Skip to main content
Explore URMC

menu

Gary J. Myers, M.D.

Contact Information

Phone Numbers

Appointment: (585) 275-2808

Fax: (585) 275-3683

URMFGA member of the University of Rochester Medical Faculty Group

groupAn Accountable Health Partner

assignmentAccepting New Patients

Locations

200 East River Rd
Rochester, NY 14623-1212

Pediatric Neurology: (585) 275-2808

Golisano Childrens' Hospital
601 Elmwood Ave
 AC-6
Rochester, NY 14642-0001

Pediatric Neurology: (585) 275-2808

Faculty Appointments

Patient Care Settings

Neurology, Pediatrics

Biography

Dr. Myers graduated from Medical School at the University of Kansas in1963 and subsequently trained in Pediatrics and Pediatric Neurology at the Boston Children's Hospital. He is board certified in Pediatrics, Pediatric Neurology and Neonatology. He is currently a professor of Neurology, Pediatrics, and Environmental Medicine at the University of Rochester Medical Center in Rochester, New York where he teaches and has an active child neurology practice.

Professional Background

Dr. Myers graduated from the U of Kansas with a BA in Biology in 1957 and from the U of Kansas School of Medicine in 1963. He completed his Pediatric residencey at the Childrens's Hospital Medical Center in Boston. Following military service at Fort Bragg, NC, he returned to Children's or a residency in Child Neurology. He started his academic career at the U of R in 1971 and in 1978 moved to the U of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) where he rose to a tenured Professorship. At UAB he practiced Pediatric Neurology, attended in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and served as director of the UAB Sparks Center training professionals inthe care of children with disabilities. In 1990 he returned to the U of R as a Professor in Neurology, Pediatrics, and Environmental Medicine. In addition to practicing and teaching Child Neurology throughout his career, he has been active in research on the relationship of environmental toxicants to children's development. He has worked with the Seychelles Child Development Study for over 30 years studying the relationship of fish consumption with its nutritional benefits and exposure to methylmercury to children's development.

Research

Dr. Myers primary research interest is environmental toxins, specifically mercury. He started studying methyl mercury exposure following the 1971-2 epidemic in Iraq and has worked with the Rochester mercury research group since then. In 1986 the Rochester mercury research group began a prospective longitudinal study of mercury exposure from fish consumption in the Seychelles Islands called the Seychelles Child Development Study (SCDS). Seychellois consume fish with 10-12 meals each week and the fish mercury content there is similar to that of oceanic fish sold in the US. This prospective, longitudinal, observational epidemiological study has been ongoing for over 25 years. Dr. Myers is also the follow up site PI for the Neonatal Research Network studying the outcomes of extremely premature infants.

Credentials

Education

1957
BA | University of Kansas
Biology

1963
MD | Univ Kansas Coll Hlth Sci/Hosp
Medicine

Post-doctoral Training & Residency

09/01/1964 - 06/30/1971
Residency in Neurology at Boston Children's Hospital

09/01/1963 - 06/30/1964
Internship in Pediatrics at Boston Children's Hospital

Publications

Journal Articles

5/22/2019
Zareba W, Thurston SW, Zareba G, Couderc JP, Evans K, Xia J, Watson GE, Strain JJ, McSorley E, Yeates A, Mulhern M, Shamlaye CF, Bovet P, van Wijngaarden E, Davidson PW, Myers GJ. "Prenatal and recent methylmercury exposure and heart rate variability in young adults: the Seychelles Child Development Study." Neurotoxicology and teratology.. 2019 May 22; :106810. Epub 2019 May 22.

1/17/2019
Xu Y, Wahlberg K, Love TM, Watson GE, Yeates AJ, Mulhern MS, McSorley EM, Strain JJ, Davidson PW, Shamlaye CF, Rand MD, Myers GJ, van Wijngaarden E, Broberg K. "Associations of blood mercury and fatty acid concentrations with blood mitochondrial DNA copy number in the Seychelles Child Development Nutrition Study." Environment international.. 2019 Jan 17; 124:278-283. Epub 2019 Jan 17.

11/14/2018
Irwin JL, Yeates AJ, Mulhern MS, McSorley EM, Strain JJ, Watson GE, Grzesik K, Thurston SW, Love TM, Smith TH, Mruzek DW, Shamlaye CF, Monthy C, Myers GJ, Davidson PW, van Wijngaarden E. "Maternal Gestational Immune Response and Autism Spectrum Disorder Phenotypes at 7 Years of Age in the Seychelles Child Development Study." Molecular neurobiology.. 2018 Nov 14; Epub 2018 Nov 14.

Books & Chapters

2013
Chapter Title: The Impact of Prenatal Exposure to Methylmercury and Maternal Nutritional Status on Child Development: Findings from the Seychelles Child Development Study
Book Title: Current Topics in Neuroticity
Author List: Edwin van Wijngaarden Gary J Myers Conrad F Shamlaye JJ Strain Philip W Davidson
Edited By: Sandra Ceccatelli and Michael Aschner
Published By: Springer: New York 2013

2007
Chapter Title: Neurodevelopmental effects of maternal nutrients status and exposure to methyl mercury from eating fish during pregnancy: Evidence from the Seychelles Child Development Study
Book Title: Children with Disabilities, 6th edition
Author List: Davidson PW, Strain JJ, Myers GJ, Shamlaye CF, Thurston S, Bonham MP, Duffy EM, Wallace JMW, Watson G, Clarkson TW
Edited By: Chen Wang & William Slikker
Published By: Paul M Brooks Publishing Co 2007 in Baltimore, Maryland

2006
Chapter Title: Developmental Disabilities Following Prenatal Exposure to Methyl Mercury from Maternal Fish Consumption: A Review of the Evidence
Book Title: International Review of Research in Mental Retardation
Author List: Gary J Myers Philip W Davidson Conrad F Shamlaye
Edited By: Philip W Davidson, Gary J Myers, Bernard Weiss
Published By: Elsevier: Amsterdam 2006

VIEW ALL PUBLICATIONS

Videos

play_circle_filled

Dr. Gary Myers: The Importance of Eating Fish