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Elia Pestana Knight

Elia Pestana Knight, MD

4.843 ratings, 9 reviews

Pediatric Epilepsy Neurology

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Highlights

Age Groups Seen

  • Child
  • Adolescent

Languages

  • English

Gender

Female

About Elia Pestana Knight

Biography

Dr Elia M. Pestana Knight is a pediatric epileptologist in the Pediatric Epilepsy Section, Epilepsy Center at the Cleveland Clinic Neurological Institute in Cleveland, Ohio. She is also an Assistant Professor of Medicine at the Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine.

Dr. Pestana Knight completed medical school in Cuba (1991) where she graduated at the top of her class. She trained in general neurology (1995) and pediatric neurology (1996) at the Instituto Nacional de Neurologia y Neurocirugia, Havana, Cuba. After moving to the United States in 1999, Dr. Pestana Knight completed a research fellowship in epilepsy at the Cleveland Clinic (2004), residency training in Pediatrics at Rainbow Babies and Children’s Hospital (2007), and Pediatric Neurology residency at the University of Michigan (2010). She is board certified in Pediatrics, Neurology with special qualifications in Child Neurology and Epilepsy.

Dr. Pestana Knight has more than 30 papers published in peer-reviewed journals related to epilepsy and neurological disorders. Her areas of research interest include co-morbidities in pediatric epilepsy, epileptic encephalopathy, epilepsy surgery and pediatric epilepsy outcomes. Dr. Pestana Knight is an enthusiastic teacher. She loves taking care of children with epilepsy and their families, particularly children with refractory seizures. She currently lives in Cleveland, Ohio.

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Locations

  1. Cleveland Clinic Main Campus
    • phone:
    • fax:
  2. Hillcrest Medical Office Building II
    • phone:
    • fax:

Education & Board Certifications

Education

  • Fellowship: University of Michigan Health System, 2010
  • Residency: Rainbow Babies & Childrens Hosp., 2007
  • Internship: Children's Hospital of Michigan, 2005
  • Fellowship: Cleveland Clinic, 2004
  • Residency: Institute of Neurology and Neurosurgery, 1995
  • Medical Education: Facultad De Ciencias Medicas Matamzas/Univ of Havana Cuba, 1991
  • Medical Education: Universidad de Mantanzas, 1991

Board Certifications

  • Epilepsy: American Board of Psychiatry & Neurology, 2013
  • Neurology with Special Qualifications in Child Neurology: American Board of Psychiatry & Neurology, 2010

Research & Publications

See publications for this provider. (Disclaimer: This search is powered by PubMed, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine. PubMed is a third-party website with no affiliation with Cleveland Clinic.)

Industry Relationships

Cleveland Clinic physicians and scientists collaborate with industry to advance medical breakthroughs. These partnerships help commercialize discoveries for public benefit while maintaining scientific integrity. To ensure transparency and minimize potential bias, Cleveland Clinic reviews these relationships and publicly discloses when physicians/scientists receive significant compensation for consulting, serve in fiduciary roles, receive royalties, or hold equity interests related to their work. We manage potential conflicts through approval processes, annual reporting, and targeted management plans.

As of 2025-07-09, Dr. Pestana Knight has reported the financial relationships with the companies listed below.

Donation of Financial Interest. Dr. Pestana Knight has consulted for, received compensation for serving as a fiduciary from, or received royalties from the following companies but instructed them to donate all compensation to not-for-profit causes or to the Cleveland Clinic to support research and education:

  • Takeda Pharmaceuticals North America, Inc.
  • Marinus Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
  • Pyros Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Public Health Service-Reportable Financial Conflicts of Interest. Cleveland Clinic scientists and physicians engage in basic, translational and clinical research activities, working to solve health problems, enhance patient care and improve quality of life for patients. Interactions with industry are essential to bringing the researchers' discoveries to the public, but can present the potential for conflicts of interest related to their research activities. Click here to view a listing of instances where Cleveland Clinic has identified a Public Health Service (PHS)-Reportable Financial Conflict of Interest and has put measures in place to ensure that, to the extent possible, the design, conduct and reporting of the research is free from bias.

* Cleveland Clinic physicians and scientists subscribe to the guidance presented in the PhRMA Code on Interactions with Healthcare Professionals and the AdvaMed Code of Ethics on Interactions with Health Care Professionals. As such, gifts of substantial value are generally prohibited.

Insurances Accepted

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Ratings & Reviews

4.8 out of 5

43 ratings, 9 reviews

The Patient Satisfaction Rating is an average of all responses to the care provider related questions shown below from our survey. Patients that are treated in outpatient or hospital environments may receive different surveys, and the volume of responses will vary by question.

Explains
Courtesy Respect & Concern
Patient Rating of Doctor
Search reviews
    5 out of 5 stars
    Reviewed on 2/16/2026

    Dr Pesta?a apologized for the delay. She is always kind and respectful towards us and my son. She is an exceptional neurologist.

    4 out of 5 stars
    Reviewed on 12/29/2025

    I think Dr knight is fantastic at what she does however I do believe her bedside manner could be improved.

    5 out of 5 stars
    Reviewed on 12/8/2025

    This was the 4th Dr we met with regarding our son. We are so thankful we did.

    5 out of 5 stars
    Reviewed on 12/8/2025

    AWESOME doctor! Exceeds all expectations

    5 out of 5 stars
    Reviewed on 12/8/2025

    Dr Pestana was fantastic and we could not have asked for a better visit with immediate care changes and management moving forward we could feel comfortable about with our young son! Very thankful she was the 4th doctor we have met with.

    5 out of 5 stars
    Reviewed on 12/2/2025

    Dr. Pestana Night is great! We feel lucky to have her overseeing our son's Epilepsy care.

    5 out of 5 stars
    Reviewed on 11/10/2025

    I absolutely love Dr. Pestana Knight !! She is so caring, kind, knows her stuff and it's really nice to have her as my Son's neurologist.

    5 out of 5 stars
    Reviewed on 11/10/2025

    Dr. Pestana - Knight is an exceptional doctor!! She listens to our concerns and never leaves them unaddressed. We never feel like we are unheard. She told us she would do her best to lower the amount of medication my son needed to properly manage his seizures and also get the number of occurrences down to less than 1 per year. She delivered on that promise and for that we are grateful!

    5 out of 5 stars
    Reviewed on 9/10/2025

    She is an Incredibly empathetic and knowledgeable physician.