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Biography
The focus of my career is the study of arrhythmia mechanisms utilizing physiologically relevant large animal models. This research is stimulated by a clinical practice focused on treating patients with complex arrhythmias, particularly those who had failed standard therapies. My research laboratory develops animal models of human-like rhythm disorders with a particular focus on ventricular tachycardia and ventricular fibrillation, for which current treatment options are limited and/or suboptimal. These models are created by selective balloon occlusion of one or more coronary arteries resulting in structural and electrical ventricular remodeling (i.e., “arrhythmogenic substrate”) and subsequent development of arrhythmias. Models for atrial arrhythmias, including atrial tachycardia and fibrillation are created by ablation-induced scar formation which promotes development of these arrhythmias. Animals are survived for variable periods, allowing to study the natural history of cardiac electrical remodeling and development of this arrhythmogenic substrate. These models provide the basis for: 1) characterization of the electrical signals, imaging profile and the histological properties of the arrhythmogenic tissue; 2) identifying signature patterns for differentiating arrhythmogenic from non-arrhythmogenic scar; and for 3) development of clinically relevant tools to better diagnose and treat arrhythmias. Over the past 8 years, my electrophysiology research laboratory has helped to describe the mechanisms of infarct-related ventricular tachycardia utilizing high-resolution mapping technologies, providing more detailed insights into the circuit and its underlying physiological requirements. These findings have stimulated the development of new algorithms and medical device technologies for mapping and treating these arrhythmias in humans. This “bench to bedside” approach spans from computer modeling to animal studies and development of new technologies that can then be applied to patients with similar arrhythmias. This research model includes a multidisciplinary team of basic scientists, engineers, and physicians working together to provide solutions to complex arrhythmias.