| Dr. Robert J. Petrella, MA, MD, CCFP, FACSM, PhD |
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| Rank: |
Dr. Robert Petrella is the Beryl and Richard Ivey Research Chair in Aging, Rehabilitation, and Geriatric Care (ARGC) at the University of Western Ontario, as well as, Assistant Director for ARGC at the Lawson Health Research Institute. He is the Medical Director of the Canadian Centre for Activity and Aging, Past President of the Canadian Coalition for High Blood Pressure Prevention and Control. Dr. Petrella holds a CIHR Chair in "Healthy Lifestyles: Healthy Aging" and is a Clinical Specialist in Hypertension with the American Society of Hypertension. He is a Professor in the Department of Family Medicine, Medicine (Division of Cardiology), as well as, Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation of the Schulich School of Medicine, and School of Medicine, and School of Kinesiology at the University of Western Ontario. |
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| Location: |
Parkwood Hospital, ARGC Research Centre
St. Joseph's Family Medical Centre |
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| Clinical Interests: |
Family Medicine, Muskuloskeletal and Osteoarthritis Rehabilitation, Cardiovascular/Hypertension Prevention, Exercise Physiology/Stress/Kinesiology, Gerontology |
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Educational/Research
Interests: |
Dr. Petrella’s research interests include laboratory and community-based study of the determinants of lifestyle intervention in cardiovascular disease prevention, management and control. He holds research funding from various agencies including the CIHR, Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada, NSERC, Health
Canada’s Population Health Fund and the Canadian Diabetes Association, and has over 100 original publications in peer-reviewed journals. Dr Petrella is an internal committee member for CIHR Rx &D, and Steering Committee member for Heart and Stroke Foundation’s AIM program and the Canadian Hypertension Education Program (CHEP). He was Principal Investigator for the SNAC (Staged Nutrition and Activity Counseling Trial), which is a fully accredited educational activity of the College of Family Physicians of Canada. Dr Petrella has been active as a co-investigator in many hypertension outcomes trials as well as involved in many national and international committees including consensus conferences in hypertension, diabetes, osteoarthritis and physical activity including the launch of
Canada’s Guide for Physical Activity.
Dr. Petrella, who is the nominated Principal Investigator and Team Leader, has been awarded $3.8 million by CIHR in partnership with the Heart & Stroke Foundation and the Canadian Diabetes Association to lead an innovative 5-year project that brings together researchers from Canada (12 scientists) and Finland (7 scientists) to study whether exercise could prevent the onset, or modify the risk of CVCs in susceptible persons. A major objective in this proposal is to identify and then to prevent and treat early markers of CVCs in patients at risk for or with diabetes.
Dr Petrella is Principal Investigator, with collaborators at
McMaster
University, who recently received 3-year funding from the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long Term Care’s Drug Innovation Program to apply the Ontario Diabetes Economic Model to a primary care cohort in southwestern
Ontario to determine the impact of newer treatments for diabetes on health outcomes and costs.
Dr. Petrella has also been appointed Editor-in-Chief for Rheumatology Reports. |
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| Awards Received: |
In the past, received a 5 year CIHR Investigator Award to conduct research in Healthy Aging which follows a 5 year CIHR Scholarship Award completed in August 2001. Designated as a Clinical Specialist in Hypertension by the American Society of Hypertension. |