This year, the hospital visit of the Resident and Research Fellow Section (RRFS) of the European Academy of Neurology during the EAN congress was on Monday 18th June 2018. Sixty-seven residents and research fellows from 16 different countries mainly around Europe but also including countries from Africa went to the Hospital de Santa Maria which is one of the university hospitals of Lisbon. The hospital visit was organised with the support of the local residents, mainly Dr Reis Costa and Dr Pereira (from Centro Hospitalar e Universitário de Coimbra).
The hospital visit started in the conference room of the Department of Neurology with Prof. Ferro, head of the Department of Neurology, who introduced the general structure of the Department with about 800 inpatient contacts and 25.000 outpatients per year. He also touched upon the main clinical and research focus and the residency program. As the hospital is the National Reference Center for Familial Amyloid Polyneuropathy and refractory epilepsy, a main focus is set here, but also in the high number of thrombolysis and thrombectomies that are performed in acute stroke patients. Furthermore, movement disorders and the surgical Deep Brain Stimulation program are a point of interest. Afterwards, Prof. Pavão presented the Language Research Laboratory (founded in 1970) where patients are investigated for disorders of language, cognition and behaviour following brain disorders. Furthermore, pre- and post-graduate teaching by a multidisciplinary team including neurologists, psychologists and speech therapists is performed in the Language Research Lab. Prof. de Carvalho, the head of the Neuromuscular Clinic, provided an insight about the activities in the field of motor neuron disorders next to imaging, biomarker genetics and neurophysiology.
Outstanding was the cooperation of the different working groups, e.g. the stroke group, the movement disorders group, the neuromuscular group and others, which perform research in collaboration with Santa Maria`s Hospital and associated entities, namely the Faculty of Medicine of the University of Lisbon and the Institute of Molecular Medicine.
Afterwards, the attendees visited the hospital in two groups and were guided through the area of electrophysiology and neuropathology where muscle and nerve biopsies are performed by neurologists. This was followed by a walk through the neurological ward covering stroke patients with non-invasive monitoring, next to continuous EEG monitoring as well as the treatment of patients with general neurological disorders. In the Clinical Trial Area, the participants visited the Cerebral Hemodynamics Laboratory with Prof. Oliveira as Head, demonstrating a self-examination of the carotid artery as well as the medial cerebral artery with Doppler and Duplex sonography. Furthermore, he presented the opportunities of continuous intraoperative ultrasound monitoring in patients. The hospital visit ended in the impressive library where drinks and Portuguese snacks were offered.
From the Hospital de Santa Maria a bus transfer was organised to the Meet & Greet event of the European Academy of Neurology taking place in the Museu Nacional de Arte Antiga.
We are confident that this fruitful exchange will continue, and the network of international residents and research fellows will further grow. We are looking forward to seeing you at the EAN congress in Oslo next year!
by
Lisa Klingelhoefer1, Giovanni Di Liberto2, Vanessa Carvalho3, Viktoria Papp4, Anna Sauerbier5
1Department of Neurology, Technical University Dresden, Dresden, Germany
2Departement de Pathologie et Immunologie, Centre Medical Universitaire, University of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland
3Pedro Hispano Hospital/Matosinhos Local Unit, Matosinhos, Portugal
4Department of Neurology, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark
5Department of Neurology, King´s College London and King´s College Hospital, London, United Kingdom
