Co-Ordinator

 

Prof. Dr Berthold Koletzko  University of Munich  Div. Metabolic Disorders and Nutrition  Lindwurmstraße 4  80337 München  Germany  Tel: +49 89 51603967  Fax: +49 89 51603336  E-mail:  bkoletz@helios.med.uni-muenchen.de

THE MUNICH TEAM

The German team work in three institutes.
The first of the three is the Ludwig-Maximilian's University (medical faculty). Prof. Berthold Koletzko, the principal investigator of the EU Childhood Obesity Programme, is Professor of Paediatrics and head of a team of physicians and researchers at the Dr. von Hauner's children's hospital. In his ward he treats many children, particularly those with renal diseases, metabolic disorders, neurologic disorders and infections.
Hans Demmelmair, a scientist, also works at the Dr. von Hauner's children's hospital. He works in the (metabolism) laboratory. Initially, he was involved in the study set up and is responsible for financial affairs within the scope of the Chopin study.

Doris Oberle is a biologist with further education in medical biometry. She was also involved in the study set up, designed the questionnaires regarding infantile behaviour as well as a part of the CRF. She collaborates with the contract research organisation (CRO), will set up the statistical analysis plan and perform the statistical analysis. She coordinates the study centres in five countries and organises Technical Committee and Steering Committee Meetings as well as Technical Workshops. She is engaged in all correspondence with the EU Commission and writes the annual EU reports. Sabine Verwied-Jorky is the nutritionist responsible for the food records and the parent questionnaires concerning the feeding behaviour of their babies. In addition, she organises Teaching Sessions for dieticians. Sonia Schiess is a nutritionist, working on her Master's thesis which focuses on the crying behaviour in relation to the type of infant nutrition.
Hildegard Debertin, a nutritionist, is engaged in the recruitment of children in another hospital in Munich with a big maternity unit.
Ilse Broekaert is a physician also working at the Dr. von Hauner's children's hospital. Her duties in the EU Programme included the design and revision of the medical history CRF. She recruits the children and performs the medical examination. Ilse Broekaert will soon be assisted by Iris Hannibal, a physician, who is joining the German study team. Jan Martens is a MD student. He performs the doubly labelled water procedure in the German study centre.

Anna Reith and Renate Hofmann work at the second institute, the children's department of the Klinikum Nürnberg Süd, a hospital in Nuremberg. Anna Reith, a physician, recruits children and performs their medical examination. Renate Hofmann is a study nurse. She is responsible for recruitment, medical recording and arranging dates with mothers.

The third institute, based in Munich, is Dr. Schauerte Studien und Marketing in der Medizin. It is an independent CRO with its focus on randomised clinical trials and post-marketing surveillance studies. Til Richardsen, a co-worker of Dr. Schauerte, set up the remote-data-entry program and supervises the data management of the EU Childhood Obesity Programme.

Monika Hermann who was involved in the initial planning of the study and Björn Hoffmann the second Chopin physician at the Dr. von Hauner's children's hospital have left the German study team.