Sunil Pradhan

Dr Sunil Pradhan (born 25 June 1957) is an Indian neurologist, medical researcher and writer, known for the invention of two electrophysiological techniques. He has also described five medical signs, of which one related to Duchenne muscular dystrophy is known as Pradhan Sign, and the others associated with facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD) and similar neuro diseases. The Government of India awarded him the Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian award, in 2014 for his contributions to the field of neuroscience.

Biography Dr. Pradhan's extensive clinical research in the area of muscular dystrophy has led to the discovery of five new clinical signs, each indicative of a specific type of the disease. Sanjay Gandhi Post Graduate Institute of Medical Sciences circular. and worked there till 2007, in various capacities. The next move was to the Institute of Human Behaviour and Allied Sciences (IHBAS) as the Head of the Department of Neurology and works there now as the Medical Superintendent since 2008.

Pradhan brought about many changes at the IHBAS. He was instrumental in updating and elaborating the signage, displays and boards and constructing patient shelters. The electrophysiology Lab was started where he arranged for the setting up of modern equipment like 32 Channels Polysomnography, Nicolet 32 Channels digital Portable Electroencephalography and Electromyography.

Pradhan lives in Lucknow, along the Rae Bareilly Road, in Uttar Pradesh. He discovered that the DMD patients tend to suffer visible enlargement of the infraspinatus and deltoid muscles, which when contracted shows partial wastage. Pradhan clarified that this revealed a valley between the two mounts, visible behind the outstretched shoulders and called it valley sign. The sign was evident in patients with little calf muscle enlargement and visibly positive in DMD cases with 90% sensitivity. The sign was later renamed as Pradhan Sign, on recommendation from the American Academy of Pediatrics. the second of the signs Pradhan discovered related to facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy(FSHD).

Shank sign: The third sign, Shank Sign, is related to myotonic dystrophy type 1 (DM-1). When patients suffering from the disease abduct their arms to 90 degrees, a tapering of the upper arm musculature is observed when examined from behind, due to wasting of the biceps, triceps and forearm muscles. This gives a visual resemblance of the shanks of an animal. This sign had an occurrence on 78% of the patients examined by Dr. Pradhan. The test returned positive on 10 of the 15 patients examined by Dr. Pradhan. The occurrence is observed on 66% of the patients.

Electrophysiological techniques Pradhan is credited with two new techniques related to electrophysiology. The technique is reported to have been included in a text book published from the US, calling it as Pradhan Method.

Pradhan was successful in elucidating the mechanisms of neurophysiological F‑response generation in healthy and diseased bodies and discovered a phenomenon, F-response multiplicity, a symptom of the lower motor neuron disorder. Pradhan asserted, by way of his findings, loss of early components and scattering of late components are responsible for the different F-response parameters in the lower neuron disorders. This was ratified by Japanese scientists with the help of an animal model of the disease using rats. His studies revealed that patients are likely to suffer from chronic epileptogenesis with poor seizure outcome if gliosis is present around their lesions. He averred that the patients with neurocysticercosis are prone to developing perilesional gliosis, may develop drug resistance during anti‑epileptic drug (AED) therapy and may suffer seizures if the drug is stopped. He has also explained tickling seizures and micturition induced reflex epilepsy, a disease described by Dr. Hirayama in 1959. In 1977, he published a report explaining the features of diagnostic magnetic resonance imaging. Explanation of the sheathing of the retinal vessels in Tuberous Sclerosis. Description of MRI and other features of acute endosulphan poisoning and its similarities with the MRI features of Huntington's disease and suggested neurotoxic mechanism by blocking mitochondrial energy metabolism. Description of a new method for extracting lipid from muscle tissues for NMR studies. Description of micturition induced reflex epilepsy. Classification of acute transverse myelitis.

Awards and recognitions The Government of India, in 2014, honoured Dr. Sunil Pradhan, by awarding him the civilian honour of Padma Shri. Amrut Modi Unichem Award - Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR) - 2007

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Pradhan has published several research papers in peer-reviewed journals, both national and international in circulation. A random selection of his articles features:

The National Center for Biotechnology Information of the United States National Library of Medicine has published the abstracts of over 750 papers published by Dr. Pradhan.