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Prof. dr. J. Terpstra Award Amée Buziau

Prof. dr. J. Terpstra Award Amée Buziau

9 November 2026

Dr Amée Buziau (Dept of Internal Medicine) received this year’s Prof. Dr. J. Terpstra Young Investigator Award at the Annual Dutch Diabetes Meeting (NVDO).

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Luisa Wensky wins the FIGON PhD Student Competition

Luisa Wensky wins the FIGON PhD Student Competition

3 November 2026

Luisa Wensky, a third-year PhD candidate in the Department of Internal Medicine, has won the PhD Student Competition at the 2026 FIGON-LDDC Dutch Medicines Days. 

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Carim Maastricht
Carim Maastricht

Hans-Peter Brunner-La Rocca

Professor

Prof. Hans-Peter Brunner-La Rocca has graduated in medicine at the University of Zurich, Switzerland. He was trained in Internal Medicine and Cardiology in Switzerland. After doing a post-doc in Melbourne, Australia, for two years, he had been working as cardiologist and heart failure specialist in Zurich. In 2002, he moved to Basel, where he was responsible for the heart failure and heart transplant services. He has obtained his lecture qualification both in Zurich and in Basel and was announced as Professor in Basel Switzerland in 2008. Since 2009, he has been working at Maastricht UMC+ as Professor of Clinical Heart Failure. He is head of the heart failure clinic and head of the division of structural heart diseases.

He has been involved in numerous research projects since many years. In particular, he has a special interest in personalised medicine in heart failure using biomarkers and has successfully led international studies related to this topic. In addition, eHealth is an important focus of research. He has published >250 research articles.

He has been working as member of different working groups of the Heart Failure Association of the European Society of Cardiology and is board member of working group on heart failure in the Netherlands.

On the one hand, he is continuing his research on biomarker in heart failure for therapy guidance. He is collaborating internationally on this topic and is participating in several large international projects in this regard. On the other hand, he is leading an international consortium, aiming to develop a personalized eHealth application to enable patients with heart failure to perform self-care, i.e. including self-prescription of medication. Recently, the consortium received 4.4 M€ to support this project from INTERREG-NWE (budget Maastricht UMC+ > 2.0 M€).

He is additionally involved in national research projects (e.g. heart-brain connection, supported by CVON) and is the local PI of several large industry sponsored RCTs. In one of them, he is the national coordinator for the Netherlands.

Hans-peter-brunner-la-rocca

Department of Cardiology
P. Debyelaan 25, 6229 HX Maastricht 
PO Box 5800, 6202 AZ Maastricht
Room number: 3.B2.031
T: +31(0)43 387 70 97

