Dr. Robert Wityk focuses on new approaches to acute stroke diagnosis and treatment using neuro-imaging techniques, such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) diffusion and perfusion-weighted techniques. His ongoing studies focus on blood pressure manipulation to transiently elevate blood pressure, improving blood flow to critical areas of the brain. An NIH-funded pilot study of induced hypertension in acute ischemic stroke patients is being conducted by Dr. Wityk at Johns Hopkins Hospital. The acute stroke team is also involved in a variety of stroke clinical trials, as part of a multidisciplinary collaboration between cerebrovascular neurology and neurosurgery, interventional neuroradiology and the Neuroscience Critical Care Unit (NCCU) at Johns Hopkins.

Dr. Wityks other area of interest is the problem of stroke in young patients. Appropriate use of diagnostic testing, such as cerebral angiography, transesophageal echocardiography and contrast-enhanced transcranial Doppler, may reveal sources of stroke in some patients. Carotid and vertebral artery dissection and cerebral vasculitis are uncommon conditions which are important causes of stroke in younger patients. Dr. Wityk has participated in the Baltimore-Washington Stroke in the Young study and has ongoing clinical research studies with pediatric neurology. Unusual conditions, such as moyamoya disease or intracranial stenosis, in young adults are evaluated with various MRI techniques and can be treated with a variety of medical, neurosurgical or neuro-interventional techniques.

Dr. Robert Wityk obtained his undergraduate degree and masters degree in molecular biophysics and biochemistry from Yale University, graduating summa cum laude with distinction in the major. He received his medical degree from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. He went on to complete his internship and residency in internal medicine at the University of California San Diego Medical Center. From there, he went on to complete a residency in neurology at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School and a cerebrovascular fellowship at the New England Medical Center in Boston. He returned to his hometown of Baltimore in 1993 to join the staff at Sinai Hospital with a faculty appointment in the Departments of Neurology and Medicine at The Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.

At Johns Hopkins, Dr. Wityk established an Acute Stroke Team and protocols to treat eligible patients with IV tPA. With colleagues in the Cerebrovascular Center, he helped establish the Brain Rescue Unit, a specialized inpatient unit for the care of stroke patients, and developed clinical and research protocols for the treatment of a variety of stroke-related conditions. In recognition of the Divisions organizational efforts in stroke care, the institution was granted certification in 2005 as a Primary Stroke Center by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations.