Melissa Anne Elafros, MD, PhD

Dr. Elafros graduated Phi Beta Kappa and with honors from Michigan State University in Human Biology and Spanish before completing a Masters of Arts in Bioethics. She then received her MD degree and PhD in Epidemiology from Michigan State University during which time she lived in Zambia for two years to complete her doctoral dissertation which examined the medical and psychosocial burden of HIV and epilepsy among adults in the capital city Lusaka. Dr. Elafros then completed a neurology residency at Johns Hopkins Hospitals, during which time she received an R25 from the National Institutes of Health which allowed her to return to Zambia to examine barriers to care for patients with meningitis. She then joined the University of Michigan for neuromuscular fellowship in 2020.

Dr. Elafros provides longitudinal patient care through the outpatient neuromuscular clinic at the University of Michigan.

University of Michigan Health participates with most health insurance plans.

Dr. Elafros' research focuses on improving access to quality neurologic care for resource-limited populations in the U.S. and in low-middle income countries. This includes epidemiologic, health services, and clinical research aimed at determining risk factors for neurologic morbidity and mortality in these settings. Since 2009, she has worked in Zambia examining barriers to care for neuroinfectious diseases, like meningitis, and people with epilepsy. In 2021, Dr. Elafros launched a study examining the prevalence, risk factors, and understanding of peripheral neuropathy in Flint with collaborators at Hurley Medical Center.