Ion N. Petrovici (August 19, 1929), a German neurologist native of Romania, was born in Ploiesti (Romania). After studying medicine he obtained in 1953 his M.D. degree from the University of Bucharest. Subsequently, he became Professor of Neurology and Psychiatry and Director of the Department of Neurology at the Merheim Hospital,Cologne University (Germany).

He trained in neurology under Arthur Kreindler and Vlad Voiculescu at the Department of Clinical Neurology of the Institute for Neurological Research of the Romanian Academy of Sciences . In 1959 he became a specialist in neurology.

From 1964 to 1969 he held the position of chief of the service of pre-operative diagnosis at the Clinic of Neurosurgery of the Bucharest University under Constantin Arseni .

With Arseni and Frank Nass he published the book Vascular Diseases of the Brain and of the Spinal Cord in(1965).

In 1969 he emigrated to Germany and began his activity in Cologne at the Max-Plank Institute for Brain Research under Klaus-Joachim Zülch . Despite his time consuming clinical responsibilities during this period, he began to apply his research training to neurologic problems. He was habilitated into academic career (venia legendi) in 1978 and in 1983 became professor of neurology and psychiatry at the University of Cologne. In 1985 he was appointed director of the department of neurology at the Merheim Hospital of the University. This position he held until he retired in 1994.

Petrovici published numerous papers on cerebrovascular disease, seizure disorders, therapy of the malignant brain tumours, localisation theory of the higher brain functions, hemispheric specialisation and interhemispheric transfer of learning, the minor cerebral hemisphere and language. In 1962 he described the Alternating Asphygmo-Pyramidal Syndrome in occlusions of the carotid arteries.

Petrovici is a member of numerous scientific societies, such as Deutsche Gesellschaft für Neurologie (German Association of Neurologists), Deutsche Gesellschaft für Klinische Neurophysiologie (German Society for Clinical Neurophysiology), Società Italiana di Neurologia (Italian Society for Neurology), European Society of Neurology, New York Academy of Sciences and Fellow of the Royal Society of Medicine (London).

In 1994 he was elected honourary member of the Romanian Academy of Sciences.