Tissa Wijeratne is a Sri Lankan and Australian neurologist, author, academic, researcher, advocate and one of the founders of World Brain Day.
Education.
He was born in one of the most rural cities (Bandarawela), Uva Province (the poorest province in Sri Lanka, largely secondary to the ethnic genocide in 1815-1816. He attended a primary school that did not have high academic ambitions for the pupils. He missed out on schooling for nine months while he was still a grade nine student at Kirioruwa School, one of the most rural Schools in Uva province to date. He has been an avid reader since the age five and managed to finish his entire school library as a year one student. Avid reading made him determined to follow an academic course. He was interested in politics from a young age (He delivered the opening speech at the final rally of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party, in front of the world first female prime minister, Late Mrs Sirimawo Bandaranayake Sirimavo Bandaranaike as a primary school student to a standing ovation in 1977 1977 Sri Lankan parliamentary election). He plans to study economics and politics at university at the time. Wijeratne completed his high schools at the Bandarawela Central College ( also known as the Glendale, commenced as a branch of Royal College , Colombo, during the second world war). As he grew up knowing biology and life sciences at the Bandarawela Central College, he became interested medicine, and was accepted by the University of Peradeniya, which was interrupted during the 1987-1989 JVP insurrection. Wijeratne was reborn as a well-known science Journalist during this period. He became a popular journalist with popular science weekly "Vidusara", national news paper "Divaina", women's weekly "Navaliya", children's weekly " Bindu" edited by late Sibil Wettasinghe at that time. He published over 3000 segments in print media covering brain conditions, agriculture, global warming with a huge fan base across Sri Lanka at that time and went on to win the President's award as the best youth national spokes person in 1989.
Wijeratne had an illustrious carrier as a young medical student. He was the compere of almost all major cultural activities at the University of Peradeniya from 1987 to 1994 where nearly all national figures in Sri Lankan music industry, drama industry received his free service as one of the most multi talented medical students of his time. He regularly appeared in Television media and national radio media at that time. As an outstanding old rounder, he went on to perform well at his final year exam with honours in 1995. He was appointed as an intern medical officer to Prof A.H. Sheriffdean for six months followed by further six months with Prof. A.H.R. Sheriff where the best physicians and surgeonstrained him in Sri Lanka. He then created a unique Sri Lankan record as he was appointed as a lecturer in Medicine, University of Peredeniya under the mentorship of Prof Nimal Senanayake, one of the most outstanding neurologists ever to be produced in Sri Lanka.
Research career.
He was most inspired by the original work by his mentor Prof Nimal Senanayake as he continue to learn from his mentor from 1996 to 1999 as a lecturer in Medicine at the University of Peradeniya with ample exposure and clinical contribution towards the ongoing work of neurotoxicology under the leadership of Prof Nimal Senanayake at that time. As a result of his marriage to a medical graduate from Flinders University, Australia, he had to migrate to Australia at an early stage of his career. Wijeratne had to re-train in internal medicine and successfully completed his neurology advanced training in number of world class centres across New Zealand and Australia.
He met Professor Robert Helme for the first time in late 2004 with an agreement to set up the stroke services as a rising star in neurology in 2004 at the Footscray Hospital, Western Health. This was the beginning of a remarkable research carrier of Wijeratne. On subsequent years he went on to work acute stroke care improvement with landmark contributions towards acute stroke therapies in collaboration with his research network across Australia and New Zealand.
Discovery of Post COVID-19 Neurological Syndrome.
Wijeratne's research group was the first to describe Post COVID-19 Neurological Syndrome (PCNS, also known as Long Covid) and the role of Serial Systemic Immune Inflammatory indices (SSIIi) in PCNS at the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic
Championing migraine/headache research in Australia.
Wijeratne became a key catalyst for resurrecting headache research and advocacy in Australia. During this journey, Prof. Peter Goadsby and Prof Jim Lance mentored him. He became the key mastermind behind Australia's re-birth of headache society in 2024. Wijeratne wrote the original constitution, designed the logo and set up the first website template for the Australia New Zealand Headache Society. He produced the first-ever film on migraine and disability in Australia. His leadership was the key to establishing the first dedicated charity for migraine in 2018.
Wijeratne and colleagues showed the world that migraine is the leading cause of disability in Australia in a landmark paper published in the Lancet in 2018. He then led the historic first-ever World Brain Day campaign on migraine with outstanding success. Wijeratne rallied the entire world towards a massive awareness campaign. On 22 July 2019, all ABC stations talked about migraines across Australia.
Wijeratne and colleagues launched the HEAD research group at the same time. Over five thousand headache admissions across 67 Emergency Departments across Australia and New Zealand were studied in real-time with zero research funding support. 14 landmark research papers were published out of this work.
Wijeratne et al went on introduce two new headache syndromes to the SNOOP-10 classification of secondary headaches with a proposal for SNOOP-12 during 2023
Wijeratne was appointed as the Section Editor for Stroke, Section Editor for Migraine and headache medicine, Encyclopaedia 2023 Edition in 2021.
Advising to "Science Direct," Wijeratne is Australia's leading academic publisher on migraine and headache disorders, COVID-19 and Brain Involvement, and Long COVID.
World Migraine Day.
Migraine Foundation launched the first ever World Migraine Day on 18 June 2023 with a resounding success with Five Million Steps campaign. Green colour theme was chosen by the hundreds of people with migraine as the green colour is most pleasing to the migraine impacted brain.
Awards.
Wijeratne became the only medical student ever to win the President's award as the best All Island Youth Announcer in 1989 with immediate job offer to train as a full time broadcast media personal at the Belwood TV Village, Nugaliyadda, Kandy, Sri Lanka in 1989.
Wijeratne was the first neurologist to be awarded the inaugural Ted Munsatt award for his contributions in global neurology education and advocacy in 2017.
Wijeratne became the first Australian/Sri Lankan neurologist to be graduated from award winning Donald M Pallatuci advocacy program, American Academy of Neurology in 2008. He went on become an advisor, faculty for the same program later on. In 2020, he became the first Australian neurologist to be awarded with the prestigious Kenneth Viste Global advocate of the year award, AAN.
2019 Wijeratne became the first Australian physician to be the winner of the PRISCILLA KINCAID-SMITH AWARD Recognising outstanding achievement of a senior doctor who has undertaken pioneering work in medical practice, education or research, preventative health or patient advocacy.
He became the first Sri Lankan neurologist to be awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia for his services towards global neurology on 26 January 2023.
References.
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