Educational Lectures

Closing ceremony

Recorded in Tbilisi Georgia, May 31, 2018

Giovanni Cioni, is Full Professor of Child Neurology and Psychiatry, University of Pisa, Italy. He received MD at the University of Florence and Specializations in Child Neurology and Psychiatry and in Rehabilitation Medicine at the University of Pisa and training in child neurology and rehabilitation in many Centres in Europe. He is currently Scientific Director of IRCCS Fondazione Stella Maris, National Biomedical Research Hospital for neurodevelopmental disorders, Director of the School of Specialization in Child Neurology and Psychiatry, University of Pisa. He is also Chair of the European Academy of Childhodd Disability (EACD), member of many others and in the board of several scientific journals. His main research interests are: Early brain plasticity in relation to neurodevelopmental disorders (human and animal models) and early intervention; Neuroimaging techniques (including Ultra High Field MR) and application to child neurology. He has been recipient of many international awards and author of several publications in scientific journals and books.

Lecture recorded at the 30th EACD conference in Tbilisi, Georgia, May 28-31, 2018.

Hans Forssberg is Professor in neuroscience at Karolinska Institutet and Consultant in neuropaediatrics at Astrid Lindgren Children’s Hospital in Stockholm, Sweden. He is past dean and past vice president of Karolinska Institutet and past member of the Nobel Committee for Physiology or Medicine. He has also been head of the Department of Paediatrics at Astrid Lindgren Children’s Hospital. His research has focused on children with neurodevelopmental disorders; from translational research on underlying mechanisms of motor and cognitive dysfunctions, to clinical research aiming at developing new methods for assessment and intervention. He has published more than 200 original research articles. Recently, he has shifted focus towards the global situation for children with developmental delay and disabilities, in particular in low and middle income countries. He is president of the International Alliance of Academies of Childhood Disability and past chairman of the European Academy of Childhood Disability.

Lecture recorded at the 30th EACD conference in Tbilisi, Georgia, May 28-31, 2018.

Parents point of view

Lecture recorded at the 30th EACD conference in Tbilisi, Georgia, May 28-31, 2018.

Professor Boyd has primary training in Physiotherapy (Pediatrics, Neurological, Neonatal, Orthopaedics) with post graduate training in Biomechanics (Pgrad) and Neuroscience (PhD). She has an international track record in conducting randomised clinical trials in the field of cerebral palsy. Dr Boyd’s studies have combined clinical outcomes with an understanding of the mechanisms underpinning response to intervention with novel use of Advanced Brain Imaging (functional MRI, Diffusion Imaging, Functional Connectivity, CP connectome). Her strong collaborations in neuroscience have enabled the development of novel rehabilitation trials in Action Observation training, multi-modal web based training and environmental enrichment for infants, children and youth with Cerebral Palsy. She is passionate about training the next generation of researchers and in 2014 received the research supervision excellence award. Dr Boyd has been on the scientific board of the 3rd International Cerebral Palsy conference (2009), 4th (Italy 2012) and 5th ICP (June, Sweden, 2016).

Lecture recorded at the 30th EACD conference in Tbilisi, Georgia, May 28-31, 2018.

The chief of Clinical Center of functional and applied biomechanics section. A physical therapist by training, Dr. Damiano holds a PhD in research methods/biomechanics from the University of Virginia, a Master of Science in physical therapy from Duke University, and an undergraduate degree in biological sciences from Catholic University. Her area of expertise is in the investigation of both existing and novel rehabilitation approaches in children with cerebral palsy. Her most recent interest is the role of physical activity in enhancing motor coordination and promoting neural recovery in those with brain injuries.

Elsass Foundation Prize lecture  

Lecture recorded at the 30th EACD conference in Tbilisi, Georgia, May 28-31, 2018.

Prof. MD is the head of the Department of Neuropediatric and Muscular Disorders at Children’s Hospital, University Hospital Freiburg.. He publications have touched broad range of topics in child neurology, and during the last 18 years he has concentrated on the clinical scientific work in neuromuscular disorders. He has conducted several German multicenter trials in NMD as a principal investigator, being the head of the Trials Organization Center of MD-Net and The Clinical Trials Coordination Center of TREAT-NMD.

Lecture recorded at the 30th EACD conference in Tbilisi, Georgia, May 28-31, 2018.

Joined the faculty of McMaster University in July 1973 and has been a Professor of Pediatrics since 1984. He held an inaugural Tier 1 Canada Research Chairs (2001- 2014). In 1989, Peter co-founded the award-winning CanChild Centre for Childhood Disability Research, a health system-linked research unit now recognized world-wide for its research and dissemination activities.

Peter has held more than 80 peer-reviewed research grants and is a contributing author to over 330 peer-reviewed journal articles and book chapters. He has been an invited lecturer and keynote speaker in 30 countries. He co-authored “Cerebral Palsy: From Diagnosis to Adult Life” (2012), and co-edited “Life Quality Outcomes of Children and Young Adults with Neurological and Developmental Conditions” (2013) with Dr. Gabriel Ronen. In 2016, he and colleagues published a book on ethical dilemmas in developmental medicine.

La Fondation Paralysie Cérébrale Award Lecture

Lecture recorded at the 30th EACD conference in Tbilisi, Georgia, May 28-31, 2018.

Professor of pediatrics, neurology, Head of Neuroscience department Bambino Gesus children hospital, Roma. F. Vigevano dedicated himself to a rigorous study of pediatric epilepsies promoting video-EEG and polygraphic recordings of seizures. This allowed to define the semiology of seizures in early life. He is devoted to the treatment and diagnoses of the most severe forms of childhood epilepsy. More recently, his studies have been focused on the clinical characteristics of pediatric epilepsy due to genetic mutations.

Lecture recorded at the 30th EACD conference in Tbilisi, Georgia, May 28-31, 2018.

Opening ceremony of the 30th EACD conference in Tbilisi

Recorded on May 29, 2018.