Phillip Pearl, MD

Phillip L. Pearl, MD, is the William G. Lennox Chair and Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School and Director of Epilepsy and Clinical Neurophysiology at Boston Children’s Hospital. Dr. Pearl attended Johns Hopkins University, the Peabody Conservatory of Music, and the University of Maryland School of Medicine. He completed his residency at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston and his fellowship at Boston Children’s Hospital. Pearl is also a faculty member of the Music and Health Institute at Berklee College of Music in Boston. He produced two musical CDs, the first of which debuted at Georgetown’s famous Blues Alley in Washington, D.C.

Pearl’s major research interest is inherited metabolic epilepsies with specific focus on disorders of GABA metabolism. He has authored over 220 peer-reviewed articles and over 150 chapters and reviews. He has also written or edited five books, including one translated into Chinese and another into Japanese. Dr. Pearl is past president of the Child Neurology Society as well as the Professors & Educators of Child Neurology. He was awarded the 2023 Hower Award, the Society’s highest honor.

Focus areas: Epilepsy, inherited metabolic disorders, the neurologic basis of creativity