• UCLA Health
  • myUCLAhealth
  • School of Medicine
UCLA Health
UCLA Health
  • About Us
    • What is UCLA Health?
    • Contact Us
    • Your Feedback
    • Accountable Care Organization
    • Awards & Achievements
    • Careers
    • Careers for Physicians
    • Departments - Administrative
    • Departments - Clinical
    • Giving to UCLA Health
    • Health Equity, Diversity & Inclusion
    • In the Community
    • Industry Relations
    • Innovation
    • Leadership
    • News Releases
    • Price Transparency
    • Social Media
    • #TeamLA
    • 340B Program
    Vital SignsLinked Graphic: Subscribe to Health Newsletters
    • Contact
    • Your Feedback
    • Accountable Care Organization
    • Awards and Achievements
    • Careers
    • Careers for Physicians
    • Departments - Administrative
    • Departments - Clinical
    • Giving to UCLA Health
    • Health Equity, Diversity and Inclusion
    • Innovation
    • In the Community
    • 340B Program
    • Leadership
    • News Releases
    • Price Transparency
    • Social Media
    • TeamLA
    • Subscribe to UCLA Health Newsletters
  • Conditions & Treatment
    • Health Library
    • Tests & Procedures
    • Drug Interaction Checker
    • Brain & Nervous System
    • Cancer
    • Children's Health
    • Heart Disease
    • Nutrition & Wellness
    • Pregnancy & Newborns
    • Orthopedics
    • Women's Health
    • Video Library
    • Cancer
    • Cardiovascular
    • Chiropractic
    • Cosmetic Surgery
    • Ear, Nose and Throat
    • Gastrointestinal
    • General Healthcare
    • Neurological
    • Obstetrics/Gynecology
    • See all videos...
    Symptom Checker
    • Video Library
  • Locations

    Hospitals

    • Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center
    • UCLA Santa Monica Medical Center
    • UCLA Mattel Children's Hospital
    • Resnick Neuropsychiatric Hospital
    • Institutes and Centers
    • Take a Virtual Tour

    Medical Offices/Clinics

    • Primary Care
    • Specialty Care
    • Immediate Care
    • Emergency Care
    • Outpatient Surgery Centers
    • Community Cancer Care
    • Pediatric Locations
    • Imaging/Radiology
    • Clinical Labs
    • Pharmacies

    Interactive Map

    interactive map

    • Interactive Map
    • UCLA Medical Plazas
    • Locations Coming Soon
    • UCLA Hospitals
    • Take a Virtual Tour
    • Primary Care Practices
    • Specialty Care Practices
    • Immediate Care
    • Emergency Care
    • Pediatric Locations
    • Outpatient Surgery Centers
    • Clinical Labs
    • Pharmacies
    • Other Locations
    • Interactive Map
    • Coming Soon!
  • Medical Services
  • For Patients & Visitors
    • Directions & Parking
    • Appointments
    • Video Visits
    • Medical Chaperones
    • Admissions
    • Preparing For Surgery
    • Patient Services
    • Security & Parking Services
    • Office of the Patient Experience
    • For International Patients
    • Lodging & Nearby Services
    • Around Westwood
    • Gift Shops & Flowers
    • Patient Greeting Cards
    • Coronavirus Resources
    • Log in to myUCLAhealth
    • Billing and Insurance
    • Medical Records
    • Price Transparency
    • Health Encyclopedia
    • Interactive Patient Education Videos (Emmi)
    • FAQs
    • Calendar of Events
    • Secure Email Messages
    • Health Resources
    • Multimedia
    • Download our Apps
    • Doctor on video visit
    • Open Enrollment
    • Visit our Connect Blog
    • Send a Care Compliment
    • Read Health Publications
    • Vital Signs Newsletters
    • Join a Patient and Family Advisory Council
    • Share your Feedback
    • Contact Us
    • Appointments: Call, Click, Come in
    • Video Visits - Telemedicine
    • Medical Chaperones
    • Admissions Information
    • Advance Directive
    • Directions & Parking
    • Patient Services
    • Medical Records
    • myUCLAhealth
    • Smoke-Free
    • Publications
    • Multimedia
    • Health Resources
    • Around Westwood
    • Lodging
    • Preparing For Surgery
    • Patient-focused Technology Council
    • Health Forms
    • End of Life Option Act: Resources & Materials
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Secure Email Messages
    • Gift Shops
    • Patient Greeting Cards
  • For Healthcare Professionals
    • Referring a Patient
    • Continuing Medical Education
    • Ethics Center
    • UCLA HealthLink
    • Physician to Physician Access Line (P2P)
    • David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
    • Clinical Informatics Fellowship
    • Academic Positions
    • Physician Careers
    • UCLA School of Dentistry
    • UCLA School of Nursing
    • Department of Nursing

