Joyce Bosmans

Joyce Bosmans

  • On 07/11/2023
Joyce Bosmans obtained a MSc in Clinical Psychology in 2019 at KU Leuven. During her internship at UPC KU Leuven campus Gasthuisberg and Kortenberg, she gained expertise in differentially diagnosing dementia and its subtypes. This internship inspired her to pursue dementia research. As such, Joyce obtained in 2023 a PhD in Medicine and Health Sciences at the University of Antwerp under supervision of prof. Vincent Van Rompaey, including a long research stay at the Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München under supervision of prof. Peter zu Eulenburg.
Her PhD focused on the association between peripheral vestibular function, balance, and cognition. More precisely, this research evaluated vestibular and balance function in older adults with reduced cognition, in this case Mild Cognitive Impairment and Alzheimer’s disease. This research question was also turned around and cognition was evaluated in older adults with reduced vestibular function, hence bilateral vestibulopathy. Furthermore, the effect (or rather: lack of effect) of vestibular loss on human brain morphology and hippocampal volume was assessed.
Because of her interest in human brain imaging, neuropsychology, and bridging the gap between fundamental research and clinical practice, Joyce is currently an excited member of the Neuropsychology Lab Leuven. Together with Prof. Céline Gillebert, prof. Adalberto Simeone, and dr. Hanne Huygelier, she is focusing on hemispatial neglect after stroke as a postdoctoral researcher. This research aims to assess the association between stroke-induced spatial attention biases and body deviations, using immersive VR, lesion-symptom mapping, and fMRI.
Translating research to the large audience is of utmost importance. As such, Joyce is a big enthusiast of science communication. She has participated in writing contests, has been a finalist in the PRESS>SPEAK presentation contest of the University of Antwerp, has taken over the FWO Instagram account for a week (#fwovlaanderen), and is active in translating her research into short and understandable videos (for example: https://stroom.uantwerpen.be/en/the-channel/joyce-bosmans-trains-the-brain-with-balance-exercises-).