Orly Vardeny, associate professor (CHS) in the Pharmacy Practice Division, is co-principal investigator for a flu vaccine trial that will test a high dose for heart patients. Vardeny and co-principal investigator Scott Solomon, a cardiologist at Boston’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School professor, collaborated with Jacob Udell, cardiologist and professor at the University of Toronto and his colleagues, the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the National Patient-Centered Clinical Research Network to design a large-scale study aimed specifically at heart patients.

The INVESTED Trial (short for “Influenza Vaccine to Effectively Stop Cardio Thoracic Events and Decompensated Heart Failure”) began enrolling participants in September at about 180 clinics and hospitals. Read more.

Vardeny’s research focus is the metabolic effects of cardiovascular medications; Pharmacogenetics of cardiovascular medications, Insulin resistance and heart failure, Immune function and influenza vaccine response in patients with cardiovascular disease.