Erika Augustine, MD

Pediatric neurologist Erika Augustine is a nationally recognized expert in movement disorders, rare neurogenetic diseases and clinical trial development. She specializes in the diagnosis and care of children with movement disorders and rare neurological conditions, with particular expertise in neuronal ceroid lipofuscinoses (Batten disease), Tourette syndrome, hereditary ataxias and other neurodevelopmental disorders. Dr. Augustine established and directs the Kennedy Krieger Institute Batten Disease Center of Excellence, which provides multidisciplinary care to patients from across the United States and around the world.

Dr. Augustine earned her medical degree from the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, where she later completed a master’s degree in translational research. Her postgraduate training included pediatric and child neurology residency training at Children’s Hospital Boston, where she served as chief resident, followed by fellowships in pediatric movement disorders and experimental therapeutics at the University of Rochester Medical Center.

A clinician-scientist, Dr. Augustine’s research focuses on rare neurological diseases, movement disorders and innovative clinical trial methods that accelerate therapeutic development. She has played a leadership role in the development and conduct of clinical trials for Batten disease and other rare neurodegenerative disorders, helping establish novel outcome measures, trial readiness programs and frameworks for individualized therapies. She is the principal investigator for the national Batten Disease Clinical Research Consortium, co-leads the Kennedy Krieger Institute-Johns Hopkins University NeuroNEXT site, and co-directs the Clinical-Translational Core for the Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Research Center. Her work has contributed to advances in gene-targeted therapies, precision medicine and N-of-1 treatment approaches for rare diseases.

Dr. Augustine serves in a leadership role with the NIH-funded Child Neurologist Career Development Program, and founded its Research Scholars Program to support the development of the next generation of clinician-scientists. She also serves national and international advisory groups focused on rare diseases, gene-targeted therapies and neurological research.

She is an associate editor of Annals of Neurology, and she has authored more than 60 peer-reviewed publications, review articles and book chapters.

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• AMWA INSPIRE Award, American Medical Women’s Association (2025)
• Alumni Achievement Award, University of Rochester, New York (2024)
• Sidney Carter Award in Child Neurology, American Academy of Neurology (2023)
• White Lotus Leadership Award in Public Health, NC Project LEAD, Inc. (2022)
• Hugo Moser Research Award, Medical Staff Excellence Award, Kennedy Krieger Institute, Baltimore, Maryland (2021)

• American Academy of Neurology
• Child Neurology Society