Sillanpaa Matti

I was born as the second of six children to a farmer family. My love to animals and nature is since early childhood. Following graduation from high school (1955) and national military service (1956, First sanitary leutenant), I entered medical school in Turku and finished my primary medical studies (1962) and completed training in pediatrics in Turku (1967) and in child neurology in Uppsala with the great Bengt Hagberg (1969). After specialist training, I finished my PhD studies in pediaric epileptology (1973). My first academic posts were in Turku as Assistant Professor of Pediatrics and in Tampere as Assistant Professor of Child Neurology. Besides clinical medicine, I was interested in population health. That led me to the post of Professor of Public Health in Turku (1976). In 1990, I made a comeback to child neurology and held the first, brandnew post of Professor of Child Neurology in Finland and in the Northern Countries. I entered emeritus status in 2001, but I still have a passion for scientific research, despite my age (89 years). I have followed my motto "He who rests, rests". My current roles are as research project director, superviser of theses and writinf of medical papers.

In science, I could combine clinical and epidemiological aspects of diseases. Children with epilepsy, their various medical and social challenges became my most important object of research. My unique prospective follow-up study of children with epilepsy for over six decades is still continuing and yields invaluable information on the effects of childhood onset epilepsy on brain aging in the elderly. Other child neurological study objects have included, among other things, pediatric neuropharmacology, pediatric chronic morbidity, disorders of developing nervous system, family competence in bringing up of children, migraine and headache, organization of the Finnish healthcare system in general and pediatric neurological care in particular. I'm happy to have had collaborators, such as Shlomo Shinnar, Carol and Peter Camfield, Bruce Hermann and Dieter Schmidt. I have also authored several academic level textbooks and book chapters.

Since 1965, I have participated in the activities of numerous professional and laymen organizations on a national level, established three professional societies and worked as chair or board member in many Scandinavian, European and World organizations, scientific medical journal boards and organizing committees of medical congresses.

My leizure interests include singing in male choir, playing clarinette and saxophone in orchestra, chivaldrous orders, war litterature and forestry.