Eric Velazquez, MD
Robert W. Berliner Professor of Medicine (Cardiology)Cards
About
Titles
Robert W. Berliner Professor of Medicine (Cardiology)
Chief, Cardiovascular Medicine; Deputy Director, Clinical Trials Innovation, Yale Center for Clinical Investigation (YCCI); Co-Chair, Clinical and Translational Research Oversight Committee; President’s contingency planning committee, Clinical Practice/Clinical Research Subcommittee
Positions outside Yale
Chief, Cardiovascular Medicine, Yale New Haven Hospital, Yale New Haven Hospital; Physician-in-Chief, Heart and Vascular Center, Yale New Haven Health System, Yale New Haven Health System
Biography
Eric J. Velazquez, MD, the Robert W. Berliner Professor of Medicine, is an internationally recognized authority in heart failure, cardiovascular clinical trials, and cardiac imaging.
Velazquez serves as the section chief for Cardiovascular Medicine for Yale School of Medicine and the Physician-in-Chief of the Heart and Vascular Center for Yale New Haven Health where he coordinates a high-volume enterprise and an outstanding group of clinician-investigators, physician scientists, and staff who make important contributions across patient care, research and educational domains. He leads more than 150 specialists who focus on every area of cardiac medicine, tapping into a broad array of tools, technologies, and expertise.
Additionally, he is the Deputy Director, Clinical Trials Innovation at the Yale Center for Clinical Investigation. Velazquez chose to pursue a career in cardiovascular medicine twenty years ago and through key leadership positions, he has pursued clinical, research, and methodologic interests and facilitated multicenter clinical research programs and quality initiatives with substantive focus and impact on vulnerable and underserved populations at high medical risk, and has honed the administrative skills required to implement challenging programs in diverse settings globally. Today, much of his research and clinical work focuses on the intersection between heart failure and coronary heart disease. As a clinical investigator, he has made major contributions in the design, development, and implementation of landmark clinical trials that have altered international guidelines and the treatment of patients with chronic heart failure. These programs have established the evidence for best practice standards, modified treatment guidelines, and have had a direct impact on the U.S. public health.
Appointments
Cardiovascular Medicine
Section ChiefDualCardiovascular Medicine
ProfessorPrimary
Other Departments & Organizations
Education & Training
- Fellow
- Duke University School of Medicine (2001)
- Research Fellow
- Duke University School of Medicine (2001)
- Clinical Research Fellow
- Duke Clinical Research Institute (2001)
- Fellow
- Duke University School of Medicine (2000)
- MD
- Albert Einstein College of Medicine (1997)
- Visiting Junior Registrar
- John Radcliffe Hospital (1997)
- Senior Assistant Resident
- Duke University School of Medicine, (1997)
- Junior Assistant Resident
- Duke University School of Medicine (1996)
- Intern
- Duke University School of Medicine (1995)
- BA
- Williams College, Psychology (1988)
Research
Publications
2024
Win Ratio Analyses Using a Modified Hierarchical Composite Outcome: Insights from PARAGLIDE-HF
Shoji S, Cyr D, Hernandez A, Velazquez E, Ward J, Williamson K, Sarwat S, Starling R, Desai A, Zieroth S, Solomon S, Mentz R. Win Ratio Analyses Using a Modified Hierarchical Composite Outcome: Insights from PARAGLIDE-HF. American Heart Journal 2024 PMID: 39505123, DOI: 10.1016/j.ahj.2024.10.020.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchNT-proBNPComposite outcomeRenal outcomesEjection fractionHeart failureN-terminal pro-B-type natriuretic peptidePro-B-type natriuretic peptideNT-proBNP thresholdsNT-proBNP changesClinically significant eventsNatriuretic peptideAssessment of treatment effectsHF hospitalizationCardiovascular deathTreatment effectsTreatment benefitComprehensive assessment of treatment effectsPrimary analysisValsartanHF visitsSecondary analysisPatientsHierarchical outcomesOutcomesDiuretic dosing and outcomes with torsemide and furosemide following hospitalization for heart failure: the TRANSFORM-HF trial
Nouhravesh N, Clare R, Wojdyla D, Anstrom K, Velazquez E, Greene S, Pitt B, Mentz R, Psotka M. Diuretic dosing and outcomes with torsemide and furosemide following hospitalization for heart failure: the TRANSFORM-HF trial. European Heart Journal 2024, 45: ehae666.1068. DOI: 10.1093/eurheartj/ehae666.1068.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchKCCQ-CSSTertile 1Diuretic doseHeart failureAll-cause mortalityTertile 3Tertile 2Diuretic strategyKansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire Clinical Summary ScoreDoses of loop diureticsHigh doses of furosemideComposite all-cause mortalityBaseline to monthDose of furosemideClinical summary scoreRisk of adverse eventsInteraction p valuePost hoc analysisFurosemide equivalentsLoop diureticsOpen-labelMedian ageNo significant differenceClinical outcomesStudy endpointDiuretic dosing and outcomes with torsemide and furosemide following hospitalization for heart failure: The TRANSFORM‐HF trial
