Rodrigo Zepeda, M.D.

Epilepsy Outreach Clinic Director, Parkland Health & Hospital System

Peter O'Donnell Jr. Brain Institute

Neurology

Biography

Rodrigo Zepeda, M.D., is an Associate Professor of Neurology at UT Southwestern Medical Center and specializes in treating patients with epilepsy.

Dr. Zepeda earned his medical degree with honors at the Tecnológico de Monterrey School of Medicine in Mexico. After subsequently spending almost a year doing fieldwork in Chiapas, Mexico, for Partners in Health, a Boston-based global health nonprofit, he moved to New England, completing a research fellowship, internal medicine residency, neurophysiology fellowship, and epilepsy fellowship at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital. He joined the UT Southwestern faculty in October 2016.

Dr. Zepeda is board certified in neurology and neurophysiology by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology. He is also an ad-hoc reviewer for Epilepsy & Behavior and is a member of the American Epilepsy Society, the American Academy of Neurology, and the Massachusetts Medical Society.

He is fluent in Spanish, English, and German.

Meet Dr. Zepeda

Neurologist and epilepsy specialist

Rodrigo Zepeda, M.D., is an Associate Professor of Neurology at UT Southwestern Medical Center. As an epilepsy specialist, he works with the epilepsy team at UT Southwestern to diagnose and treat patients who suffer from seizures.

Dr. Zepeda knew early on he wanted to focus on seizure medicine, growing up with a family member affected by the condition. Originally from Mexico, he also developed a passion for global health and providing care to underserved populations within his home country and around the world.

After graduating from medical school, Dr. Zepeda spent almost a year providing medical care for marginalized communities in Chiapas, Mexico. He then completed his training in neurology and epilepsy at Harvard Medical School, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and Massachusetts General Hospital. During this time, he also joined the Bhutan Epilepsy Project, which used portable EEG diagnostic equipment to accurately diagnose patients suffering from seizures in Bhutan, located in the Eastern Himalayas.

Dr. Zepeda strongly believes in the power of compassionate care and feels that everyone deserves access to the best treatment options available.

Education & Training

Fellowship - Massachusetts General Hospital (2014-2016), Epilepsy/clinical Neurophysiology
Internship - Harvard/Brigham and Women's Hospital (2010-2011), Internal Medicine
Research Fellowship - Massachusetts General Hospital (2009-2010), Neurophysiology
Medical School - Tecnologico de Monterrey Escuela de Medicina Ignacio A. Santos (2001-2009)
Residency - Massachusetts General Hospital & Brigham and Women's Hospital (2011-2014), Neurology

Books & Publications

Publications
- Real-Time Seizure Detection Using Behind-the-Ear Wearable System
  Lehnen J, Venkatesh P, Yao Z, Aziz A, Nguyen PV, Harvey J, Alick-Lindstrom S, Doyle A, Podkorytova I, Perven G, Hays R, Zepeda R, Das R, Ding K Journal of Clinical Neurophysiology 2025 Feb 42 118-125
- Prevalence of Epilepsy in People of Sexual and Gender Minoritized Groups
  Johnson EL, Bui E, Tassiopoulos K, Koretzky MO, Zepeda R, Gonzalez-Giraldo E, Gottesman RF JAMA neurology 2024 Sep 81 996-999
- Stereo-electroencephalographic seizure localization in patients with mesial temporal sclerosis: A single center experience
  Zhang B, Podkorytova I, Hays R, Perven G, Agostini M, Harvey J, Zepeda R, Alick-Lindstrom S, Dieppa M, Doyle A, Das R, Lega B, Ding K Clinical Neurophysiology Practice 2024 Jan 9 106-111
- Emergency department visits and readmissions in patients with psychogenic nonepileptic seizures (PNES) at a safety net hospital
  Ramamurthy S, Steven Brown L, Agostini M, Alick Lindstorm S, Dave H, Dieppa M, Ding K, Doyle A, Hays R, Harvey J, Perven G, Podkorytova I, Zepeda R, Das RR Epilepsy and Behavior 2021 Sep 122
- Non-lesional mesial temporal lobe epilepsy requires bilateral invasive evaluation
  Perven G, Podkorytova I, Ding K, Agostini M, Alick S, Das R, Dave H, Dieppa M, Doyle A, Harvey J, Lega B, Zepeda R, Hays R Epilepsy and Behavior Reports 2021 Jan 15
- Emergent Admissions to the Epilepsy Monitoring Unit in the Setting of COVID-19 Pandemic-related, State-mandated Restrictions: Clinical Decision Making and Outcomes
  Zepeda R, Lee Y, Agostini M, Alick Lindstrom S, Dave H, Dieppa M, Ding K, Doyle A, Harvey J, Hays R, Perven G, Podkorytova I, Das RR Neurodiagnostic Journal 2021 61 95-103
- Association of epileptiform abnormalities and seizures in Alzheimer disease
  Lam AD, Sarkis RA, Pellerin KR, Jing J, Dworetzky BA, Hoch DB, Jacobs CS, Lee JW, Weisholtz DS, Zepeda R, Westover MB, Cole AJ, Cash SS Neurology 2020 Oct 95 E2259-E2270
- Widespread changes in network activity allow non-invasive detection of mesial temporal lobe seizures
  Lam AD, Zepeda R, Cole AJ, Cash SS Brain 2016 Oct 139 2679-2693
- Medication prescribing and patient-reported outcome measures in people with epilepsy in Bhutan
  McKenzie ED, Nirola DK, Deki S, Tshering L, Patenaude B, Clark SJ, Cash SS, Thibert R, Zepeda R, Leung EC, Lam AD, Lim AS, Mantia J, Cohen J, Cole AJ, Mateen FJ Epilepsy and Behavior 2016 Jun 59 122-127
- Hearing loss in Wernicke encephalopathy
  Walker MA, Zepeda R, Afari HA, Cohen AB Neurology: Clinical Practice 2014 4 511-515
- Individualized localization and cortical surface-based registration of intracranial electrodes
  Dykstra AR, Chan AM, Quinn BT, Zepeda R, Keller CJ, Cormier J, Madsen JR, Eskandar EN, Cash SS NeuroImage 2012 Feb 59 3563-3570
- Graphical models for localization of the seizure focus from interictal intracranial EEG
  Dauwels J, Eskandar E, Cole A, Hoch D, Zepeda R, Cash SS 2011 745-748
- Coalescence and fragmentation of cortical networks during focal seizures
  Kramer MA, Eden UT, Kolaczyk ED, Zepeda R, Eskandar EN, Cash SS Journal of Neuroscience 2010 Jul 30 10076-10085

Q&A by Dr. Zepeda

Surgical Evaluation for Treating Epilepsy