Alexander Olsen
Alexander Olsen, førsteamanuensis, NTNU
Hovedinnhold
- Neuroimaging
- Traumatic Brain Injury
- Cognitive Control
- Sleep
- eHealth
Research interests:
I am an associate professor at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) and a clinical neuropsychologist at the St. Olavs Hospital, Trondheim University Hospital.
My primary research activities focus on understanding the consequences of brain injury and disease using functional and structural brain imaging, as well as clinical and behavioral measures. As a scientist and clinician, I aim to contribute with important scientific progress through leading and participating in research programs ranging from basic to clinical research.
I have both scientific and clinical experience working with patients with acquired brain injury of all severities, and I am one of several PIs in the large multidisciplinary Trondheim Traumatic Brain Injury Research Group. In 2016, I also established the Clinical Neuroscience Laboratory (CNL) at NTNU. As the director of CNL I am leading a team of technical staff, post docs and ph.d. candidates, and collaborate with numerous regional, national and international partners. At CNL we focus on investigating the consequences of brain injury and disease as well as the effects of treatment and neurorehabilitation by combining advanced neuroimaging and brain stimulation techniques with wearable sensor technologies, neurocognitive assessments and clinical measures. We also have a special interest in investigating the neural correlates of cognitive control function, sleep health and fatigue. This is motivated by the transdiagnostic clinical importance of these phenomena for patient outcomes across different neurological and psychiatric conditions.
In 2018, I initiated the ENIGMA (Enhancing NeuroImaging Genetics through Meta-Analysis) adult moderate/severe traumatic brain injury (msTBI) working group, which is a global large-scale team-science platform for investigating the consequences of brain injury using advanced neuroimaging. I am currently co-leading this working group with Professor Frank Hillary (Penn State, US). Through our approach, we will provide resources and solutions (e.g., pipelines for data analysis, resources for sharing data) for researchers to ensure low threshold for participation in a global effort toward increased knowledge of the consequences traumatic brain injury.
Another focus of my work is aimed at developing and testing new digital tools for improved brain health. This has led to several research-based innovations built around wireless sensor technology, digital symptom-mapping, and clinical decision support systems. As an extension of this work, in 2019, I became a co-founder and owner of the NTNU/St. Olavs Hospital spin-off company Nordic Brain Tech AS.
I am also the current president of the Norwegian Neuropsychological Society.
Contact information:
