Research

Current Director: Dr. Peter Wilkes

The medical staff, within Cardiac Anesthesiology, are committed to providing the best available treatments for heart disease as well as developing new and better methods of care. We do this by comparing current treatments with new ones that we believe will give better results. In the context of approved clinical trials, new treatments can be compared to conventional treatment.

History
We have a long-standing history of research. The first chairman of the formal Division of Cardiac Anesthesiology was one of the founding fathers of cardiac anesthesia, Dr. J. Earl Wynands. The research tradition continued with Dr. Howard Nathan whose research included extensive studies on brain protection during cardiac surgery.

Towards Improved Patient Care
Current themes extend from the Cardiac Surgical Suite through to the Cardiac Surgery Intensive Care Unit (CSICU), where patients initially recover from surgery. Research in our division encompasses a formal team of investigators, including medical and basic science researchers, research managers and coordinators. Both “peer-funded” studies (Heart Institute-centred and multi-centre studies) as well as internally directed research projects are undertaken.

For more information, see the Cardiac Anesthesiology Research Program.