Last April Dr. Pollini, Child Neurologist and Psychiatrist from Rome, Italy, received the very first Dystonia Europe Grant for Patient Care.
This is a new initiative for prolonged, comprehensive training in Dystonia, in order to get fully experienced doctors that will provide high quality care for patients, disseminate knowledge, connect with patient associations (in their own country and at the international level (i.e. Dystonia Europe) and will be integrated into the medical and scientific community of the movement disorders doctors.
The 12-month fellowship will take place at the Hôpital Salpétrière in Paris, France under the supervision of Prof Emmanuel Flamand-Roze from May 2025 until the end of April 2026. We congratulate Dr. Pollini and wish him much success with his stay in Paris.
Dr. Luca Pollini has a clinical and research background in pediatric movement disorders, especially those with a genetic etiology.
After obtaining his Medical Degree from La Sapienza University in 2015, he completed his residency in Child Neuropsychiatry at Policlinico Umberto I in 2020. Then he pursued a PhD, divided between Rome and the Movement Disorders Expertise Center in Groningen (The Netherlands), where he focused on the neurophysiological and kinematic characterisation of movement disorders. This experience allowed him to deepen his understanding of these conditions also from a research perspective.
He says: “The clinical fellowship provided by Dystonia Europe represents an incredible opportunity to pursue this goal, as it offers the chance to receive in-depth training from leading experts in the field of dystonia. Training at the Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital is a unique opportunity to broaden my knowledge and deepen my understanding of dystonia. It also allows me to gain hands-on experience with innovative treatments and to actively contribute to research in the field.”
His main goal is to continue growing as a clinician and to improve the care of people living with dystonia. He is particularly interested in enhancing his clinical skills and exploring new and emerging therapeutic strategies that can significantly improve patients’ quality of life.
He concludes: “I am truly grateful and honored to have been granted this fellowship, and I am enthusiastic about everything I will learn throughout this experience.
I look forward to bringing this knowledge back with me, with the aim of improving the care and quality of life of children and adolescents living with dystonia.”
We thank Merz for their generous support of this important project.
