Meet The Scientific Committee

Maxillofacial Surgery (Lead Scientific Committee)

Prof. dr. Roman Hossein Khonsari

Hôpital Universitaire Necker Enfants-Malades

Professor of Neurosurgery

Prof. dr. Gianpiero Tamburrini

Gianpiero Tamburrini is Professor of Neurosurgery, Institute of Neurosurgery at the Catholic University Medical School in Rome, Italy and Chair of the Pediatric Neurosurgery Unit at the Fondazione Policlinico Gemelli IRCCS in Rome, Italy. He has been President of the European Society for Pediatric Neurosurgery (ESPN President 2021-2023) and President of the International Society for Pediatric Neurosurgery (ISPN President 2024-2025; he is member of the EANS Section of Pediatric Neurosurgery , Section Editor for the journal Child’s Nervous System , Associate Editor of the Journal Pediatric Neurosurgery and Pediatric Neurosurgery Section Editor for the Journal Turkish Neurosurgery , beyond being peer reviewer of Journal of Neurosurgery Pediatrics, World Neurosurgery, Neurosurgery. His main fields of expertise are cranial and spinal malformative pathologies, brain tumors, ventricular endoscopy for the management of hydrocephalus and CSF disorders, surgical treatment of pharmacoresistant epilepsy. He has been Author/coauthor of 275 peer reviewed impacted international papers and of 40 chapters of scientific books and has participated as Faculty to 85 International Pediatric Neurosurgery Courses (ESPN, ISPN, WFNS, IFNE, EANS) giving 190 invited lectures.

Clinical Psychologist

Kristin Billaud Feragen

Kristin Billaud Feragen, clinical psychologist and researcher, established psychological follow-up within Oslo cleft lip and palate team (Norway) in 2002 and was part of the team until 2015. Her PhD and post doc focussed on children and adolescents’ psychological adjustment to CLP. She has been the Research Coordinator at Centre for Rare Disorders, Oslo University Hospital since 2015, where her main research interest and focus has been rare craniofacial conditions, and the individual’s and family’s adjustment to the challenges of living with a visible and/or audible medical condition.

Associate Professor of Experimental Biology

dr. Wanda Lattanzi

Wanda Lattanzi, MD, PhD is Associate Professor of Experimental Biology at the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Rome and Medical Geneticist at Fondazione Policlinico Universitario A. Gemelli IRCCS. Her research focuses on the molecular and cellular mechanisms underlying craniosynostosis and bone regeneration, integrating genetics, stem-cell biology, and nanotechnology for innovative therapeutic strategies. Author of over 90 scientific publications (ORCID 0000-0003-3092-4936), she leads research projects funded by European and national agencies and coordinates multidisciplinary collaborations within ERN CRANIO, where she also chairs the Genetics Working Group.

Craniofacial Projects Manager (Children's Nurse)

Shirley Bracken

Shirley is a registered children’s nurse with almost 20 years’ experience in paediatric healthcare, firstly in Paediatric ICU and since 2011 with the craniofacial team as a Nurse Specialist for 7 years. Since 2018, she facilitates and coordinates research and clinical audit projects while supporting the clinical team with quality improvement initiatives, standards and ERN CRANIO related work.

She has a keen interest in encouraging nurses and health and social care professionals to become research-active. Shirley is a member of the steering committee for the National YPAG, which invites children and young people to share their voice and help shape child health research in Ireland. Shirley is also a member of her institutions’ Research Ethics Committee.

Patient Representative (ePAG)

Mariët Faasse

Mariët Faasse, MSc, is patient representative (ePAG) within ERN CRANIO and member of its Scientific Committee, advocating for people with craniosynostosis and other rare craniofacial conditions. She combines her role as healthcare professional and clinical health scientist with board membership of the Dutch patient association. Alongside her work as Nurse Anaesthetist, Mariët is pursuing a PhD on the perspectives, questions, and needs of patients and families living with these conditions. Her research, conducted in close collaboration with fellow ERN CRANIO ePAGs and a multidisciplinary team inside and outside ERN CRANIO, aims to shape a more patient- and person-centered care.