Project Group

All steering committee members, and the following persons

Medical doctor (2011) & PhD (2019) from University of Copenhagen.

Pradeesh Sivapalan has conducted different clinical trials and epidemiological studies in COPD, corticosteroids, biomarkers and invasive pulmonary medicine and the results are published in recognized peer-reviewed journals, including The Lancet of Respiratory Medicine.

Dr. Sivapalan is currently working in the field of Personalized Medicine using biomarkers, Eosinophilic inflammation and Pharmacovigilance in COPD at the Section of Respiratory Medicine, Herlev and Gentofte Hospital.

https://dk.linkedin.com/in/pradeeshsivapalan

Josefin Eklöf graduated with a degree in Medicine from the University of Copenhagen, Denmark, in 2011 and has finalized the first part of the clinical training to specialize in Pulmonary Medicine. She has clinical and research interest in pulmonary infections and is currently the primary investigator of the multicenter randomized study TARGET ABC.

Link to Linkedin: https://dk.linkedin.com/in/josefin-ekl%C3%B6f-289539102

Christian Rønn is a medical doctor from Aarhus University. He is currently a PhD-student at the Respiratory Section of the Department of Internal Medicine, Gentofte Hospital. Christian has a special interest in COPD,  pulmonary infections and eosinophilic inflammation.

My name is Imane Achir Alispahic. I got my medical degree in 2015 from Copenhagen University. After 3.5 years of clinical work, I decided to explore another part of the medicine world: research. In order to be a full time researcher, I am now a Ph.D student in Gentofte Hospital in the Respiratory Department. My field of interest is last resort treatment for patient suffering from Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD).

My first article is an epidemiological study about patients with severe COPD, who were prescribed the medicine roflumilast. We looked at the effect of the medicine and if in fact reduces the risk for severe COPD exacerbation and death.

My second article will be about azithromycin use for COPD patients and the risk of developing cardiovascular events and even death. This article is in the protocol phase.

My last study is a randomised clinical study named HELICOPPTER trial. We want to look at the effect of anti-interleukin-5 (anti-IL5) in eosinophilic COPD patients and to see if this medicine could reduce the use of corticosteroids. This study will be conducted from medio 2020.

Ema Rastoder, graduated with a medical degree from the University of Copenhagen in 2017. After two years as a clinical worker I have decided to spend more time on research. During my time as a student I published an article in Pulmonary Medicine, “Chest X-Ray findings in tuberculosis patients identified by passive and active case finding.” I have two other publications, one in Pediatrics and one in Dermatology. I am currently working at the department of Pulmonary Medicine, Gentofte Hospital. My next project will be to investigate adverse events in COPD patients with short term use of oral corticosteroids.

Peter Kamstrup is a medical doctor from the University of Copenhagen in 2018 and is now a PhD-student at the Respiratory Section of the Department of Internal Medicine, Gentofte Hospital. He has previously worked at various departments of internal medicine and has an interest in COPD patients and their comorbidities and pulmonary infections.

Caroline Hedsund is a medical doctor from the Aarhus University (2014) and a specialist in training in Pulmonary Medicine. Caroline is currently a PhD-student at the Respiratory Section of the Department of Internal Medicine, Gentofte Hospital. Her clinical and research interests are COPD and respiratory failure, especially NIV and oxygen treatment.

Christian Kjer Heerfordt is a medical doctor from the University of Copenhagen (2018). He is currently working as a research assistant at the Respiratory Section of the Department of Internal Medicine, Gentofte Hospital. He has previously worked on various departments of internal medicine. His area of interest is COPD, pulmonary infections and side effects to inhalations steroids.

Email: christain.kjer.heerfordt@regionh.dk
Phone: +4523303431

PhD student at section of Respiratory Medicine, Department of Medicine at Herlev and Gentofte Hospital, University of Copenhagen.

Howraman Meteran is a medical doctor (2014) and PhD (2018) from University of Copenhagen. He has worked at various clinical departments in Copenhagen and lectured at several pre – and postgraduate courses.  Dr. Meteran has a special interest in obstructive lung diseases and has conducted both clinical and epidemiological studies in COPD, asthma and allergy. Dr. Meteran is currently working at the Section of Respiratory Medicine, Herlev and Gentofte Hospital.
Specialty registrar in Respiratory Medicine and Post Doc at Herlev-Gentofte Hospital. Interest in COPD, Asthma, Invasive pulmonary medicine and bronchiectasis.

Specializing in pulmonary medicine. Currently working at the Section of Respiratory Medicine, Herlev and Gentofte Hospital.

Researching in patients with COPD and asthma overlap syndrome.

Gentofte Hospital – Copenhagen University Hospital

Karin Armbruster, became medical doctor at the University of Zürich and specialized in Internal Medicin in Switzerland in 2004. She graduated in specialty of pulmonary medicine in Danmark in 2008 and is working now as a consultant in the pulmonary department of the University Hospital Gentofte (Denmark) responsible for the pulmonary ward and Sleep Apnea Out-patient-department.

Gentofte Hospital – Copenhagen University Hospital

Main subject are COPD exacerbations and acute treatment with NIV.
I am main supervisor for two phd students analyzing two randomized controlled trials on prevention of exacerbation with long term NIV and early lung rehabilitation after admission with a COPD exacerbation.

Aarhus University Hospital

Lars Pedersen works as staff specialist at the Department of Pulmonary Medicine, Bispebjerg Hospital. His main research area of interest is obstructive pulmonary diseases.

