Davide Balos Cappon M.S., Ph.D.

Davide Balos Cappon, M.S., Ph.D. is the neuropsychologist at the Deanna and Sidney Wolk Center for Memory Health and an Assistant Scientist of the Hinda and Arthur Marcus Institute for Aging Research at Hebrew SeniorLife, and an Assistant Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School.

Dr. Cappon, as a clinician-scientist, has a multidisciplinary background with specific training and expertise in clinical translational research involving device-based neuromodulation techniques such as transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS), transcranial electrical stimulation (tES) and deep brain stimulation (DBS). He conducted numerous studies examining the mechanisms, safety, and efficacy of these novel noninvasive therapeutic approaches to improve psychiatric symptoms and cognitive functions in aging and neurodegenerative diseases.

A major focus of Dr. Cappon’s research is on making precise symptom-specific circuit-based neuromodulation therapy more accessible to older adults with cognitive and mood disorders. He has developed novel methods and procedures for the safe, remotely monitored, multi-channel application of tES to older adults in their homes (HB-tES). Dr. Cappon is now investigating the use of a personalized novel and scalable home-based neuromodulation interventions that address the undertreatment of depression and other psychiatric symptoms in the context of dementia. 

At Hebrew SeniorLife, another central theme of Dr. Cappon's research is preserving and lengthening healthy aging across the lifespan. Serving on the executive committee of Hebrew SeniorLife’s Healthy Aging Initiative in collaboration with investigators from the Marcus Institute, Dr. Cappon is working on expanding our understanding of multimodal factors determining lifelong health. The initiative will identify physical and mental health markers across the lifespan and promote multimodal interventions that support health and prevent age-related cognitive decline, adopting a whole-person approach to health, aging, and well-being.

Prior to coming to Hebrew SeniorLife, Dr. Cappon was trained at the UCL's Functional Neurosurgery Unit at the National Hospital of Neurology and Neurosurgery in Queen Square, London, UK, and has been engaged in translational research at Harvard Medical School since January 2018, where he has completed fellowships in neuromodulation in dementia at the Berenson Allen Center-Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and in geriatric neuropsychiatry at the Marcus Institute.

Education

B.S., Università degli Studi di Trieste
M.S., Università degli Studi di Padova
Ph.D., UCL (University College London) and Università degli Studi di Padova
Fellowships: Harvard Medical School (Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Hebrew Rehabilitation Center)

Certification

Massachusetts Board of Registration of Psychologists