The overall goal of my research is to optimise the benefits of cardiac surgery on the heart and patient, while reducing the traumatic effects. Specific areas include:

Adult and Paediatric Cardiac Surgery
Clinical studies and trials to reduce myocardial injury and inflammation during adult cardiac surgery, and reperfusion injury in cyanotic children with congenital heart disease. We also try to reduce the inevitable adverse effects of surgical trauma and cardiopulmonary bypass, e.g. by comparing thoracotomy vs. sternotomy for off-pump coronary coronary artery bypass (OPCAB) surgery, warm vs. cold-blood cardioplegia in on-pump coronary and valve surgery, general anaesthesia with high thoracic epidural vs. general anaesthesia alone, and reduced vs. conventional cross-clamp time in combined coronary and valve surgery.

Angiogenesis and regenerative medicine
Using adult vascular progenitor cells, both for use as cardiovascular biomarkers, and for improving therapies in the clinic.

Atherothrombosis
Carrying out preclinical studies and, subsequently, the first-in-man trials of drug gene-therapy and external stenting to treat vein graft stenosis.