Bispebjerg Hospital – Copenhagen University Hospital
https://www.linkedin.com/in/lars-pedersen-5142b15?trk=hp-identity-name

Gentofte Hospital – Copenhagen University Hospital

Working as a Respiratory Consultant at Respiratory Medicine Section (Odense University Hospital)

Working as a Respiratory Consultant at Respiratory Medicine Department (Aalborg University Hospital)

In training to be a clinical microbiologist, at Department of Clinical Microbiology at Hvidovre Hospital. Main areas of interest are data analysis and molecular diagnostics hereunder bacterial whole genome sequencing. As a microbiologist I have primarily worked with MRSA and coagulase negative staphylococci. Involved with Coptrin in a project, were we retrospectively compare different antibiotics used for exacerbations in a large cohort of COPD patients.

MD from University of Copenhagen 2019.

Currently employed at the Research Unit, Department of Respiratory Medicine, Hvidovre University Hospital investigating the early origins of obstructive airway diseases. Other research areas include inhaled corticosteroid therapy for COPD patients in primary care.

Casper Tidemandsen graduated with a medical degree from the University of Aarhus in 2016 and currently he is a PhD student at University of Copenhagen – conducting his research at Hvidovre Hospital.  Dr. Tidemandsen has a special interest in obstructive lung diseases, especially the link between Asthma and infertility. Currently he is the lead researcher/investigator on the project: “Asthma and infertility in women – Exploring underlying mechanisms and management”, which consists of several studies.

Zitta works as an infectious disease specialist at the Department of Pulmonary Medicine and Infectious Diseases, at North Zealand University Hospital in Copenhagen.

Her main research area of interest is vaccination and vaccine preventable diseases.

I work as a Senior Registrar at Department of Pulmonary diseases, Odense University Hospital.

My main research area of interest is COPD, bronchiectasis, pulmonary infections. In my previous research, I have primarily studied biomarkers of inflammation in COPD.

Clinical research nurses

Dorthe Høgsberg is currently working as a study nurse and coordinator of clinical trials, at Gentofte Hospital, Respiratory Research department.

Graduated nurse in 2000. Since 2006 my work field has been within the respiratory area. Since 2010 as a study nurse and clinical study coordinator, also within the respiratory area performing, recruiting and coordinating clinical trials. Participating in COP: TRIN as a resource when recruiting, coordinating and collection of data.

A research nurse and project manager. Background in performing clinical trials, primarily pharmaceutical, for 25 years. Previously coordinator of implementing rehabilitation programme for COPD patients, co-project manager for a randomized multicenter trial on telemedicine for COPD patients.

Currently project manager developing an educational programme for monitoring nurses in a national deployment of telemedicine for COPD patients.

Participating in COP:TRIN as a resource when recruiting and data collecting.

Charlotte Sandau Bech is a Clinical Nursing Specialist at Hvidovre Hospital. Since 2017 she have had the degree of MSc in Health Science and is currently a Ph.D student at the University of Copenhagen. Research area of interest is the symptomatology of patients with COPD described by Patient Reported Outcomes and palliative care.

Jenny Villadsen is currently working as a study nurse with clinical trials at the Respiratory Research Department, Gentofte Hospital.

Registered nurse since 2005 with a degree of MSc in Health Science from 2011.

Work experience primarily within respiratory diseases and rheumatology.

Carmen Maria Villefrance is currently working as a study nurse with clinical trials at the Respiratory Research Department, Gentofte Hospital. Registered nurse since 2020.

Medical Students

Anna Kjær Kristensen studies medicine at the University of Copenhagen. She has during the last few years assisted on protocols and funding in the HELICOPPTER and CODEX-P study. Anna is especially interested in the interactions between the cardiovascular andrespiratory systems, which she is also currently studying in a project through CURE.

Link til Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anna-kjær-kristensen-403a5a16b/

Freja Stæhr Holm is a medical student and research assistant with a passion for pulmonary research. She participated in recruiting patients in the CORTICO-COP trial as well as writing an article “Acute lung injury in critically ill patients: Actin-scavenger gelsolin signals prolonged respiratory failure”  during her full-time research-year in 2017.

She is studying medicine at University of Copenhagen and writing protocols for new projects in the research unit. Her interests is primarily in COPD and clinical trials.

Physioterapist. University College Copenhagen. June 2012

Can.Med. University of Copenhagen. Jan 2020.

Research assistent. Respiratory Research Unit, Gentofte Hospital. Jan 2018 –

Christina Marisa Bergsøe is a medical student at the University of Copenhagen. She works as a research assistant at Section of Respiratory Medicine, Department of Medicine at Herlev and Gentofte Hospital. Christina assists in writing study protocol and research funding for the COPERnICOS trial. This study investigates the treatment response of eosinophile-guided reduction of inhaled corticosteroid in patients with severe chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

Jens-Kristian Bomholt-Riis is working as a research assistant at Section for Respiratory Medicine, Department of Clinical Medicine, Herlev-Gentofte Hospital. He is working with the COR-OXY-COP study, investigating the significance of titrated oxygen supply for COPD patients with acute exacerbation. Apart from this he is writing study protocols, doing research funding and conducting epidemiological studies.

I have graduated as a doctor from King Edward Medical University, Lahore. Currently I am working as a research assistant at Herlev and Gentofte Hospital Respiratory Medicine section. My area of interest is COPD and effect of corticosteroids on the incidence of various infections.

Alexander Svorre Jordan is a medical student at the University of Copenhagen. He works as a research assistant at Section of

Respiratory Medicine, Department of Medicine at Herlev and Gentofte Hospital where he conducts epidemiological studies with a  current focus on the relation between treatment with inhaled corticosteroids and psychiatric side effects and depression.

Valdemar Rømer is a medical student at the University of Copenhagen. He works as a research assistant at Section of Respiratory Medicine, Department of Medicine at Herlev and Gentofte Hospital.