Gianluigi Bisleri, MD, FRCSC

Associate Professor

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Dr. Bisleri is Associate Professor at the University of Toronto, Cardiac Surgeon – Entrepreneur at St. Michael’s Hospital and Investigator at the Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute. Dr. Bisleri has extensive expertise in the full spectrum of adult cardiac surgery with a special expertise in the full spectrum of minimally invasive cardiac surgery: in particular, he has been focusing on developing less invasive approaches for cardiac valve repair and replacement as well as novel and advanced reconstruction techniques (he has developed a novel technique for ischemic and degenerative mitral valve repair). Dr. Bisleri is also an integral member of the Structural Heart Program at St. Michael’s Hospital with direct involvement in percutaneous treatment of valve disease. 

Dr. Bisleri has pioneered the totally endoscopic treatment of atrial fibrillation in 2005 and contributed to the introduction of the hybrid approach and combined epicardial/endocardial advanced mapping in combination with the Arrhythmia team (he is the only surgeon offering such approach in Canada to date); he has performed the largest series of Cox Cryo-Maze procedures in Canada.

Dr. Bisleri completed his medical education as well as cardiac surgical training in Italy (respectively at the University of Brescia and University of Padova): during his residency, he also further expanded his clinical and research interests in minimally invasive/robotic/arrhythmia surgery thanks to a research fellowship at Columbia University in New York. He received additional surgical training as Senior Fellow at the Essex Cardiothoracic Centre (UK) before returning to Italy as Attending Surgeon and Assistant Professor of Surgery at the University of Brescia in 2009 where he was promoted to Associate Professor in 2014.

In 2016, Dr. Bisleri was recruited as Attending Surgeon and Associate Professor in the Division of Cardiac Surgery at Queen’s University and Kingston Health Sciences Centre and he has been cross-appointed as Associate Professor in the Department of Biomedical and Molecular Sciences at Queen’s University since 2018. Over his tenure at Queen’s University, Dr. Bisleri has been focusing on expanding the portfolio of minimally invasive options from mitral valve repair, to arrhythmia surgery and robotically-assisted CABG surgery as well as endoscopic conduits harvesting (with an original technique).

Dr. Bisleri has authored more than 115 peer-reviewed papers and more than 180 presentations at national/international meetings. He previously developed the Cardiac Surgery Innovation Lab which fostered a robust clinical and translational collaboration with several teams and which spans from basic science to evaluation of clinical outcomes; furthermore, Dr. Bisleri has consistently supervised students/residents/fellows (both nationally and internationally) in order to support the scientific growth of junior colleagues. Dr. Bisleri has been acting as Principal or Co-Investigator in several research grants both in Europe and in Canada with a secured funding in excess of 1.5 milllion CAD to date.

Dr. Bisleri holds 3 US patents related to surgical devices to facilitate minimally invasive surgical approaches and he has several on-going collaborations in order to refine and develop novel surgical and transcatheter tools.

  • CLINICAL/RESEARCH INTERESTS

    Clinical Interests

    - Valve Interventions (mitral/tricuspid/aortic): in particular, with the use of minimally invasive approaches or transcatheter approaches; repair strategies; sutureless valves.

    - Surgical Treatment of Atrial fibrillation (concomitant/stand alone/hybrid)

    - Minimally Invasive Surgical Procedures including robotically-assisted myocardial revascularization.

    - Transcatheter technologies.

    - Endoscopic Conduits Harvesting.

    - Aortic Surgery (root/aortic arch).

     Research Interests

    - Atrial fibrillation: translational science/clinical outcomes of ablation/development of novel technologies.

    - Valve disease: translational science/clinical outcomes/development of novel technologies.

    - Development of innovative devices/techniques for minimally invasive/transcatheter cardiac surgery.

    - Clinical outcomes in cardiac surgery.

