Bringing specialized neurological care home to the HD community

Attending the 2026 Huntington’s Disease Society of America (HDSA) Convention in late June in Phoenix, Arizona, gave me the opportunity to meet professionals working to improve care for people affected by Huntington’s disease (HD). One of those professionals was Elizabeth Ferluga, MD, director of movement disorders at the telehealth care platform Synapticure.

Whenever I meet a healthcare provider who truly understands HD, I pay attention. Those of us living with the disease know how difficult it can be to find knowledgeable specialists. HD affects more than movement; it can also affect mood, cognition, speech, swallowing, balance, relationships, independence, and nearly every other part of daily life.

Ferluga has extensive experience in neurology and movement disorders. She previously served as director of Vanderbilt University’s HDSA Center of Excellence partner site in Chattanooga, Tennessee. She joined Synapticure in 2023 and became director of movement disorders the following year. In this role, she focuses on expanding specialized care for people living with movement disorders, including HD.

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Making care easier, faster, and more accessible

Synapticure is a national telemedicine clinic specializing in neurodegenerative conditions. The organization was founded by Brian Wallach and his wife, Sandra Abrevaya, after Wallach was diagnosed with ALS in 2017. Their experience navigating the healthcare system prompted them to create an organization focused on making neurological care easier, faster, and more accessible.

What stood out to me is Synapticure’s understanding that people living with neurological conditions often need more than an occasional doctor’s appointment. They need a coordinated team.

Synapticure offers neurology consultations, genetic counseling, speech therapy, behavioral health services, psychiatric guidance, and care coordination. Synapticure’s care teams may include physicians, nurse practitioners, physician assistants, psychologists, nurses, social workers, genetic counselors, speech therapists, medical assistants, and care navigators.

For someone living with HD, coordinated care can make a tremendous difference. Managing appointments, medications, referrals, insurance requirements, and therapy recommendations can feel like a full-time job. Synapticure’s care coordinators can help patients locate services within their insurance network, schedule laboratory work or imaging, arrange referrals, and follow through on care plans.

Synapticure can also work with a patient’s existing neurologist, primary care physician, local clinic, or HDSA Center of Excellence. Virtual care does not necessarily replace the relationships patients already have. The Synapticure team can share notes and communicate with local providers so everyone involved understands the treatment plan.

In my opinion, one of the organization’s greatest benefits is accessibility. Not everyone with HD lives near a center of excellence or movement disorder specialist. Some families travel hours for appointments. Travel can be physically and emotionally exhausting, especially for someone experiencing chorea, balance problems, fatigue, anxiety, swallowing difficulties, or cognitive changes. Virtual care brings specialists into the patient’s home.

During video appointments, providers can observe movement, speech, mood, behavior, and functional abilities. They may also gain valuable information by seeing how the patient functions in their everyday environment. This can help the care team recommend home-safety changes, medication adjustments, physical or occupational therapy, swallowing strategies, communication tools, and practical support for cognitive changes.

Synapticure’s care model also addresses many symptoms associated with HD. Neurologists may help manage chorea and balance concerns. Speech-language pathologists can evaluate communication and swallowing challenges. Behavioral health professionals can address anxiety, depression, irritability, and other emotional symptoms. The team can also recommend strategies for memory, routines, organization, and executive functioning.

Caregivers are included as well. HD affects the entire family, not only the person who carries the mutated HTT gene. Caregivers may experience stress, exhaustion, fear, isolation, and burnout. Synapticure offers care coordination, counseling, family therapy, caregiver education, respite coordination through certain programs, and access to a 24-hour support line.

Virtual appointments can also make it easier for relatives living in different cities or states to participate in the same appointment. This can be helpful when families need to discuss medication adherence, mood changes, safety concerns, or changes in daily functioning.

Synapticure provides virtual neurological care in all 50 states. A confirmed diagnosis is not always required. Adults experiencing unexplained neurological symptoms or seeking diagnostic clarification may contact the organization to determine whether its services are appropriate.

Telemedicine cannot replace every form of in-person care. Certain examinations, procedures, imaging studies, and treatments must still be completed locally. However, Synapticure can help coordinate those services when needed.

Meeting Ferluga reminded me that healthcare innovation is not limited to discovering new medications. It can also mean removing barriers, coordinating care, listening to families, and bringing knowledgeable providers directly into patients’ homes.

No patient or caregiver should have to educate every provider they meet about HD. We deserve professionals who understand the disease’s motor, cognitive, behavioral, emotional, and genetic complexities.

Organizations like Synapticure may provide another valuable source of specialized, coordinated, and compassionate care. Most importantly, its model sends a message every HD family needs to hear: You do not have to navigate this disease alone.

Note: Huntington’s Disease News is strictly a news and information website about the disease. It does not provide medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. This content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read on this website. The opinions expressed in this column are not those of Huntington’s Disease News or its parent company, Bionews, and are intended to spark discussion about issues pertaining to Huntington’s disease.