    Physician Publications

    • Physicians Update
    • Clinical Updates
    • U Magazine
    • Physician to Physician Access Line (P2P)
    • Physician Careers
    • Clinical Informatics Fellowship
    • Flu Resources for Healthcare Professionals
    • Publications
  • Clinical Research
    • All Clinical Trials
    • COVID-19 Clinical Research
  • Find a Provider
  • UCLA Health
  • myUCLAhealth
  • School of Medicine

Find a Provider

  1. Home
  2. Find a Provider

Find a Provider

https://www Photo

Specialty:
Pediatric Neurology
Neurology, Epilepsy
Department Affiliation:
Pediatrics
Hospital Affiliation:
Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center
UCLA Mattel Children's Hospital
UCLA Santa Monica Medical Center
State License:
A103046
Phone:
(310) 825-0867
Health Plans:
Accepted Plans
  • About Me
  • Locations
  • Education
  • Clinical Interests
  • Research
  • News & Awards
  • Videos
About Me

Dr. Lekha M. Rao is triple board certified in Neurology/Child Neurology, Clinical Neurophysiology, and Epilepsy. After obtaining her BA in Neuroscience at Johns Hopkins University and MD at Drexel University, she completed pediatric residency, child neurology fellowship, and pediatric epilepsy fellowship at UCLA. She was the recipient of a 2011- 2013 Epilepsy Foundation of Greater Los Angeles Care and Cure Fellowship.

Dr. Rao is a frequent invited lecturer on the topics of pediatric seizures, pediatric migraine management, and childhood sleep issues. She has presented and lectured both nationally and internationally, and published research in movement disorders, acute symptomatic seizures, and neonatal seizures with hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy.

Dr. Rao is also an active sub-investigator in ongoing clinical trials for neuromuscular disorders under the guidance of Dr. Perry Shieh.

Dr. Rao is dedicated to the success of all her patients, whether they have tics/Tourette's, headaches/migraines, autism, and/or epilepsy. She is committed to working together with patients and families for comprehensive care and meeting their individual needs. As a result, Dr. Rao has been named a 2018 Los Angeles Magazine Top Doctor and future recipient of a Super Doctors Rising Star Award.

Dr. Rao's clinical expertise includes:

