialist neurologists more accessible to those in training. He serves as the co-director of the Vestibular and Ocular-Motor Oto-Neurology Clinical Fellowship at Johns Hopkins. Dr. Hale is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Familial Hemiplegic Migraine. His top areas of expertise are Vertigo, Chronic Polyradiculoneuritis, Miller-Fisher Syndrome, and Guillain-Barre Syndrome.

Luke Kao is a Neurologist in Columbia, Maryland. Dr. Kao is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Familial Hemiplegic Migraine. His top areas of expertise are Distal Median Nerve Dysfunction, Common Peroneal Nerve Dysfunction, Morton Neuroma, and Neuralgia.

Lawrence Whicker is a Neurologist in Greenbelt, Maryland. Dr. Whicker is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Familial Hemiplegic Migraine. His top areas of expertise are Autosomal Dominant Partial Epilepsy with Auditory Features, Memory Loss, Seizures, and Peripheral Neuropathy.

Essa Hariri is a primary care provider, practicing in Cardiologist in Baltimore, Maryland. Dr. Hariri is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Familial Hemiplegic Migraine. His top areas of expertise are Coronary Heart Disease, Tricuspid Regurgitation, Calcinosis, Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement (TAVR), and Aortic Valve Replacement.

Dr. Mona Bahouth is a stroke neurologist and researcher specializing in patient-centered approaches to enhancing early stroke recovery. Dr. Bahouth earned her MSN at Syracuse University, her MD at the University of Maryland, and her PhD from the Johns Hopkins University. She completed her residency in neurology at The Johns Hopkins Hospital, followed by a cerebrovascular fellowship at that institution. Her work focuses on innovative solutions to optimizing systems of care in the early stroke recovery period. Dr. Bahouth is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Familial Hemiplegic Migraine. Her top areas of expertise are Stroke, Cerebral Arteriovenous Malformation, Transient Ischemic Attack (TIA), Thrombectomy, and Gastrostomy.

Shahid Rafiq is a Neurologist in Frederick, Maryland. Dr. Rafiq is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Familial Hemiplegic Migraine. His top areas of expertise are Transient Ischemic Attack (TIA), Seizures, Stroke, Migraine, and Thrombectomy.

Alexander Ramos is a Neurologist in Bethesda, Maryland. Dr. Ramos is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Familial Hemiplegic Migraine. His top areas of expertise are Memory Loss, Seizures, Autosomal Dominant Partial Epilepsy with Auditory Features, and Epilepsy.

Gena Romanow is a Neurologist in Columbia, Maryland. Dr. Romanow is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Familial Hemiplegic Migraine. Her top areas of expertise are Periventricular Leukomalacia, Migraine, Memory Loss, and Seizures.

Syed Shaukat is a Neurologist in Bel Air, Maryland. Dr. Shaukat is rated as an Advanced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Familial Hemiplegic Migraine. His top areas of expertise are Memory Loss, Transient Ischemic Attack (TIA), Landau-Kleffner Syndrome, and Autosomal Dominant Partial Epilepsy with Auditory Features. Dr. Shaukat is currently accepting new patients.

Rebecca Gottesman is a Neurologist in Baltimore, Maryland. Dr. Gottesman is rated as an Advanced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Familial Hemiplegic Migraine. Her top areas of expertise are Stroke, Dementia, Vascular Dementia, Gastrostomy, and Thrombectomy.

Stephan Kurylas is a primary care provider, practicing in Family Medicine in Crofton, Maryland. Dr. Kurylas is rated as an Advanced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Familial Hemiplegic Migraine. His top areas of expertise are Idiopathic Pulmonary Hemosiderosis, Hemosiderosis, Familial Hemiplegic Migraine, and Sporadic Hemiplegic Migraine. Dr. Kurylas is currently accepting new patients.

Ernest Uzicanin is a primary care provider, practicing in Family Medicine in Hagerstown, Maryland. Dr. Uzicanin is rated as an Advanced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Familial Hemiplegic Migraine. His top areas of expertise are Sporadic Hemiplegic Migraine, Familial Hemiplegic Migraine, Mycoplasma Pneumonia, Maturity Onset Diabetes of the Young, and Ureteroscopy.

Getinet Kassa is a Neurologist in La Plata, Maryland. Dr. Kassa is rated as an Advanced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Familial Hemiplegic Migraine. His top areas of expertise are Epilepsy, Seizures, Opsoclonus-Myoclonus Syndrome, and Memory Loss. Dr. Kassa is currently accepting new patients.

Muneshwar Tiwari is a Neurosurgery specialist and a Neurologist in Salisbury, Maryland. Dr. Tiwari is rated as an Advanced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Familial Hemiplegic Migraine. His top areas of expertise are Generalized Tonic-Clonic Seizure, Epilepsy, Seizures, and Memory Loss. Dr. Tiwari is currently accepting new patients.

David Wholey is a primary care provider, practicing in Internal Medicine in Bel Air, Maryland. Dr. Wholey is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Familial Hemiplegic Migraine. His top areas of expertise are Hospital-Acquired Pneumonia, Atypical Pneumonia, Pneumonia, Endoscopy, and Hip Replacement.

Michael Downing is a primary care provider, practicing in Internal Medicine in Glen Burnie, Maryland. Dr. Downing is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Familial Hemiplegic Migraine. His top areas of expertise are Migraine with Brainstem Aura, Familial Hemiplegic Migraine, High Cholesterol, and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD). Dr. Downing is currently accepting new patients.