Best Vascular Neurology & Stroke Specialists in New York

Each neurologist here holds a faculty appointment at a New York academic medical center or practices through a hospital system that serves New York patients. Their published research has shaped how stroke and cerebrovascular disease are treated — measured by citation counts, trial participation, and guideline contributions. Several have been recognized by independent programs such as Castle Connolly Top Doctors or New York Magazine Top Doctors.

No specialist paid to appear here. This is not an exhaustive list.

Lenox Hill Hospital / SUNY Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn | Vascular Neurology

Steven R. Levine, M.D., is SUNY Distinguished Professor and Executive Vice Chairman of Neurology at SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University, with appointments at Lenox Hill Hospital and Maimonides Medical Center. He holds dual board certifications in neurology and vascular neurology. His career has centered on stroke prevention, stroke in younger adults, and blood-clotting disorders that raise stroke risk. He has been treating and studying stroke for more than three decades.

Why his research matters to patients: In 1999, Dr. Levine was lead investigator on one of the first papers introducing "telestroke" — the use of video technology to connect remote hospitals with stroke specialists for real-time assessment ⁴. That model is now standard infrastructure across the United States; patients in rural and underserved areas can get expert stroke evaluation without transferring to a major center. His 1995 WASID trial compared warfarin and aspirin in patients with symptomatic intracranial artery stenosis (narrowing of arteries inside the skull), a stroke risk factor more common in people of non-European descent ¹. He also led the first major study on whether antiphospholipid antibodies predict future stroke in patients who have already had an ischemic stroke — finding that routine screening was not warranted without other clinical indications ².

Atria Health Institute, New York | Vascular Neurology, Headache Medicine

David W. Dodick, M.D., is Chief Science and Medical Officer at Atria Health Institute in New York and Professor Emeritus at Mayo Clinic. He trained in neurology at the Mayo Clinic and has published more than 800 peer-reviewed works across vascular neurology, headache medicine, and cerebrovascular disease.

Why his research matters to patients: In 2007, Dr. Dodick was first author on the key narrative review of reversible cerebral vasoconstriction syndrome (RCVS) in the Annals of Internal Medicine ⁶. RCVS causes sudden thunderclap headache and multifocal narrowing of brain arteries. It can be mistaken for subarachnoid hemorrhage or aneurysm rupture, and it can trigger both ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke. Before this paper, RCVS was frequently misdiagnosed or grouped with vasculitis; the review defined its clinical picture and typical course of spontaneous resolution within weeks. He also co-authored a randomized trial of plasma exchange in acute central nervous system demyelinating disease that informs treatment when patients fail steroids ⁸.

Mount Sinai Hospital, New York | Vascular Neurology

Jesse Weinberger, M.D., is Professor of Neurology and Director of the Neurovascular Laboratory at Mount Sinai Hospital. His work centers on stroke mechanisms: the roles of cardiac disease, small vessel disease, and blood coagulation problems in determining why a stroke happened. Cause matters because treatment differs — a cardioembolic stroke is managed differently than a lacunar infarct.

Why his research matters to patients: A 1999 study Dr. Weinberger contributed to in Stroke was among the first to show that elevated anticardiolipin antibody titers are an independent stroke risk factor across Black, white, and Hispanic patients, conferring roughly a fourfold increased risk of ischemic stroke ¹³. The finding held regardless of antibody type or positivity level, and was confirmed in a multiethnic New York population rather than a predominantly white cohort. His earlier work on lacunar infarction questioned the assumption that lacunar strokes always result from small vessel disease alone — cardiac and carotid disease were common in this population too ¹². He also contributed to research identifying blood pressure thresholds during cardiac surgery that are associated with perioperative stroke ¹¹.

NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York | Vascular Neurology

Joshua Z. Willey, M.D., is Daniel Sciarra Associate Professor of Clinical Neurology at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, practicing at NewYork-Presbyterian. His research covers stroke prevention in urban and multiethnic populations, how physical activity affects stroke risk, and outcomes after stroke in patients with complex conditions such as heart failure requiring ventricular assist devices.

Why his research matters to patients: Dr. Willey has published two studies from the Northern Manhattan Study cohort on how physical activity shapes stroke outcomes at both ends of the event. His 2010 paper found that moderate to heavy leisure-time activity was associated with a 35% lower risk of ischemic stroke in men, after adjusting for other risk factors ¹⁷. A 2009 study showed that patients who were more physically active before their stroke had less severe neurological deficits and better two-year functional outcomes ¹⁹. He also contributed to research on hemorrhagic conversion after tPA — a serious complication — reviewing potential reversal agents that may help in that setting ¹⁶.

