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Professor Siobhan Hutchinson

Clinical Associate Professor (Clinical Medicine)
      
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Professor Siobhan Hutchinson

Clinical Associate Professor (Clinical Medicine)

 shutchin@tcd.ie

 


  ALZHEIMER'S DEMENTIA   APHASIA   BEHAVIOURAL SYMPTOMS   Clinical neurology   COGNITIVE IMPAIRMENT   DEMENTIA   DEMENTIA, NEURODEGENERATIVE   Dementia/ Alzheimer's Disease   EARLY ONSET DEMENTIA   FRONTOTEMPORAL DYSFUNCTION   MEMORY CLINICS   MEMORY IMPAIRMENT   MOTOR CONTROL   neurodegeneration   Primary Progressive Aphasia
Project Title
 Mechanisms of Motor Recovery in Stroke
From
2000
To
2003
Summary
Functional imaging had already been used to illustrate the new pattern of brain activation on recovering following stroke - this change in activity demonstrated the brain's 'neuroplasticity'. The innovative part of my proposal was that we planned to use transcranial magnetic stimulation, an innovative research tool, to investigate the connectivity and excitability of these new regions of activity. Our pilot data obtained in stroke subjects and normals revealed novel effects between the hemispheres in both normals and recovered stroke subjects, which we published.
Funding Agency
Dana Foundation Grant for Clinical Hypothese in Imaging
Project Type
Clinical Investigation
Project Title
 Mechanisms of Motor Recovery in Stroke
From
2003
To
2008
Summary
Functional imaging had already been used to illustrate the new pattern of brain activation on recovering following stroke - this change in activity demonstrated the brain's 'neuroplasticity'. The innovative part of my proposal was that we planned to use transcranial magnetic stimulation, an innovative research tool, to investigate the connectivity and excitability of these new regions of activity. Our pilot data obtained in stroke subjects and normals revealed novel effects between the hemispheres in both normals and recovered stroke subjects, which we published.
Funding Agency
National Institutes of Health, Development and Rehabilitation Division, Research Project Grant, RO1
Project Type
Clinical Investigation
Project Title
 Dystonia Research Group - phenotype-genotype characterisation of cervical dystonia
From
2004
To
2008
Summary
The Dystonia Research Group in St. Vincent's University Hospital who are investigating the phenotype-genotype relationship in primary dystonia, are expanding the endophenotye of cervical dystonia and exploring the sensorimotor dysfunction associated.
Project Type
Clinical Investigation
Project Title
 Computational Neuroimaging Group - imaging biomarkers of PLS
From
To
Summary
Characterisation of phenotype-specific imaging signatures, genotype-associated brain changes and propagation patterns in vivo, using advanced computational neuroimaging techniques of neurodegenerative disease - focusing on ALS, PLS and FTD.
Project Title
 Computational Neuroimaging Group - imaging biomarkers of FTD, Primary Progressive Aphasia
From
2021
To
2024
Summary
Characterisation of phenotype-specific imaging signatures, genotype-associated brain changes and propagation patterns in vivo, using advanced computational neuroimaging techniques of neurodegenerative disease - focusing on ALS, PLS and FTD.
Funding Agency
Irish Institute of Clinical Neuroscience
Programme
Fellowship Grant
Project Type
Clinical Investigation

