Lars Vedel Kessing

Lars Vedel Kessing serves as a Clinical Professor in the Department of Clinical Medicine within the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences at the University of Copenhagen. His primary affiliation is with the Psychiatry section, maintaining dual institutional connections between the university and Copenhagen University Hospital (Region Hovedstaden) as indicated by his regionh.dk email address and Glostrup/Copenhagen addresses.

Professor Kessing's research program focuses on clinical, epidemiological, genetic and neurobiological aspects of affective disorders, with particular emphasis on depression, mania, and bipolar disorder. His primary scientific aims investigate biological (including genetic) and psychological risk factors for onset, course, and outcomes in these conditions, while also examining cognition and dementia risk in affective disorders. A notable ongoing EU-funded project involves developing a mobile phone-based electronic monitoring application for bipolar disorder management.

His 2025 publications demonstrate strong contemporary activity across multiple fronts: biomarker research in bipolar disorder, twin studies examining cognitive predictors, stratified treatment algorithms through the Horizon Europe Psych-STRATA project, psychoeducation for relatives, neuroimaging correlates of comorbid conditions, and sleep-cognition relationships in remitted patients. These works collectively advance precision psychiatry approaches through biomarker validation, personalized treatment development, and ecological monitoring solutions.

Award highlights include:

• 2001 H. Nielsen's prize for research in pathogenesis of affective disorders
• 2004 Eli og Egon Larsens Foundation prize for quality assurance in clinical treatment
• 2010 NARSAD Bipolar Mood Disorder Prize for Outstanding Achievement in Bipolar Mood Disorder Research

With over 573 research outputs spanning journal articles, reviews, and book chapters, Kessing maintains extensive collaborations across Europe. His work integrates clinical psychiatry with cutting-edge neurobiological and genetic methodologies, while leading the development of digital health tools for mood disorder management. Current projects like the EU-funded mobile monitoring application represent translational efforts to bridge research findings with clinical practice.