  • neonatal seizures
  • hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy
  • intractable epilepsy
  • catamenial epilepsy
  • new onset seizures
  • benign focal epilepsies of childhood
  • epilepsy surgery evaluation
  • electrographic status epilepticus in slow wave sleep (ESES)
  • vagal nerve stimulation
  • migraine headache, including interventional treatment
  • tic disorders
  • second opinion neurological consultation
Links
uclahealth.org/mattel/pediatric-neurology
uclahealth.org/mattel/pediatric-neurosurgery/pediatric-epilepsy-program
Primary Office
Children's Health Center
200 UCLA Medical Plaza
Suite 220
Los Angeles, CA 90095
Get Directions
View Map
Phone
(310) 825-0867
Fax
(310) 794-5066
Secondary Office
Santa Monica Pediatric Specialty Care
1260 15th St.
Suite 1024
Santa Monica, CA 90404
Get Directions
View Map
Phone
(424) 259-8570
Medical Board Certifications
Neurology with Special Qualification in Child Neurology, American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, 2011
Certification 2
Clinical Neurophysiology, American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, 2013
Certification 3
Epilepsy, American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, 2016
Fellowship
Epilepsy, UCLA School of Medicine, 2011-2012
Residency
Pediatric Neurology, UCLA School of Medicine, 2008-2011
Residency 2
Pediatrics, UCLA School of Medicine, 2007-2008
Internship
Pediatrics, UCLA School of Medicine, 2006-2007
Degree
Drexel University College of Medicine, MD, 2006
Interests
  • Epilepsy
  • General Pediatric Neurology
Research Interests
  • Neonatal Seizures
  • Hypoxic-ischemic Encephalopathy
  • Acute Symptomatic Seizures
  • Neonatal Seizures
  • New Onset Seizures / Epileptogenesis
  • Epilepsy
  • Epilepsy Surgery
Publications
  1. Rao LM, Hussain SA, Zaki T, Cho A, Chanlaw T, Garg M, Sankar R. A comparison of levetiracetam and phenobarbital for the treatment of neonatal seizures associated with hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy. Epilepsy Behav. 2018 Oct 5;88:212-217.
  2. Matsumoto JH, McArthur DL, Szeliga CW, Lerner JT, Rao LM, Hussain SA, Wu JY, Nuwer MR, Sankar R. Conductive Plastic Electrodes Reduce EEG Artifact During Pediatric ECMO Therapy. J Clin Neurophysiol. 2016 Oct;33(5):426-430.
  3. Jinnah HA, Egami K, Rao L, Shin M, Kasim S, Hess EJ. Expression of c-FOS in the brain after activation of L-type calcium channels. Developmental Neuroscience. 2003 Nov-Dec;25(6):403-11.
  4. Mikolaenko I, Rao LM, Roberts RC, Kolb B, Jinnah HA. A Golgi study of neuronal architecture in a genetic mouse model for Lesch-Nyhan disease. Neurobiology of Disease. 2005 May 19
  5. Shirley T, Rao LM, Hess EJ, Jinnah HA. Paroxysmal Dyskinesias in mice. Movement Disorders. 2008 Jan 30;23(2):259-64.
In The News
  • A NEW NORMAL: Making Peace with Childhood Epilepsy oursouthbay.com
  • Tour de "Force": Star Wards fans unite for ailing infant Today.com
  • 'Star Wars' Fans Band Together To Help Another Princess 'Leah CBS Los Angeles

Note: News website links may expire without notice.

Awards
  • Super Doctors® Southern California Rising Stars 2021
  • Super Doctors® Southern California Rising Stars 2020
  • Super Doctors® Southern California Rising Stars 2019
  • 2018 Los Angeles Magazine Top Doctors
  • 2019 Super Doctors Rising Star Award
Lekha M. Rao, MD click here to update your profile
Back to search
Facebook Twitter Instagram Youtube LinkedInWeibo
UCLA Health hospitals ranked best hospitals by U.S. News & World Report
  • UCLA Health
  • Find a Doctor
  • School of Medicine
  • School of Nursing
  • UCLA Campus
  • Directory
  • Newsroom
  • Subscribe
  • Patient Stories
  • Giving
  • Careers
  • Volunteer
  • International Services
  • Privacy Practices
  • Nondiscrimination
  • Billing
  • Health Plans
  • Emergency
  • Report Broken Links
  • Terms of Use
  • 1-310-825-2631
  • Maps & Directions
  • Contact Us
  • Your Feedback
  • Report Misconduct
  • Get Social
  • Sitemap

Sign in to myUCLAhealth

Learn more about myUCLAhealth