11th ESGCO 2020 - NOW ONLINE!

The 11th conference of the European Study Group on Cardiovascular Oscillations held virtually on July 15, 2020.

Kenji Sunagawa, MD, PhD

Home » Speakers » Kenji Sunagawa, MD, PhD
Affiliation: 
Kyushu University, Japan

Keynote talk tentative title: "System identification, synthesis, and smart neuromodulation to rescue patients with treatment-refractory cardiovascular disease"

Keynote talk Abstract: In the cardiovascular system, the presence of complex neuro-humoral interplay is the essential infrastructure that makes coherent system functioning possible. Loss of coherence destabilizes the system functioning. To clarify the mechanism responsible for the coherent system functioning, we have been studying the autonomic nervous system with special emphasis on its dynamic impacts on cardiac mechanics and vascular properties. We integratively modeled these relationships and developed the closed-loop smart neuromodulation system to overcome the pathophysiology such as hypertension and heart failure. I want to introduce the audience the latest development of closed-loop smart neuromodulation and its impact on treatment-refractory cardiovascular disease.

Short Bio: Prof. Sunagawa received his M.D. in 1974 and Ph.D. in biomedical engineering in 1986 from the Kyushu University, Fukuoka, Japan. From 1978 to 1983, he was a postdoctoral fellow for a year and promoted to the faculty at the Department of Biomedical Engineering and Division of Cardiology, The Johns Hopkins Medical Institutions. From 1990 to 2004, he chaired the Department of Cardiovascular Dynamics at the National Cardiovascular Center in Osaka. Since 2004, he was Chief, Professor of Cardiovascular Medicine at the Kyushu University and promoted to a distinguished professor. In 2014, he founded the Center for Disruptive Cardiovascular Medicine in the Kyushu University and has been serving as a professor. He has been interested in the cardiovascular mechanics and regulation while extensively applying engineering concepts to understand the mechanism of circulatory homeostasis. Those studies led him to develop neurally controlled devices (i.e., Bionic systems) for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases. Since late 90s, he developed a neurally regulated pacemaker, bionic baroreflex system, and bionic neurostimulator for heart failure and hypertension, all of which had striking beneficial impacts their clinical outcomes. Because of these contributions, he received the Paul Dudley White Award from the American Heart Association (AHA) in 2000, Technical award from EMBS in 2010. He has been a fellow of IEEE, AHA, European Society of Cardiology and Japanese Society of Circulation. He was a board member of the Japanese Society of Medicine, the Japanese Society for Medical and Biological Engineering, and served AdCom of EMBS from 2008 to 20012. He was conference chair of EMBC’13 held in Osaka.