Alzheimer’s and Memory Loss Clinical Studies

Leading our research center in The Villages, Florida, Dr. Jeffrey Norton has more than 20 years of experience in anesthesiology and pain management and has served as Principal Investigator on more than 40 clinical trials across all phases of research.  His extensive clinical trials experience includes research studies in Alzheimer’s disease, dementia with Lewy bodies, Parkinson’s disease, nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), lumbosacral radicular pain, diabetic peripheral neuropathic pain, fibromyalgia, and osteoarthritis.  Dr. Norton graduated from Hahnemann University School of Medicine and completed both his residency in anesthesiology and his fellowship in pain management at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston.  He is a highly respected expert in anesthesiology and pain management and has served as an Instructor in Anesthesia at Harvard Medical School.  After more than 20 years of clinical practice, Dr. Norton focused his career on clinical research and has since spent numerous years performing clinical research, looking to slow or stop the progression of neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease.  Today, Dr. Norton continues to devote his full-time efforts to advancing medicine.

Leading our research center in Orlando, Florida, Dr. Edgardo Rivera has served as Principal Investigator or Sub-Investigator on more than 40 clinical trials across all phases of research and in numerous therapeutic areas including Alzheimer’s disease, dementia with Lewy bodies, Parkinson’s disease, cervical dystonia, nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), lumbosacral radicular pain, diabetic peripheral neuropathic pain, osteoarthritis, and obesity.  Dr. Rivera is particularly experienced as Principal Investigator in clinical trials in Alzheimer’s disease.  Dr. Rivera is board certified in Emergency Medicine, is a Fellow of the American College of Emergency Physicians (FACEP), and serves as an Oral Board Examiner for the American Board of Emergency Medicine (ABEM).  He has published 29 papers on a variety of topics spanning emergency medicine, mass casualty response, systems performance, spinal injuries, cardiac arrest, and acute tachyarrhythmias.  Dr. Rivera was an Associate Professor at Michigan State University and served as Assistant Residency Director, teaching resident physicians and medical students for many years.  He also served on the editorial board of 2 prominent peer-reviewed national scientific journals for 15 years, regularly reviewing research manuscripts submitted for publication.  He has been an invited lecturer and speaker at multiple local, regional, national, and international educational and scientific meetings, from local hospital systems to large gatherings of physicians at the National ACEP Scientific Assembly.  Dr. Rivera served in the U.S. Air Force for 8 years and has over 30 years of clinical practice experience.  He is fluent in Spanish and English.

Dr. Stephen Miller has over 15 years of diverse clinical and healthcare policy experience and has served as an investigator on more than 20 clinical trials in neurodegenerative disease, gastrointestinal disease, and pain management at Charter Research. After graduating from University of South Florida College of Medicine, he trained in general and cardiac surgery at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston and completed a research fellowship in metastatic breast cancer at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.  He dedicated the early part of his career to acute care surgery and the management of critically ill surgical patients in Boston, MA. Dr. Miller performed hundreds of operations in many general surgical subspecialties in addition to directing the surgical intensive care unit. During this time, he helped pioneer a transformative program in health maintenance policy that focused on improving access to healthcare, patient education, and patient engagement and compliance. He eventually focused fully on this endeavor, expanding the program from isolated providers to all Medicare and Medicaid payors and most private insurers. With expertise in metabolic disease, GI pathology, and preventive medicine, Dr. Miller’s professional passions center on progressing public health, driving developments in new treatments, and advancing standards of care. Now engaged full-time in clinical research, Dr. Miller leverages his vast clinical expertise to challenge diagnostic and therapeutic boundaries across a varied spectrum of disease disciplines.

Dr. Diana Balsalobre is a Board-Certified Neurologist with over 22 years of clinical experience.  She completed her Internship and Neurology Residency in Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami, Florida in 2000.  Following residency, she completed a fellowship in Clinical Neurophysiology with training in EEG and EMG/NCV at St. Louis University Hospital in St. Louis, Missouri.  Upon completion of her fellowship, she moved to Puerto Rico, where she worked in a private Neurology practice for 16 years.  She returned to Florida in 2016, serving as an outpatient neurologist with Advent Health Medical Group and subsequently with Neurovations Clinic before joining Charter Research in 2023.  Dr. Balsalobre has vast experience diagnosing and managing multiple neurological conditions including Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias, Parkinson’s disease, Multiple Sclerosis, migraine, and stroke.  She is fluent in Spanish and English.

Dr. Mary Quarterman is an established and highly skilled physician with over 13 years of experience.  Dr. Quarterman received her medical degree from Florida State University and completed her residency in Internal Medicine at Orlando Health.  She practiced in outpatient primary care for nine years and transitioned into clinical research as a principal investigator with Charter Research.  She is skilled in the treatment of both chronic and acute medical illness.  She is also experienced in lab review, prescribing of medications, and monitoring of adverse events.  She is fluent in medical Spanish and certified in basic life support.

Dr. Ramon Rodriguez is a board certified Neurologist and highly experienced Principal Investigator. Dr. Rodriguez received his medical degree (M.D.) from the University of Puerto Rico, Medical Sciences Campus in San Juan, PR. After receiving his MD, Dr. Rodriguez completed both an Internship in Internal Medicine and Residency in Neurology at the University of Texas. After finishing his residency, Dr. Rodriguez completed a fellowship in the Medical and Surgical Management of Movement Disorders at The University of Florida. Thereafter, Dr. Rodriguez joined as a faculty member in the Department of Neurology at the University of Florida. During his tenure at UF, Dr. Rodriguez held the position of Director of Clinical Services for University of Florida’s Center for Movement Disorders and Neurorestoration, and Director of the Clinical Research Center for Neurological Disorders. Under these roles he supervised over 50 clinical research studies encompassing areas such as Parkinson’s Disease, Huntington’s Disease, Dystonia, Alzheimer’s Disease, Deep Brain Stimulation, Advanced therapies for Parkinson’s Disease, and many others. He has performed over 10,000 botulinum toxin procedures and spent numerous years performing clinical research looking to delay or arrest the progression of neurodegenerative disorders. Dr. Rodriguez also held the role of Chief of the Neurology Service at the Orlando VA Medical Center. During this time, he established the Parkinson’s Disease Consortia Site.