Dr Ikonomidou is a physician researcher specialized in Pediatric Neurology. Her research has and continues to focus on neurodegenerative and neurodevelopmental disorders. Dr Ikonomidou and her team discovered that imbalance between gutamatergic excitatory and GABAergic inhibitory neurotransmission in the developing brain can lead to massive apoptotic neuronal death and subsequent neurologic, cognitive and mental disabilities. Several pediatric drugs, including sedatives, anesthetics and anticonvulsants utilize these mechanisms to elicit their therapeutic effects and bear the potential to cause brain injury during critical periods of brain development. This line of research led to several highly cited publications and has influenced how we tailor treatment of infants and young children with sedatives, anesthetics and antiepileptics. Dr Ikonomidou published work showing that, in the adult brain, N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors are critical for neuronal survival following traumatic injury and compromised mitochondrial energy metabolism. She was an early advocate of the idea that stimulation of synaptic NMDA receptors is crucial for neuronal health in early development and following brain injuries, which include trauma, stroke and chronic neurodegenerative diseases. Further interests include mechanisms of chemotherapy neurotoxicity in children and the potential cognitive enhancing effects of neuromodulation in the developing brain.