Details Date
Irish Representative for the IICN on the European Academy of Neurology Scientific Panel for Dementia and Cognitive Disorders 2019
Member of the Dementia Trial Advisory Group (D-TAG) of Dementia Trials Ireland. 2021
Member of the Advisory Group for the National Dementia Office on the formulation of a Model of Care for People with Dementia in Ireland 2020 2020
Member of Steering Committee on Second Irish National Audit of Dementia care in acute hospitals (INAD-2) - representative of the Neurology Clinical Programme. 2019
Member of Steering Group for the National Dementia Office's competitive Review of Younger Onset Dementia Diagnostic Pathways and Processes 2018
Member of the National Steering Committee for the Development of Diagnostic Services for people with Dementia developed by The National Dementia Office 2017
Member of the National Office for Public Health's Incident Panel for Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies 2011
Invited speaker at the RCPI "A Clinical Guide to Dementia" titled 'Frontotemporal Dementia: emerging concepts and treatments' 2019
Invited speaker to Neurology Colleagues at IICN National Update Meeting titled "Update in Dementia" 2020
Language Skill Reading Skill Writing Skill Speaking
English Fluent Fluent Fluent
Details Date From Date To
Member of EAN Scientific Panel for Dementia and Cognitive Disorders. 2019
Member of Irish Institute of Clinical Neuroscience 2010
Member of American Academy of Neurology (AAN) 2006
Diplomate of the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology (ABPN) 2002 2012
Collegiate Member of the Royal College of Physicians in Ireland (MRCPI) 1994
McKenna MC, Chipika RH, Li Hi Shing S, Christidi F, Lope J, Doherty MA, Hengeveld JC, Vajda A, McLaughlin RL, Hardiman O, Hutchinson S, Bede P., Infratentorial pathology in frontotemporal dementia: cerebellar grey and white matter alterations in FTD phenotypes., J Neurol., 2021, Notes: [doi: 10.1007/s00415-021-10575-w. Online ahead of print. PMID: 33983551], Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
McKenna MC, Al-Hinai M, Bradley D, Doran E, Hunt I, Hutchinson S, Langan Y, O'Rourke D, Qasem R, Redmond J, Troy E, Doherty CP., Patients' Experiences of Remote Neurology Consultations during the COVID-19 Pandemic, European Neurology, 83, (6), 2021, p622 - 625, Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Finegan E, Shing SLH, Chipika RH, Chang KM, McKenna MC, Doherty MA, Hengeveld JC, Vajda A, Pender N, Donaghy C, Hutchinson S, McLaughlin RL, Hardiman O, Bede P. , Extra-motor cerebral changes and manifestations in primary lateral sclerosis. , Brain Imaging Behav., 2021, Notes: [doi: 10.1007/s11682-020-00421-4. PMID: 33409820], Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Dyer AH, Murphy C, Lawlor B, Kennelly SP, NILVAD Study Group., Cognitive Outcomes of Long-term Benzodiazepine and Related Drug (BDZR) Use in People Living With Mild to Moderate Alzheimer's Disease: Results From NILVAD., Journal of the American Medical Directors Association, 21, (2), 2020, p194-200 , Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Finegan E, Li Hi Shing S, Siah WF, Chipika RH, Chang KM, McKenna MC, Doherty MA, Hengeveld JC, Vajda A, Donaghy C, Hutchinson S, McLaughlin RL, Hardiman O, Bede P. , Evolving diagnostic criteria in primary lateral sclerosis: The clinical and radiological basis of "probable PLS". , J Neurol Sci., 417, 2020, Notes: [2020 Jul 24;417:117052. doi: 10.1016/j.jns.2020.117052. Online ahead of print. PMID: 32731060], Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Chipika, R.H., Finegan, E., Li Hi Shing, S., McKenna, M.C., Christidi, F., Chang, K.M., Doherty, M.A., Hengeveld, J.C., Vajda, A., Pender, N., Hutchinson, S., Donaghy, C., McLaughlin, R.L., Hardiman, O., Bede, P., "Switchboard" malfunction in motor neuron diseases: Selective pathology of thalamic nuclei in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and primary lateral sclerosis, NeuroImage: Clinical, 27, 2020, Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Moloney PB, Hutchinson S, Heskin J, Mulcahy F, Langan Y, Conlon NP, Linas BP, Takashi C, Cervantes-Arslanian AM., Possible N methyl D asparatate receptor antibody mediated encephalitis in the setting of HIV cerebrospinal escape., Journal of Neurology, 267, (5), 2020, p1348 - 1352, Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Chipika RH, Christidi F, Finegan E, Li Hi Shing S, McKenna MC, Chang KM, Karavasilis E, Doherty MA, Hengeveld JC, Vajda A, Pender N, Hutchinson S, Donaghy C, McLaughlin RL, Hardiman O, Bede P. , Amygdala pathology in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and primary lateral sclerosis. , J Neurol Sci. , 2020, Notes: [2020 Jul 18:117039. doi: 10.1016/j.jns.2020.117039. Online ahead of print. PMID: 32713609], Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
Bede P, Chipika RH, Finegan E, Li Hi Shing S, Chang KM, Doherty MA, Hengeveld JC, Vajda A, Hutchinson S, Donaghy C, McLaughlin RL, Hardiman O., Progressive brainstem pathology in motor neuron diseases: Imaging data from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and primary lateral sclerosis. , Data in Brief, 2020, Notes: [2020 Feb 3;29:105229. doi: 10.1016/j.dib.2020.105229. eCollection 2020 Apr. PMID: 32083157 ], Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
C. Kerr and H. Adle-Biassette and P.B. Moloney and S. Hutchinson and J.B. Cryan and S. Clarke and F. Mulcahy and E. Devitt, CD8 encephalitis with CSF EBV viraemia and HIV drug resistance, a case series, Brain, Behavior, & Immunity - Health, 9, 2020, p100164 , Journal Article, PUBLISHED  DOI
  

