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With the recent understanding that progenitor cells in the adult body can help heal a damaged heart, both by repairing heart muscle tissue and building new blood vessels to supply oxygen, researchers have been looking for ways to help these cells work harder and live longer. Dr. Darryl Davis, an

Several leading voices in cardiovascular medicine spoke out strongly at this year’s Congress about the looming crisis in health care and the need for the system to finally take prevention seriously. This message rang out from both sides of the border and took centre stage (that is “center” for our

Each October, the Canadian Cardiovascular Congress (CCC) is the largest gathering of cardiovascular health professionals in the country. This year, the Heart Institute’s Dr. Rob Beanlands chaired what proved to be a highly successful meeting. Since CCC was last held in Vancouver in 2006, the

Mutations in the gene are associated with striated muscle diseases such as cardiomyopathy and muscular dystrophy. Filling in the unknowns about a previously unexplored gene is a good way to get the attention of your peers. Heart Institute scientist Patrick Burgon is doing just that with a gene he

Dr. Ruth McPherson, an active CARDIoGRAM participant and a co-author on the interferon biomarker study, was honoured by the AHA Council on Arteriosclerosis, Thrombosis and Vascular Biology (ATVB) with its Special Recognition Award. Dr. McPherson, a tireless clinician and scientist, directs the

Every research institute is driven by its army of graduate students and post-doctoral fellows. They bring their enthusiasm and curiosity to the lab each day and create new collaborative relationships between research groups, both down the hall and around the globe. The Beat spoke with four graduate

New cardiac imaging technology at the University of Ottawa Heart Institute will allow physicians and researchers to greatly expand their pursuit of advanced heart function studies while ensuring shorter diagnostic wait times for patients. A new hybrid machine that combines computerized tomography

It was another busy American Heart Association meeting for the University of Ottawa Heart Institute. Staff presented more than 40 talks and posters this year in Orlando, Florida. With some 20,000 people in attendance, several Institute researchers were singled out for their achievements. UOHI

Jim Orban, the new President and CEO of the University of Ottawa Heart Institute Foundation, is ready for his next significant milestone – a major construction project that will add a five-storey extension along with badly needed renovations to the existing 35-year-old facility. The Foundation, the

When a blocked artery causes a heart attack, tissue in the region of the heart served by that blood vessel quickly starts to die. Today, most patients survive an acute heart attack, but there are downstream health implications for these serious cardiac events. Scar tissue that forms in the weeks and