Prof. Dr. med. Concezio Di Rocco

Prof. Dr. med. Concezio Di Rocco is one of the most internationally renowned and experienced pediatric neurosurgeons. Over several decades, he has played a major role in shaping modern pediatric neurosurgery through his clinical practice, scientific work, international teaching, and leadership positions in the world’s leading professional societies in the field.

Throughout his exceptional clinical career, Prof. Di Rocco has performed more than 12,000 neurosurgical procedures, covering the full spectrum of complex neurosurgical disorders in children and adolescents.

His particular areas of expertise include the treatment of brain and spinal cord tumors, hydrocephalus, arachnoid cysts, craniosynostosis, congenital malformations of the brain and spinal cord, and complex craniovertebral and spinal malformations. These include hemimegalencephaly, cortical dysplasia, lipomyelomeningocele, myelomeningocele, spinal lipoma, and Chiari type I malformation. His clinical expertise also extends to neurophacomatoses and drug-resistant epilepsy in children.

Since May 2014, Prof. Di Rocco has been based at the International Neuroscience Institute (INI) Hannover, where he serves as Director of the Department of Pediatric Neurosurgery. Under his leadership, children and adolescents with complex neurosurgical disorders receive highly specialized surgical treatment aimed at combining effective treatment with the greatest possible preservation of neurological function and long-term development.

Before moving to Hannover, Prof. Di Rocco held numerous senior academic and clinical positions at the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Rome. Among other responsibilities, he directed the Institute of Neurosurgery and its neurosurgical residency program, as well as major clinical and academic programs in pediatrics, pediatric neurosciences, and neurosciences.

A particularly important academic milestone in his career was his appointment to the first Chair of Pediatric Neurosurgery in Italy. This reflected his pioneering role in establishing and developing pediatric neurosurgery as a highly specialized discipline within modern neurosurgery.

His international standing is further reflected by numerous leadership positions within the major neurosurgical societies worldwide. Prof. Di Rocco served as President of the International Society for Pediatric Neurosurgery (ISPN) and President of the European Society for Pediatric Neurosurgery (ESPN). He also served as Vice-President of the European Association of Neurosurgical Societies (EANS) and as Chairman of the Pediatric Committee of the World Federation of Neurosurgical Societies (WFNS).

In addition to his clinical work, Prof. Di Rocco has made a major contribution to the scientific development of pediatric neurosurgery. From 2000 to 2025, he served as Editor-in-Chief of Child’s Nervous System, one of the leading international scientific journals dedicated to pediatric neurosurgery and the official journal of the International Society for Pediatric Neurosurgery. He continues to contribute to international neurosurgical publishing as an editor of major scientific publications and book series.

His scientific work comprises more than 390 scientific publications, books, and book chapters. His research covers a broad spectrum of pediatric neurosurgery and has contributed particularly to advancing the understanding and treatment of hydrocephalus, craniosynostosis, congenital malformations, brain and spinal cord tumors, and other complex neurosurgical disorders of childhood.

A central part of Prof. Di Rocco’s professional legacy is his commitment to the international education and training of generations of pediatric neurosurgeons. He has taught and mentored pediatric neurosurgeons worldwide and has been invited internationally as a lecturer, scientific faculty member, and expert. Through his clinical work, international educational activities, scientific publications, and leadership within professional societies, he has had a lasting influence on the development of pediatric neurosurgery far beyond Europe.

Prof. Di Rocco combines exceptional surgical experience with decades of scientific and academic expertise. His work represents a highly specialized approach to pediatric neurosurgery that combines microsurgical precision with a comprehensive understanding of the unique anatomical, functional, and developmental requirements of children and adolescents.