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Gender:

Male

Primary Hospital Affiliation:

Rhode Island Hospital

Also Associated With:

The Miriam Hospital

Specialties:

Psychiatry

Neuropsychiatry

Neurology

Education:

Medical School: Medical College of Georgia, School of Medicine

Residency: Butler Hospital, Providence, RI

Fellowship: Rhode Island Hospital, Providence, RI

Medical School: Brown University, Alpert Medical School

Area of Expertise:

Neuropsychiatry

Background

W. Curt LaFrance, MD is the director of the division of neuropsychiatry at Rhode Island Hospital and assistant professor (research) of psychiatry and human behavior and clinical neurosciences (neurology) at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University.

Board-certified in both in neurology and psychiatry, LaFrance examines the overlap between brain and behavior in his clinic and in research. LaFrance’s area of expertise is in the neuropsychiatric aspects of epilepsy, with a particular research focus on treatment and diagnosis of patients with non-epileptic seizures.

The neuropsychiatry division at Rhode Island Hospital was established to evaluate and treat individuals with brain-behavior disorders. Working in conjunction with several of Rhode Island Hospital’s programs, the division collaborates with the Comprehensive Epilepsy Program, the division of neuropsychology, and the Mood Disorders Program. The division of neuropsychiatry is affiliated with Brown University's departments of psychiatry and neurology, and conducts studies sponsored by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), the American Epilepsy Society, the Epilepsy Foundation, other private foundations and the departments of psychiatry and neurology at Rhode Island Hospital.

LaFrance is currently the principal investigator (PI) on two studies of non-epileptic seizures: one to determine the effectiveness of psychotherapy for patients diagnosed with non-epileptic seizures, and another studying medication treatment for patients experiencing non-epileptic seizures. He is PI on a study with the NINDS intramural program examining the genetics of conversion disorders, and he is co-PI on a study assessing the cognitive aspects of depression and epilepsy.

LaFrance received a bachelor’s degree cum laude from Wake Forest University, and his medical degree from the Medical College of Georgia. He completed his combined residency in neurology and psychiatry, and his research fellowship at the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University and Rhode Island Hospital. He obtained his master of public health degree from Brown University. He is the recipient of many awards and recognitions, including the American Neuropsychiatric Association’s Career Development Award. He has published in numerous journals and is a member of the Committee on Research of the American Neuropsychiatric Association and the editorial board of Epilepsy and Behavior.