Nouhravesh N, Greene S, Clare R, Wojdyla D, Anstrom K, Velazquez E, Pitt B, Mentz R, Psotka M. Diuretic dosing and outcomes with torsemide and furosemide following hospitalization for heart failure: The TRANSFORM‐HF trial. European Journal Of Heart Failure 2024 PMID: 39363809, DOI: 10.1002/ejhf.3458.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchLoop diuretic doseDiuretic doseHeart failureDiuretic typeKCCQ-CSSClinical outcomesKansas City Cardiomyopathy Questionnaire Clinical Summary ScoreGroup 2High dosesHigher loop diuretic dosesGroup 3High doses of furosemideDose group 2Associated with increased riskDose of furosemideClinical summary scoreSecondary clinical outcomesPatient-reported outcomesPost hoc analysisFurosemide equivalentsDose groupDischarge doseTRANSFORM-HFClinical eventsGroup 1The Incidence and Impact of Cardiac Function Decline after Lower Extremity Revascularization
Jamil Y, Huttler J, Alameddine D, Wu Z, Mena-Hurtado C, Velazquez E, Guzman R, Ochoa Chaar C. The Incidence and Impact of Cardiac Function Decline after Lower Extremity Revascularization. Annals Of Vascular Surgery 2024 PMID: 39343374, DOI: 10.1016/j.avsg.2024.07.119.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCardiac functional declineStable cardiac functionLower extremity revascularizationPeripheral arterial diseaseCardiac functionFollow-upExtremity revascularizationFunctional declineElectronic records of patientsKaplan-Meier analysisRecords of patientsMode of revascularizationAdverse limb eventsLower-extremity revascularizationTransthoracic echocardiogramReintervention rateHeart failureDiabetes mellitusPeriprocedural bleedingPatient characteristicsArtery diseasePatientsLimb eventsIncreased mortalityRevascularizationMechanistic Differences between Torsemide and Furosemide.
Rao V, Cox Z, Ivey-Miranda J, Neville D, Balkcom N, Moreno-Villagomez J, Ramos-Mastache D, Maulion C, Bellumkonda L, Tang W, Collins S, Velazquez E, Mentz R, Wilson F, Turner J, Wilcox C, Ellison D, Fang J, Testani J. Mechanistic Differences between Torsemide and Furosemide. Journal Of The American Society Of Nephrology 2024 PMID: 39196651, DOI: 10.1681/asn.0000000000000481.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchTorsemide groupDiuretic doseTubular site of actionHigher diuretic dosesDose of furosemideProportion of dosesOral furosemideSite of actionPrescribed doseNeurohormonal activationMechanistic substudyClinical outcomesPharmacodynamic advantagesKidney dysfunctionPharmacodynamic parametersKidney functionRandomized trialsNatriuresisTubular sitesFurosemideTorsemideDoseTRANSFORM-HFPlasma volumeBody weightA Multimodal Video-Based AI Biomarker for Aortic Stenosis Development and Progression
Oikonomou E, Holste G, Yuan N, Coppi A, McNamara R, Haynes N, Vora A, Velazquez E, Li F, Menon V, Kapadia S, Gill T, Nadkarni G, Krumholz H, Wang Z, Ouyang D, Khera R. A Multimodal Video-Based AI Biomarker for Aortic Stenosis Development and Progression. JAMA Cardiology 2024, 9: 534-544. PMID: 38581644, PMCID: PMC10999005, DOI: 10.1001/jamacardio.2024.0595.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCardiac magnetic resonanceAortic valve replacementCardiac magnetic resonance imagingAV VmaxSevere ASAortic stenosisCohort studyPeak aortic valve velocityCohort study of patientsAortic valve velocityCohort of patientsTraditional cardiovascular risk factorsAssociated with faster progressionStudy of patientsCedars-Sinai Medical CenterAssociated with AS developmentCardiovascular risk factorsCardiovascular imaging modalitiesIndependent of ageModerate ASEjection fractionEchocardiographic studiesValve replacementRisk stratificationCardiac structureAssociation of Sacubitril/Valsartan versus Valsartan with Blood Pressure Changes, and Symptomatic Hypotension: The PARAGLIDE-HF Trial
Fudim M, Cyr D, Ward J, Hernandez A, Lepage S, Morrow D, Sharma K, Claggett B, Starling R, Velazquez E, Williamson K, Desai A, Zieroth S, Solomon S, Braunwald E, Mentz R, Investigators P. Association of Sacubitril/Valsartan versus Valsartan with Blood Pressure Changes, and Symptomatic Hypotension: The PARAGLIDE-HF Trial. Journal Of Cardiac Failure 2024 PMID: 38802053, DOI: 10.1016/j.cardfail.2024.04.030.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchLeft ventricular ejection fractionWorsening heart failureBaseline systolic blood pressureSystolic blood pressureVentricular ejection fractionEjection fractionSymptomatic hypotensionNT-proBNPHeart failureBlood pressureLow baseline systolic blood pressureTime-averaged proportional changeMildly reduced ejection fractionPlasma NT-proBNP levelsAssociated with clinical benefitB-type natriuretic peptideNT-proBNP levelsReduced ejection fractionMedian blood pressureBlood pressure changesSH eventsTime-averaged changePrimary endpointNatriuretic peptideRandomized patientsOn‐treatment analysis of torsemide versus furosemide for patients hospitalized for heart failure: A post‐hoc analysis of TRANSFORM‐HF
