M. Fiorella Contarino is professor of Neurology, with a focus on therapeutic innovations for Parkinson’s disease at the Leiden University Medical Centre (LUMC). She works also as Neurologist at the Haga Teaching Hospital in The Hague

More information about Fiorella Contarino

M. Fiorella Contarino is professor of Neurology, with a focus on therapeutic innovations for Parkinson’s disease  at the Leiden University Medical Centre (LUMC). She works also as Neurologist at the Haga Teaching Hospital in The Hague

Therapeutic innovations for Parkinson’s disease

The chair Therapeutic innovations for Parkinson’s disease is embedded at the department of Neurology of the LUMC. It is a chair by special appointment by the Haga Teaching Hospital in The Hague.

Parkinson's disease is the fastest-growing neurodegenerative disorder in the world, with an enormous impact on the quality of life of patients and their families.

Current treatment for the disease consists of alleviating the characteristic motor symptoms, but in the long term patients develop side effects and experience insufficient benefit. With Deep brain stimulation (DBS) electrodes are surgically implanted in specific brain areas, functioning as a brain pacemaker to control motor symptoms.

DBS treatment is highly effective, but is not suitable for everyone and does not yield optimal results in all patients.

The chair will focus on improving the personalized treatment, specifically  deep brain stimulation (DBS), of patients with neurological movement disorders and in particular Parkinson’s disease, by means of a more accurate patient selection, monitoring procedures, and innovative treatment approaches. The research will be aimed at pursuing the development and implementation of cutting-edge technologies such as novel DBS leads design and materials; novel approaches to obtain biomarkers for prediction of treatment outcomes; and neurophysiological hallmarks to monitor and guide treatment effects such as chronic recordings of deep brain local field potentials.  Another research line will be directed at exploring  the role of microbiota modification strategies as a potential treatment for Parkinson’s disease.

Academic carreer

Since 2005, she is a certified neurologist specialized in movement disorders.

In 2013 she has obtained her PhD defending a thesis with title “Deep Brain Stimulation for movement disorders: toward an improvement of surgical treatment” at the University of Amsterdam

Since September 1st 2025 she is appointed as Professor by special appointment at the Leiden University Medical Centre.

She also works as Neurologist at the Haga Teaching Hospital in The Hague.

Her scientific work in the field of DBS has contributed to several innovations, such as the development of brain electrodes for directional stimulation and a DBS system that can also continuously measure brain activity. Her work in the field is recognized nationally and internationally.

Her research focuses on improving the personalized treatment of patients with neurological movement disorders; in particular advancing the field of Deep Brain Stimulation. 

She is currently also Chair of the Neurosurgery Study Interest Group (SIG) of the  International Parkinson and Movement Disorder Society, Secretary Elect of the International Parkinson and Movement Disorders Society – European Session, Member of the PhD Teaching Board of the PhD program ‘Neuroscience’ at the University of Milano Bicocca, Milan, Italy; Member of the Medical Advisory Board of the Dutch Dystonia Patients Association (Dystonie Vereniging); Executive Board member of the Dutch DystoniaNet network; Honorary member of the Romanian Parkinson and Movement Disorders Society for outstanding contribution to the teaching and research in the Parkinson’s disease and other movement disorders field.