Dr Parth Lal, a DM trainee at the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), has received the 2025 paediatric neurology trainee award for his research on infantile epileptic spasms syndrome.
He is the first Indian to bag this award, which recognises outstanding original research authored by a trainee in paediatric neurology. Dr Lal received the distinction at the 2026 Child Neurology Society meeting in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, on Friday.
His research, titled the “NitRIS trial”, published in the journal Pediatric Neurology, provided proof-of-concept evidence for the potential effectiveness of nitrazepam in children with infantile epileptic spasms syndrome, one of the most severe and difficult-to-treat forms of childhood epilepsy, associated with high morbidity and long-term neurodevelopmental challenges.