HD Spotlight in Asia (Founder and Director of Movement Disorders Center in Thailand)
HD Spotlight in Asia
Professor Roongroj Bhidayasiri, M.D. – Founder and Director of Movement Disorders Center in Thailand
Short Biography
Dr. Bhidayasiri’s major interest is in movement disorders and he also leads many national and international clinical research trials in Parkinson’s disease. Significantly, he leads a Parkinson’s disease registry in Thailand in collaboration with the Thai Red Cross society, the Ministry of Public Health, Bangkok Metropolitan and the National Health Security Office of Thailand. Moreover, he works as the chair of the scientific committee of the Parkinson’s disease guidelines in Thailand, the director for Chulalongkorn Comprehensive Movement Disorders Center and an associate professor for Chulalongkorn University Hospital in Bangkok. He is also the president of Thai Parkinson’s Disease Society and a visiting associate professor of neurology for David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.
In addition to his specific works on Parkinson’s disease, he is also the founder and director of the Chulanlongkorn Comprehensive Movement Disorders Center and has treated over 10 families with Huntington’s disease in Thailand. He recounted a story about a patient with Huntington’s disease, who wrote a letter to the Queen of Thailand for help because her family members thought she was possessed by a demon and made her go through traumatizing exorcism. For more information on Mental illness and Exorcism Across Different Cultures, please refer to our article.
Moreover, most physicians in Thailand don’t recognize the symptoms of Huntington’s disease and misunderstand them as Parkinson’s disease. His goal is to raise more awareness about Huntington’s disease and other rare motor disorders in Thailand through outreach events and educational online sources, using HOPES as a model.
Medical Degree and Training:
Dr. Bhidayasiri graduated in medicine at Chulalongkorn University in 1994. He received the membership of the Royal College of Physicians of London and Ireland in 1998 and was certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology in 2005. Awarded the fellowship of the Royal College of Physicians of London in 2008 and the Royal College of Physicians of Ireland in 2010.
Primary Research Interest/project:
His research interest lies in movement disorders, particularly the clinical aspects and advanced therapeutics of Parkinson’s disease. He has published over 70 articles in peer-reviewed journals and has served in the editor-in-chief of the Thai Journal of Neurology and also a reviewer of more than 10 international journals on neurological disorders. He also serves as a writing committee panel member of the American Academy of Neurology on the practice parameters of movement disorders.
Contact information:
To make appointment and direct inquiry to Dr. Bhidayasiri, please refer to his contact form on Thai Parkinson’s disease Clinic website.