News
Implant Device Prevents Stroke in Patients with Irregular Heartbeat
A new study by researchers at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center and the University of Iowa provides good news for patients with atrial fibrillation (AFib), or irregular heartbeat, who are at greater risk for stroke but cannot tolerate long-term anticoagulation therapy, the first-line treatment to prevent stroke. The study determined that an implanted device, known as a left atrial appendage closure (LAAC) device, decreases risk of stroke for those with AFib, compared to the risk associated when anticoagulation therapy is not used.
Rajesh Kabra, MD, FHRS, associate professor of Medicine, Cardiac Electrophysiology, is the lead author of the population-based cohort study of approximately 30,000 Medicare patients who received the device. The study was published in JAMA Network Open. The results found that the Watchman device, the first FDA-approved and most-commonly used LAAC device, provides a satisfactory option for patients unable to take blood thinners. Read More
Dr. Yao Sun Receives $ 1.99 Million NIH Grant for Research in Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy (HCM)
Drs. Yao Sun, MD, PhD, and Lu Lu, MD, of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC) have received a grant totaling $1.99 million for research into Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy (HCM) as multiple PI. Dr. Sun, a professor in the Division of Cardiovascular Diseases in the UTHSC College of Medicine, hopes her work will lead to the development of new therapeutic approaches. Her project is titled, “Genetic Modulation of Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy Severity.” The funding is from the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and will be distributed over four years. Read More
Cardiology Fellows win SSCI Trainee Research Award
A group of our fellows attended and presented their abstracts at the annual meeting of the Southern Section of the AFMR that was held from February 18-20 in New Orleans, Louisiana.
Dr. Bomb receives the Young Investigator Award 2015
Dr. Ritin Bomb, Cardiology Fellow at UTHSC Division of Cardiology, has been awarded with the Leonard Share Young Investigator Award in the Clinical Science Category in November 2015. During his cardiology fellowship at UTHSC, Dr. Bomb has presented and published five abstracts. Furthermore, he has published a total of 14 full-lengthed peer-reviewed articles
The NIH Medical Student Research Fellowship Program (MSRF)
The MSRF Program introduces students to biomedical research, careers in academic medicine, and provides an excellent opportunity for professional and academic growth. Students are awarded MSRF after a competitive review of their research proposals. Proposed projects are very focused and expected to be completed within two to three months.