Rick Dijkhuizen - Biography#

Rick Dijkhuizen received his PhD at Utrecht University in 1998 (thesis: “Magnetic resonance imaging and spectroscopy in experimental cerebral ischemia”), after which he became postdoctoral researcher at the Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging, Massachusetts General Hospital/Massachusetts Institute of Technology/Harvard Medical School. He conducted original structural, functional and metabolic magnetic resonance imaging and spectroscopy studies in stroke patients and animal models that have demonstrated the potential of MRI for scientific and diagnostic assessments of brain injury and plasticity, and that have contributed to current understanding of neurovascular changes after cerebral ischemia-reperfusion.

In 2002 he became head of the Biomedical MR Imaging and Spectroscopy group at the University Medical Center Utrecht. After a visiting associate professorship at the Department of Radiology at Stanford University School of Medicine (2013 - 2014), he became professor of Experimental and Translational Neuroimaging in Utrecht.

His current research focuses on multiparametric imaging of brain structure and function, with particular emphasis on (1) development of tools for improved diagnosis of neurovascular pathophysiology, (2) characterization of neural network (re)organization, and (3) monitoring of neuroprotective and -restorative therapies in cerebrovascular diseases. He recently initiated a translational research program on non-invasive brain stimulation as a treatment to promote functional recovery in stroke survivors. He leads an ongoing phase-3 multicenter trial on the therapeutic efficacy of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation for the promotion of upper limb recovery after stroke (B-STARS2).

He collaborates with national and international institutions on diverse themes, including acute stroke treatment, stroke recovery, brain repair and functional imaging, and he has held various committee assignments within different organizations.