Mental Disorders and Cardiovascular Health: A Critical, if Overlooked, Connection
The ancient Romans believed that a healthy body and mind go hand in hand: mens sana in corpore sano! During the American Civil War physicians described the Soldier’s Heart as a syndrome that occurred on the battlefield that involved symptoms very similar to modern day posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). They also noted that these soldiers manifested exaggerated cardiovascular reactivity and “abnormalities of the heart”. Interventions were developed to reduce the damage on the cardiovascular system and included surgical interventions to neutralize the sympathetic nervous system hyper-activity. With the advent of modern psychoanalysis, psychiatric symptoms became divorced from the body and were re-located to unconscious systems.
More recently, advancements in psychosomatic medicine and related fields clarified the complexity of the interaction between central and peripheral nervous system disorders, inflammation and cardiovascular diseases. This field of research has witnessed a quick expansion that brought to the discovery of important mechanisms of cardiovascular disease and potential therapeutic advances.
Despite extraordinary advances in the diagnosis and care of heart disease, this ailment continues to affect a very large portion of the North American population and its related costs keep climbing. Reducing morbidity and mortality from heart disease will require a strong and integrated approach involving both research and clinical efforts aimed at prevention of disease rather than delayed care of its advanced complications. Dr. Raggi’s research investigates the mechanisms and prevention of heart disease and includes, among many other facets of this complex condition, the impact of mental stress disorders on coronary artery disease.
Paolo Raggi, MD, is a Professor of Medicine at the University of Alberta in Edmonton, AB and he is the former Director of the Mazankowski Alberta Heart Institute and Chair of Cardiac Research at the University of Alberta, in Edmonton AB, Canada. He is also an Adjunct Professor of Radiology as well as Professor of Population Health and Epidemiology at Emory University in Atlanta, GA, USA.
Dr. Raggi has been involved in research in the following fields: atherosclerosis imaging, vascular calcification, lipid metabolism, cardiovascular disease associated with: chronic kidney disease, rheumatological disorders, HIV infection, diabetes mellitus, the metabolic syndrome and the impact of mental stress disorders on coronary artery disease.
He regularly engages in the interpretation of echocardiography, computed tomography, magnetic resonance and nuclear cardiology imaging studies for the diagnosis of coronary artery disease, subclinical atherosclerosis and evaluation of left ventricular function and viability. He lectured extensively both nationally and internationally and has been a research mentor for numerous trainees. The results of his work have been published in the New England Journal of Medicine, The Lancet, Archives of Internal Medicine, Circulation, Journal of the American College of Cardiology, European Heart Journal, Kidney International, American Journal of Kidney Diseases, Radiology, Chest and several others. He has contributed over 350 publications to major peer-reviewed journals and 30 chapters for books on cardiovascular imaging and preventive cardiology.
Dr. Raggi has received numerous awards as best teaching attending and best clinical investigator nationally and internationally. He serves as a consultant for 30 scientific medical publications, he is Co-Editor of Atherosclerosis, and sits on the Board of 3 peer-reviewed medical journals. He is a fellow of the American College of Physicians, the American College of Cardiology, the American Heart Association, the Canadian Cardiovascular Society, the American Society of Nuclear Cardiology and the Society of Cardiac Computed Tomography of which he was a co-founder. Dr. Raggi received the highest honours from the President of Italy in October 2017 and was named Knight of the Order of Stars, typically bestowed upon Italian citizens who have distinguished themselves for their service to the Country of origin and/or adoptive countries.This event is organized in collaboration with the Embassy of Italy in Ottawa and with the Consulate General of Italy in Vancouver to celebrate the Italian Research in the World Day, instituted starting in 2018 as part of the Piano Straordinario "Vivere all'Italiana" - Giornata della ricerca Italiana nel mondo.
The establishment of an Italian Research Day in the World was announced by the Italian Minister of Education, University and Research, Valeria Fedeli, during a visit to the CERN Laboratories in Geneva. The celebration day was chosen by government decree to be every year on April 15 on the anniversary of the birth of Leonardo da Vinci.
The main objective of the Italian Research Day in the World is to value the quality and competencies of Italian researchers abroad, but also to promote concrete actions and investments to allow Italian researchers to continue pursuing their careers in their homeland. Italy wishes to enable Italian talents to return from abroad as well as to become an attractive environment for foreign researchers.
If you wish to attend this event, please RSVP here on Eventbrite
April 16, 2019 at 7:00pm
Italian Cultural Centre - Museum & Art Gallery - (3075 Slocan St, Vancouver, BC V5M 3E4)
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ARPICO and PROF. DOUW STEYN PRESENT:
ARPICO and PHILIPPE TORTELL PRESENT:
ARPICO and The Consulate General of Italy PRESENT:
ARPICO and Andrea Calì PRESENT:
ARPICO and The Consulate General of Italy PRESENT:
ARPICO and The Consulate General of Italy PRESENT:
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ARPICO presents:
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ARPICO presents:
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