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Neuroplasticity: motor skill acquisition and motor recovery after brain injury. During my elective in Harvard Medical School Neurology Residency I joined the lab of Gottfried Schlaug, Director of the Neuroimaging Laboratory who was investigating the effects of skill learning, particularly musical skill learning, on the brain and demonstrated using imaging techniques, changes in brain structure and function previously unexpected in adults - neuroplasticity. My initial project was to examine the differences in brain volume between a large cohort of professional musicians, non-professional musicians and non-musicians. I found significant differences in cerebellar volume that correlated with practice time between these groups - this work is one of the first descriptions of plasticity in musicians - it has been cited often since. Through this research I became very interested in the mechanisms of motor skill acquisition, the ability of the adult brain to change with practice and wondered about the similarity of this plasticity to the mechanisms of motor recovery following brain injury. I proposed that we investigate motor recovery in our stroke patients using functional MRI comparing them to age-matched controls. (Notably in normals we found significant age-related differences in functional MRI during simple motor activity - an unexpected finding but very relevant to our proposed fMRI study). Functional imaging had shown a diffuse network of activity in stroke recovery including ipsilateral motor cortex. The innovative part of my proposal was that we planned to use transcranial magnetic stimulation to investigate the connectivity and excitability of these diffuse regions of activity. With collaboration between the clinical expertise of Michael Alexander, Neurorehabilitaion, Gottfried Schlaug's Neuroimaging Lab, and Alvaro Pacual Leone's, TMS Lab, I was awarded the Harvard Medical School's Clinical Investigators Training Program. Our data obtained in stroke subjects and normals revealed novel effects between the hemispheres in both groups. I left the Neuroimaging Laboratory, and newly founded Stroke Recovery division supported with an RO1 program grant, to return to Ireland in 2003 for family reasons. Dystonia Research Group, SVUH On returning to Ireland, I joined with a group of clinicians and scientists in the Dystonia Research Group in St. Vincent's Hospital under Michael Hutchinson PI, who are investigating the phenotype-genotype relationship in primary dystonia. I worked in a clinician in the Dystonia Clinic - characterising the clinical phenotypes. We have demonstrated clinical sensory deficits in affected and unaffected members and found correlation between the extent of the sensory deficit and function of various brain regions. Notably in the Schlaug Lab researchers had demonstrated aberrant motor activity maps in people with task-specific dystonia, musician's cramp. The Dystonia Group in SVUH have developed that theme. Neuroimaging biomarkers of Frontotemporal Dementia Through the development of the Cognitive clinic in St. James's Hospital we have a significant cohort of young dementia patients - opening up many avenues for research. Currently two research fellows develop clinical expertise under my supervision in this clinic, through collaboration with Peter Bede and Orla Hardiman. We are interested in deep clinical phenotyping of these patients - primarily using imaging. This collaboration has focused on the FTD-MND population, but also FTD and MND sub-types - currently we are characterising the Primary Progressive Aphasia cohort. Collaboration Through my expertise in Cognitive Neurology I have collaborated with others in this field - previously with Brian Lawlor in the Memory Clinic in MISA, currently with Aoibhinn Lynch and Sean O'Dowd in supervision of research fellows and notably in the newly awarded Dementia Trials Ireland Clinical Trials Network directed by Iracema Leroi.