Kittipibul V, Mentz R, Clare R, Wojdyla D, Anstrom K, Eisenstein E, Ambrosy A, Goyal P, Skopicki H, Ketema F, Kim D, Desvigne-Nickens P, Pitt B, Velazquez E, Greene S. On‐treatment analysis of torsemide versus furosemide for patients hospitalized for heart failure: A post‐hoc analysis of TRANSFORM‐HF. European Journal Of Heart Failure 2024, 26: 1518-1523. PMID: 38745502, PMCID: PMC11269016, DOI: 10.1002/ejhf.3293.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchOn-treatment analysisFollow-upAll-cause mortalityHeart failureOn-treatmentNo significant differenceNon-adherencePost-hocSignificant differenceTime of hospital dischargePost hoc analysisDiuretic statusPatients on-treatmentTorsemide groupOpen-labelFurosemide groupRandomized patientsTRANSFORM-HFHF hospitalizationRandomized trialsFurosemidePatientsTorsemideHospital outcomesOutcome differencesReal-world evaluation of an algorithmic machine-learning-guided testing approach in stable chest pain: a multinational, multicohort study
Oikonomou E, Aminorroaya A, Dhingra L, Partridge C, Velazquez E, Desai N, Krumholz H, Miller E, Khera R. Real-world evaluation of an algorithmic machine-learning-guided testing approach in stable chest pain: a multinational, multicohort study. European Heart Journal - Digital Health 2024, 5: 303-313. PMID: 38774380, PMCID: PMC11104476, DOI: 10.1093/ehjdh/ztae023.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchRisk of acute myocardial infarctionAssociated with lower oddsHospital health systemCoronary artery diseaseCardiac testingRisk of adverse outcomesUK BiobankHealth systemProvider-drivenLower oddsAssociated with better outcomesAcute myocardial infarctionBlack raceStable chest painFemale sexReal world evaluationDiabetes historyMulticohort studyFunction testsSuspected coronary artery diseaseYounger ageRisk profileAdverse outcomesMultinational cohortPost hoc analysisMODIFIED ON-TREATMENT ANALYSIS OF THE EFFECTS OF TORSEMIDE VS FUROSEMIDE AFTER DISCHARGE IN PATIENTS HOSPITALIZED WITH HEART FAILURE: RESULTS FROM TRANSFORM-HF
Kittipibul V, Mentz R, Clare R, Wojdyla D, Anstrom K, Eisenstein E, Ambrosy A, Goyal P, Pitt B, Velazquez E, Greene S. MODIFIED ON-TREATMENT ANALYSIS OF THE EFFECTS OF TORSEMIDE VS FUROSEMIDE AFTER DISCHARGE IN PATIENTS HOSPITALIZED WITH HEART FAILURE: RESULTS FROM TRANSFORM-HF. Journal Of The American College Of Cardiology 2024, 83: 334. DOI: 10.1016/s0735-1097(24)02324-6.Peer-Reviewed Original Research
Academic Achievements & Community Involvement
Clinical Care
Overview
Eric J. Velazquez, MD, is chief of cardiovascular medicine for Yale Medicine and Yale New Haven Hospital, physician-in-chief of the Yale New Haven Health System Heart and Vascular Center. He leads more than 150 specialists who focus on every area of cardiac medicine, tapping into a broad array of tools, technologies, and expertise.
A practicing cardiologist himself, Dr. Velazquez is an internationally recognized authority in heart failure, cardiovascular clinical trials, and cardiac imaging, and he has a passion for treating patients with coronary disease. He says the earlier a patient seeks help for fatigue, shortness of breath, and other key symptoms, the more a cardiologist can help.
“We are fortunate today that medical and device therapies, as well as surgical approaches that were only being tested a couple of decades ago, are now available to patients routinely,” says Dr. Velazquez, who was inspired to become a cardiologist, in part, by his own family history of the disease. “I tell patients, ‘Don’t dismiss your symptoms. If we diagnose your disease before it becomes advanced, there's so much more we can apply to your care that might make your future life much better.’”
The Robert W. Berliner Professor of Medicine at the Yale School of Medicine, Dr. Velazquez has been involved in such areas as population health, community care, genetics, discovery science, and translational and clinical research—all of which he says feed into better care for heart disease. “For example, in population health, we track patients who have had heart attacks and other heart-related problems, and this has given us information that we can use to better evaluate health and mitigate the progression of disease,” he says.
Dr. Velazquez has made major contributions as a clinical investigator in the design, development, and implementation of landmark clinical trials that have altered international guidelines and the treatment of patients with chronic heart failure. He sees this type of work thriving at Yale. “I’m very fortunate to be at the helm of a group of doctors who wake up every day and think about the patients they're going to see—and at the same time, pay attention to what it is about each encounter that they can look at critically, improve upon, and maybe apply in a research setting with the goal of bringing it back to a future patient,” he says.