Purdue engineer receives rare accolade from American Heart Association
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Technology by Purdue University engineer Pavlos Vlachos has changed how cardiologists plan for life-saving surgeries on babies with congenital heart defects. That work, along with much of his current and past research has earned Vlachos election as a fellow to an organization with very few engineers – the American Heart Association.
Vlachos, the St. Vincent Health Professor of Healthcare Engineering and director of the Regenstrief Center for Healthcare Engineering, was selected to receive the honor for his innovations influencing the diagnosis and treatment of cardiovascular disease and health failure.
In conferring the fellowship, the AHA stated that it “recognizes and awards premium professional members for excellence, innovative and sustained contributions in the areas of scholarship, practice and/or education, and volunteer service within the AHA/ASA (American Stroke Association).”
“This is a humbling and most rewarding recognition,” Vlachos said of the fellowship. “When I started my engineering education and later my academic career, I never imagined that I would have the privilege and opportunity to work every day with bright students and dedicated clinical collaborators to develop solutions that improve patients’ lives. Cardiovascular disease, in some form, is likely to impact every one of us, either directly or our loved ones. Every little step of progress is a success that matters for so many.”
The 20-page “Areas of Excellence” document detailing Vlachos’ qualifications for the recognition cites eight of his current research initiatives supported by Eli Lilly and Company; the National Institutes of Health; and the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute; and CTSI, the Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute, among other funding sources. It also lists 23 completed studies, all of which demonstrate Vlachos’ research excellence in contributing to significant advances in the fields of heart disease, drug delivery, health equity and academics, as well as his overall advanced knowledge and competence.
Vlachos, who also is a fellow of the American Institute of Medical and Biological Engineers and the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, works primarily in measurement science and instrumentation, biological flows, biofluid mechanics, biomedical cardiovascular devices, heart failure and diastolic dysfunction.
Vlachos completed his undergraduate work in mechanical engineering at the National Technical University of Athens, Greece. He went on to receive both his master’s and PhD in engineering science and mechanics from Virginia Tech. He has received numerous awards for his work, including the National Science Foundation CAREER Award.
Writer/Media contact: Amy Raley, araley@purdue.edu
Source: Pavlos Vlachos, pvlachos@purdue.edu