Dr Eduardo Pimenta
Name: Eduardo Pimenta
Research Group/Institute: Hypertension Unit/PAH, Endocrine Hypertension Research Centre-CCRE/UQ School of Medicine
Research Interest/Field: Hypertension, primary aldosteronism, salt, obstructive sleep apnea, cardiovascular disease
What made you decide to work in this field? During the two years training in the US, I realized that a significant number of patients with hypertension have primary aldosteronism and obstructive sleep apnea. This combination suggests that these three conditions may have a common underlying mechanisms and, probably, fluid retention is the most important one.
What is the goal and significance of your research that you would like people to know? The goal is to show that excessive aldosterone action contributes to the development of obstructive sleep apnea in patients with primary aldosteronism, and that severity of obstructive sleep apnea can be decreased by correcting aldosterone excess. If the results confirm this hypotheses, our study will provide insight into the mechanisms linking these three associated common conditions (hypertension, primary aldosteronism and obstructive sleep apnea). Furthermore, if the blockade and/or reduction of aldosterone reduce the severity of obstructive sleep apnea, this study will influence the assessment and treatment of this disease.
If you were at a dinner party and someone asked you what you are researching, what would you say?
I would say that I am looking why three common conditions (hypertension, primary aldosteronism and obstructive sleep apnea) occur together and, if possible provide a single treatment for all the three conditions.
How does or how has or how will funding from a Foundation help your research project? Each participant in the study, among other tests, will undergo two MRIs and two polysomnographies. These studies are expensive and would be impossible to do without financial support.
What is on your research wish list?
Future projects will evaluate the role of aldosterone in salt appetite in humans, the effects of dietary salt in patients with primary aldosteronism and in the severity of obstructive sleep apnea. Our department is also interested in the genetics aspects of primary aldosteronism.
What do you like to do when you’re not at work?
Be with my wife, go to scientific meetings and travel.
What would you be doing if you weren’t a researcher?
I am board certified doctor in General Medicine and Cardiology in Brazil. I would probably be fulltime in clinical practice.
What are you most proud of?
This is my first grant (hopefully the first of many) and I am proud of this. I am also proud of the place and people I have worked. I have had all the support I need from the director of Hypertension Unit (Prof. Stowasser), from Queensland Health and University of Queensland School of Medicine.
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