2012 Hermann Blumgart Award Winner
"Congratulations to the recipient of the 2012 Hermann Blumgart Award…
Mehran M. Sadeghi, MD."
Ron Schwartz, MD, MS, FCC, FAH, President Cardiovascular Council, presenting the award to Mehran M. Sadeghi, MD.
At the annual meeting in Miami Beach, The Cardiovascular Council had the distinct honor of awarding Mehran M. Sadeghi, MD, of Yale University, as the 2012 Blumgart Award recipient. Cardiovascular Council President Ronald Schwartz, MD, stated "In a field of eminent and highly distinguished candidates again this year, the selection of the Hermann Blumgart Award is a remarkable achievement."
As our field continues to evolve, Dr. Sadeghi brings unique perspective to the challenges we face in the transition from anatomic and physiologic imaging to the complex realm of imaging cardiovascular biology. Indeed, his background includes vascular biology, immunology, clinical imaging, and the cardiology discipline specifically. He is currently Associate Professor of Medicine (Cardiology) at Yale University School of Medicine, and the Director of Advanced Cardiac Imaging at the VA Connecticut Healthcare System.
Dr. Sadeghi said "When myocardial perfusion imaging began to take root (in the mid 1970's), we had a very limited understanding of vascular biology. While detection of ischemia has remained important, we are in a position to redefine the role of vascular imaging based on molecular targeting."
In his Blumgart award presentation entitled "Vascular Molecular Imaging, Past, Present and Future", he began with a synopsis of the global decline in the overall cardiovascular death rate, overlaid against many of the great advances in cardiovascular medicine between 1954 and 2010 (with emphasis on the emergence of coronary arteriography in 1958). (to see a synopsis of the presentation in PDF, click here)
"My goal has always been to extend our bench research to humans; to be able to influence, and hopefully improve, clinical practice. Our challenges today are both technical and non-technical issues. We must address unmet needs, like identifying high risk plaques or predicting rupture of small aneurysms, but in an environment that demands comparative effectiveness and outcomes data", he said during a discussion of the strategy for his presentation.
During his talk, he revisited the earliest radiotracer studies of the cardiovascular system, provided a broad overview of the most current ongoing work in vascular molecular imaging, and discussed important trials underway (e.g., ISCHEMIA), which have the potential to redefine how we view and use myocardial perfusion imaging.
"In essence, the early work of Hermann Blumgart was directed at the vascular system, not the heart itself; we now have the ability to see far deeper into this system than previously imagined. We must move beyond the theoretical to achieve what is practical, in order to continue to contribute to this great legacy in a meaningful way."
The Cardiovascular Council warmly congratulates Mehran Sadeghi, MD, the 2012 Blumgart Award recipient.
Vascular Molecular Imaging: Past, Present and Future (.pdf)