  • 2026
    • Ye, Y., Colombo, M., Meessen, J., Tyl, B., Novelli, D., Hajizadeh, N., Brunner-La Rocca, H.-P., Voors, A., Klas, S., Schwers, S., Follin, B., & Latini, R. (2026). Why Circulating Interleukin-6 Is Not Yet a Standalone Clinically Actionable Biomarker inHFrEF: A Context-of-Use Review. European Journal of Clinical Investigation, 56(10), Article e70261. https://doi.org/10.1111/eci.70261
    • Venema, C. S., Venner, M., Achten, A., Ouwerkerk, W., Raafs, A., Mourmans, S., Sikking, M., Rocca, H. P. B. L., Heymans, S., van Empel, V. P. M., Hummel, Y., Ezekowitz, J., Hoendermis, E., Voors, A. A., Wykrzykowska, J. J., Knackstedt, C., Tromp, J., & Weerts, J. (2026). Automated assessment of echocardiograms to aid diagnosis of heart failure with preserved ejection fraction. European Heart Journal - Digital Health, 7(8), Article ztag142. https://doi.org/10.1093/ehjdh/ztag142
    • Overmars, M., Allaart, C., Bron, E. E., Brunner La Rocca, H.-P., de Bresser, J., Muller, M., van Osch, M. J. P., Teunissen, C., Tijms, B. M., Wolters, F. J., & Biessels, G. J. (2026). Bayesian networks to estimate prognosis in vascular cognitive impairment and small vessel disease: Integrated analyses of interdependent contributors to multiple outcomes. Journal of Cerebral Blood Flow and Metabolism. https://doi.org/10.1177/0271678X261496217
    • Herrmann, J. J., Brunner-La Rocca, H.-P., Baltussen, L. E. H. J. M., Beckers-Wesche, F., Bekkers, S. C. A. M., Bellersen, L., Van Eck, J. W. M., Hassing, H. C., Jaarsma, T., Linssen, G. C. M., Pisters, R., Sanders-Van Wijk, S., Verdijk, M. H., Rodwell, L., van Kimmenade, R. R. J., & Gommans, D. H. F. (2026). The effect of a change in fluid intake advice on outcomes in chronic heart failure: a prespecified subanalysis of the FRESH-UP study. Esc heart failure, 13(5), Article xvag197. https://doi.org/10.1093/eschf/xvag197
    • Baugh, C. W., Luo, A., Zeuthen, C., Samadian, K. D., De Armas, R. E., Senter-Zapata, M., Zellweger, M. J., & Brunner-Larocca, H. P. (2026). Artificial Intelligence-Driven Cost Savings from Emergency Department Chest Pain Patient Evaluation: A Monte Carlo Simulation. Western Journal of Emergency Medicine, 27(5), 1340-1352. https://doi.org/10.5811/westjem.56973
    • Zwetsloot, P.-P., Henkens, M. T. H. M., van Iperen, E. P. A., Minten, M., van der Schaaf-de Wolf, E., van Laake, L. W., te Riele, A. S. J. M., van der Harst, P., van Setten, J., van Empel, V. P. M., Brunner-La Rocca, H.-P., Verdonschot, D. J. A. J., Cox, M. G. P. J., Christiaans, I., Ajmone Marsan, N., van Spaendonck-Zwarts, K., Barge-Schaapveld, D. Q. C. M., Cramer, E., Hoedemakers, Y. M., ... DCR Investigators (2026). The Dutch cardiomyopathy registry (DCR); rationale and registry design. Netherlands Heart Journal, 34(9), 288-298. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12471-026-02063-5
    • Allach, Y., de Jong, M. B. . L., Clephas, P. R. D., Abou Kamar, S., Rocca, H. P. B.-L., Handoko, M. L., van Halm, V. P., Kok, W. E. M., Asselbergs, F. W., van Kimmenade, R. R. J., Beeres, S. L. M. A., Rienstra, M., Szymanski, M. K., de Boer, R. A., Kardys, I., & Brugts, J. J. (2026). Pathophysiological analysis of serially measured plasma biomarkers, remote monitoring and clinical events, in symptomatic patients with moderate to severe chronic heart failure. IJC Heart and Vasculature, 65, Article 101970. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijcha.2026.101970
    • Rijks, J. H. J., van Koll, J., Burri, H., Curila, K., van Dijk, V. F., Hauer, A., van Opstal, J. M., de Pooter, J., Rademakers, L. M., Timmer, S. A. J., Wieringa, W., Essers, B. A. B., van Kuijk, S. M. J., Brunner-La Rocca, H.-P., Vernooy, K., & Luermans, J. (2026). Permanent LEft ventricular septAl Pacing vs. right ventricular pacing in patients with atrioventricular conduction disorders-a randomized trial: rationale and design of the LEAP trial. European heart journal open, 6(4), Article oeag108. https://doi.org/10.1093/ehjopen/oeag108
    • Sunderland, N., Asselin, G., Henry, A., Nelson, C. P., Lemieux Perreault, L. P., Asselbergs, F. W., Boersma, E., Cappola, T. P., Chazara, O., Chutkow, W., Cyr, M. C., Gkatzionis, A., Gui, H., Haefliger, C., Hedman, Å. K., Hillege, H., Hyde, C. L., Kamanu, F. K., Kardys, I., ... Lumbers, R. T. (2026). Body Mass Index, Clinical Outcomes, and Mortality in Heart Failure: A Mendelian Randomization Study. Journal of the American College of Cardiology, 87(21), 2981-2992. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jacc.2026.02.5093
    • Sikking, M. A., Peisker, F., Maatz, H., Lopez-Anguita, N., Hazebroek, M. R., Henkens, M. T. H. M., Raafs, A. G., Heymans, A. B. M., Stroeks, S. L. V. M., Abdul Hamid, M. A., Li, X., Vicenzetto, C., Caforio, A. L. P., Brunner-La Rocca, H.-P., Knackstedt, C., van Paassen, P., van Empel, V. P. M., Hubner, N., Verdonschot, J. A. J., & Heymans, S. R. B. (2026). Improved outcome up to 10 years after intravenous immunoglobulin therapy in patients with dilated cardiomyopathy. European journal of heart failure. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1093/ejhf/xuag134
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