Bernadet Santema defended her PhD thesis Cum Laude

Her defence took place at the Academy Building of the University of Groningen. During this ceremony, she was flanked by her paranymphs Anne Siegmund and Katrien Santema. Her opposition included both nationally and internationally renowned names which resulted in a lively debate until “hora finita” was announced by the beadle.

Supervisors: prof. dr. Adriaan Voors, prof. dr. Carolyn Lam, and prof. dr. van der Meer

Opponents: prof. dr. Rienstra, prof. dr. Ezekowitz, prof. dr. Mol, prof. dr. van den Berg, prof. dr. den Ruiter, and dr. Westenbrink.

Her thesis includes papers published in, among others, The Lancet and European Heart Journal.
Bernadet is currently working as a Cardiology Resident (Internal Medicine rotations). One day a week she dedicates to research.

A short summary of the thesis

Heart failure is a major public health problem. Patients with heart failure often experience dyspnoea, fatigue and/or have peripheral oedema. The prognosis of heart failure remains poor, with a severely impaired quality of life, frequent hospitalizations and a five-year mortality rate around 50%. The two most prevalent forms of heart failure are heart failure with a reduced ejection fraction and heart failure with a preserved ejection fraction. Several medical treatments have greatly improved clinical outcomes in heart failure with a reduced ejection fraction, but these therapies have unfortunately not been proven effective in patients with heart failure with a preserved ejection fraction. Atrial fibrillation is the most common arrhythmia in heart failure, with a prevalence between 25-65% depending on the type and severity of heart failure. Important differences have been observed between men and women with heart failure and atrial fibrillation, yet poorly understood. The aim of this thesis was to examine the complex pathophysiological interplay between men and women with atrial fibrillation and heart failure with reduced versus preserved ejection fraction, which will ultimately lead to better treatments.The thesis describes that the optimal doses of heart failure medication for women appeared lower than in men (around 50% of the doses that are currently recommended), which could have important clinical implications. Another study revealed profound differences in biomarkers profiles in patients with atrial fibrillation and heart failure with a reduced ejection fraction as compared to those with a preserved ejection fraction.

Read her full thesis here.