Our Lady Of Lourdes Memorial Hospital, Inc, Rochester, NY | Neurology

Charles Thornton, MD, is a Professor of Neurology practicing in Rochester, New York, with hospital affiliations across upstate New York. He has 223 peer-reviewed publications and an h-index of 76. His research centers on the molecular biology of myotonic dystrophy — a hereditary condition affecting muscle function — and has been cited widely in genetics and neurology journals.

Patients in the Rochester area looking for a neurologist with academic training and a substantial research background will find Dr. Thornton among the more credentialed practitioners in the region. His neuromuscular expertise can be relevant for patients whose stroke was complicated by or occurred alongside an underlying neuromuscular condition.

NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital / Weill Cornell Medical Center, New York | Vascular Neurology

Babak B. Navi, M.D., is Associate Professor of Neurology and Neuroscience at Weill Cornell Medicine and Division Chief of Stroke and Hospital Neurology at NewYork-Presbyterian. He also holds an appointment at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. He is Vice Chair for Neurology Hospital Services.

Why his research matters to patients: About 1 in 10 patients with ischemic stroke has active or recent cancer — a fact that most stroke workup protocols do not fully account for. Dr. Navi's 2018 review in the Annals of Neurology laid out the mechanisms, biomarkers, and treatment gaps specific to this patient group ²⁶. Cancer raises stroke risk through hypercoagulability, direct tumor invasion, and treatment toxicity, and standard anticoagulation protocols may not translate directly. His research covers both the mechanism question and the prevention question: how do you stop a second event in someone still on cancer therapy? He also contributed to early reports on posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome in COVID-19 patients ²⁷, a neurological complication that can mimic stroke and requires different treatment.

Vascular neurology is a board-certified subspecialty that requires fellowship training after general neurology residency. If you have had a stroke, TIA, or an unexplained event that looked like one, that extra training makes concrete differences in your care:

• They run the acute workup in a specific sequence. Which tests to order — echocardiogram, prolonged cardiac monitor, vessel imaging — and in what order, depends on likely stroke mechanism. A vascular neurologist is trained to identify the cause before you leave the hospital, because anticoagulation versus antiplatelet therapy is not a one-size answer.
• They match antithrombotic therapy to stroke subtype. Choosing the wrong agent means either undertreatment (recurrent stroke) or overtreatment (bleeding). The nuances of when to use warfarin, a DOAC, aspirin, or dual antiplatelet therapy get more specific with fellowship training.
• They recognize the less common causes. RCVS, cervical artery dissection, antiphospholipid syndrome, patent foramen ovale — each has a distinct treatment path. A general neurologist may refer these; a vascular neurologist sees them regularly.
• They manage post-stroke targets more aggressively. Blood pressure goals after stroke are tighter than standard hypertension guidelines. Lipid targets, cardiac monitoring duration, and rehabilitation timing are all areas where stroke-specific evidence differs from general practice.
• They have access to clinical trials. At the academic centers listed here, trials for new thrombectomy devices, anticoagulation protocols, and neuroprotective agents run through the stroke division.

• Is this hospital a certified comprehensive stroke center, and does that matter for what you are treating?
• What do you think caused my stroke, and how confident are you?
• What imaging or monitoring do I still need before we settle on a treatment plan?
• Should I be on anticoagulation or antiplatelet therapy, and why that specific agent?
• What blood pressure target are you aiming for, and how aggressively do we need to pursue it?
• Should I have a genetic or autoimmune workup, given my age or the location of the stroke?
• Are there clinical trials I would qualify for?
• How do I reach your team if I develop new symptoms before my next appointment?

New York's vascular neurology practices are concentrated at a few academic centers: Weill Cornell/NewYork-Presbyterian, Columbia/NewYork-Presbyterian, SUNY Downstate, and Mount Sinai. These are places where stroke units run around the clock and fellowship-trained specialists see patients alongside colleagues in neuroradiology, neurosurgery, and cardiology. The specialists on this page have contributed to published research on intracranial artery disease, antiphospholipid stroke, telestroke infrastructure, physical activity and stroke risk, stroke in cancer patients, and reversible vasoconstriction syndromes. If you have had a stroke or TIA, an evaluation with a vascular neurologist at one of these centers is the most direct way to get a second opinion that is grounded in current evidence.