Bo Christer Bertilson

Bo Christer Bertilson

Affiliated to Teaching/Tutoring
Visiting address: Alfred Nobels Allé 23, 14183 Huddinge
Postal address: H1 Neurobiologi, vårdvetenskap och samhälle, H1 Allmänmedicin och primärvård, 171 77 Stockholm

About me

  • Research leader ME/CFS and Pain and Movement disorders
    and Coordinator Academic Development
    I am a MD and a licensed sports medical physician. In 2009 I earned a PhD
    by defending my thesis "/*On the assessment of nerve involvement and of
    dysfunction in patients with spinal pain”*. /I now serve as research
    leader at the Medect Clinical Trials and Bragée pain clinic and of the Pain
    Inflammation and Fatigue (PIAF) network at Karolinska Institutet.
    https://kise.sharepoint.com/teams/GRP_PIAF [1]
    As a researcher, focus is on diagnostic methods and treatment of
    non-specific pain and dysfunction including ME/CFS, Fibromyalgia, IBS and
    similar dysfunctions that often develop after whiplash trauma. I am the
    writer/co-writer of about 20 referee reviewed and about 80 medical
    student/resident scientific publications. I have served as reviewer of
    scientific articles and PhD opponent and am presently coordinator of
    scientific development at Academic Primary Care Center and on the research
    board for NRH Trauma Riks. https://www.nrhtrauma.se/vetenskapligtrad/ [2]
    As a teacher, I have given thousands of lectures/seminars/courses on
    subjects such as pain diagnostics, sports and orthopaedic medicine and
    health promotion, injection technique, research planning, and scientific
    writing and presentation. I presently supervise three PhD students and half
    a dozen medical students and resident physicians in their scientific work.
    As a physician I have conducted more than 100.000 patient visits and served
    as National Team physician to the Handball and Track and Field
    Associations. Also as medical advisor to several patient organisations, to
    the Swedish Social Insurance Agency central office in Stockholm and on
    several regional and national boards tasked with reports and guidelines on
    the care of patients with pain, for example "Nationellt uppdrag - Smärta".
    https://webbutik.skr.se/sv/artiklar/nationellt-uppdrag-smarta.html [3]
    In 2002 I wrote the book "Att diagnostisera kluriga fall" (To Diagnose Tricky
    Cases") which has been used at KI and other medical universities. The
    book is, by request, being translated to english. To further the diagnostic
    accuracy and effective care of patients with "non-specific pain and
    dysfunction" I have, in cooperation, with dedicated colleagues developed a
    digital application named "/*Paint IT*/" and Artificial Intelligence (AI)
    algorithms to assess patient made discomfort (pain) drawings.
    1975 Top 5% grade point average, Brigham Young
    Univ. United States
    1992-1994 Chairman, Stockholm Sports Medical Society
    1995-2001 Team physician, National Handball and Track and Field Team
    2000 Swedish Family Medicine Research Award by
    Astra
    2000-2004 Expert government central insurance office in Stockholm
    for investigation of patients
    with whiplash/non-specific pain
    dysfunction
    2004-2006 Expert and primary care representative in Stockholm County
    Council work on medical programs
    for musculoskeletal
    functions, pain, lumbar pain, rheumatism, and whiplash
    2005 “Spine physician of the year”, Swedish
    Spine Association
    2012-2014 Expert, National Board of Health and Welfare, Council for
    radiology of the spine and
    chronic pain
    2015-2016 Mentor4research scholarship recipient at The Royal Swedish
    Academy of Engineering Sciences for
    pain app innovation
    2016-17 Expert and primary care representative in the national
    collaborative committee for future directions in knowledge for
    “National assignment on pain”
    https://webbutik.skr.se/bilder/artiklar/pdf/7585-444-1.pdf
    2020- Member, decision body, Stockholm Region
    Innovation Fund
    Highest ranked research article in Spine on reliability of physical
    examination tests used in the assessment of patients with shoulder problems
    according to systematic review 2010, /“Reliability of physical examination
    tests used in the assessment of patients with shoulder problems: a systematic
    review”/
    Most viewed research article in Frontiers Neurology /“Signs of Intracranial
    Hypertension, Hypermobility, and Craniocervical Obstructions in Patients With
    Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome” /
    /http://loop-impact.frontiersin.org/impact/article/513006#totalviews/views/
    Education and degrees: Degree in Medicine at Karolinska Institutet (KI), 1983
    (M.D.)
  • Registered physician in medicine, 1985
  • Specialist in Family
    Medicine, 1991
  • and Doctor of Medical Science (Ph.D.) at KI, 2009.
    [1] https://kise.sharepoint.com/teams/GRP_PIAF
    [2] https://www.nrhtrauma.se/vetenskapligtrad/
    [3] https://webbutik.skr.se/sv/artiklar/nationellt-uppdrag-smarta.html

Research

Teaching

  • My teaching competence is primarily in the area of pain and orthopaedic
    assessment, including assessment of clinical and radiological findings.
    Secondly in teaching scientific planning and writing. My current teaching
    includes lectures, seminars and supervision of medical and PhD students and
    residents in their research projects.
    Teaching is my favorite work. I believe it is the greatest calling, a
    privilege and an opportunity to improve and elevate mankind and society, or
    as Nelson Mandela said, “Education is the most powerful weapon which you
    can use to change the world”.
    My teaching experience goes back to my time as a teenage scout leader, when
    “learning by doing” was the motto. Later, during medical school, I taught
    physics, biology, math and more to college students part-time. Since becoming
    a physician in the 1980s, I have spent thousands of hours preparing course
    and lesson material and teaching medicine to KI and Region Stockholm students
    and health professionals, mainly the subjects of pain, orthopaedics and
    sports medicine. Since the 1970s, I have also taught weekly in the community
    on healthy living, drugs, non-violence and spiritual and ethical topics to
    groups of 10 to a 1000 persons.
    Since my dissertation in 2009 I have spent a total of about 1200 hours on
    active clinical and scientific teaching and about 800 hours supervising 1 to
    3 medical students each semester.

Articles

Employments

  • Affiliated to Teaching/Tutoring, Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society, Karolinska Institutet, 2023-2024

Degrees and Education

  • Degree Of Doctor Of Philosophy, Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society, Karolinska Institutet, 2009
  • Licentiate Degree, Department of Clinical Science, Intervention and Technology, Karolinska Institutet, 2003

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