Joseph H Friedman

Joseph H Friedman is Professor of Neurology at Brown University School of Medicine, specializing in movement disorders with particular focus on Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease, and Machado-Joseph disease. He has been actively involved in clinical research since moving to Rhode Island in 1982, serving on the executive committee of the Parkinson Study Group and editorial boards of prominent journals including Parkinsonism and Related Disorders and Movement Disorders. For 20 years, he served as editor-in-chief of the Rhode Island Medical Journal and has been a peer reviewer for over 90 international journals.

Dr. Friedman's research interests center on behavioral aspects of Parkinson's disease, particularly drug-induced psychosis and fatigue. His work also encompasses Huntington's disease, Machado-Joseph disease (spinocerebellar ataxia type 3), episodic ataxia type 2, and drug-induced movement disorders. He has conducted extensive research on atypical antipsychotic drugs for treating drug-induced psychosis in Parkinson's disease since 1984, including multi-center trials as principal investigator. His research portfolio includes collaborations on cholinesterase inhibitors for cognitive function in non-demented Parkinson's patients and studies on diminished smell in Parkinson's patients with weight loss.

His publications reveal consistent focus on movement disorders, with particular emphasis on Parkinson's disease complications, drug interactions, and treatment strategies. The article trends show progression from basic research on movement disorders to increasingly sophisticated clinical trials and investigations of non-motor symptoms in Parkinson's disease, reflecting the evolution of the field toward comprehensive patient care.

• Fellowship in the American Academy of Neurology (1998)
• Fellowship in the American Neurological Association
• "Teacher of the Year" elected by Medical Housestaff (1982-1983)
• Rhode Island Parkinson's Support Association Distinguished Service Award (1991)
• "Point of Light" award from President George Bush (1992)
• Dean's Teaching Excellence Award, Brown University Medical School (2004)
• World Federation of Neurology Teaching Fellowship in Zambia (2004)

Dr. Friedman supervises Neurology residents rotating through the Movement Disorders Center and teaches medical students in NS 262. He also mentors Geriatric Internal Medicine fellows who rotate through the Parkinson's disease and movement disorders clinic. As director of Neurology Grand Rounds at Brown since their inception, he has played a significant role in academic medicine education. His research has been funded by NIH and pharmaceutical companies, with particular focus on multi-center NIH-funded studies evaluating genetics in Parkinson's disease and clinical trials of neuroprotective agents.