  • EDUCATION AND TRAINING

    University of Brescia (Italy), MD (summa cum laude), 1995-2001

    University of Padova (Italy), Board Specialist in Cardiac Surgery, 2002-2006

    Columbia University (New York, USA), Research Fellowship in Arrhythmia and Minimally Invasive/Robotic Cardiac Surgery, 2003

    Essex Cardiothoracic Centre (Essex, UK), Senior Cardiac Fellow, 2008-2009

  • ACTIVITIES/HONOURS/AWARDS

    PROFESSIONAL MEMBERSHIPS

    2001 to Present    Italian Board of Physicians & Surgeons, Brescia Section, Italy

    2001 to 2010        European Society for Cardiovascular Surgery

    2001 to 2006        American Society for Artificial Internal Organs

    2003 to 2003        New York Academy of Sciences

    2004 to Present    International Society for Minimally Invasive Cardiac Surgery

    2007 to Present    Society of Thoracic Surgeons

    2008 to 2010        General Medical Council (UK)

    2016 to Present    College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario

    2017 to Present    Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada

    2017 to Present    Ontario Medical Association

    2018 to Present    21st Century Cardiac Surgical Society

    COMMITTEES / SCIENTIFIC BOARDS

    International

    2015 to present     Member, Working Group in Cardiovascular Surgery, European Society of Cardiology

    2018 to present     Member, Editorial Board, Innovations Journal: Technology and Techniques in Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgery

    2012 to present     Member, Editorial Board, WebMed Central

    2011 to present     Member, Annual Meeting Program Committee, International Society for Minimally Invasive Cardiac Surgery

    2009 - 2012          Member, Editorial Board, Interactive CardioVascular and Thoracic Surgery Journal

    2004 - 2008          Chairman, Junior Committee, European Society for Cardiovascular Surgery

    2006 – 2009         Editorial Board Member, CardioThoracic Surgery Network – CTSNet  

    2006 – 2009         Editorial Board Member, CardioThoracic Surgery Network – CTSNet  Resident Section  

    National

    2016 to present       Member, Canadian Thoracic Aorta Collaborative Group

    2019 to present       Member, Review Panel, Canadian Institute for Health Research, Clinical Investigation – Cardiovascular Systems (CID) committee

    2019 to present       Member and co-founder, Canadian Arrhythmia Surgeons Initiative

    2006 – 2009            Junior Committee Board Member, Italian Board of Physicians and Surgeons – Section of Brescia, Italy

    Faculty

    2019 – 2020            Member, Fellowship Education Advisory Committee, Queen’s University

    2018 – 2020            Member, Executive Committee, Clinical Teachers’ Association of Queen’s University

    2018 - 2020             Member, PhD Committee in Cardiovascular Science, Queen’s University

    2010 - 2015             Delegate, Faculty Members, University of Brescia Medical School, Brescia, Italy

    Departmental

    2018 to 2020           Member, Innovations Committee, Department of Surgery, Queen’s University

    Hospital

    2018 to 2020           Member, Executive Committee, Medical Staff Association, Kingston Health Sciences Centre (2018-19: Secretary; 2019-20: Vice-President)

    AWARDS

    1995    Scholarship, IFMSA (International Federation of Medical Students’ Association) for a clinical clerkship in the Department of Cardiac Surgery, University of Innsbruck Medical School, Innsbruck, Austria

    2001    Scholarship, University of Padua Medical School for Research Activity in the field of Arrhythmia and Minimally Invasive/Robotic Surgery at Columbia University – Presbyterian Medical Center, New York, NY, USA

    2006    New Era Cardiac Care Scholarship for Residents in Cardiothoracic Surgery

  • PUBLICATIONS

    Papillary muscle relocation with a multiloop suture: A proposed surgical technique for ischemic mitral regurgitation

    Torkan L, Servito MT, Bisleri G

    JTCVS Techniques 2020; e-pub ahead of print

     

    Results of minimally invasive, video-assisted mitral valve repair in advanced Barlow's disease with bileaflet prolapse.

    Muneretto C, Bisleri G, Bagozzi L, Repossini A, Berlinghieri N, Chiari E.

    Eur J Cardiothorac Surg. 2015 Jan;47(1):46-50

     

    Deformable multimodal registration for navigation in beating-heart cardiac surgery.

    Peoples JJ, Bisleri G, Ellis RE.

    Int J Comput Assist Radiol Surg. 2019 Jun;14(6):955-966.

     

    Hybrid approach for the treatment of long-standing persistent atrial fibrillation: electrophysiological findings and clinical results.

    Bisleri G, Rosati F, Bontempi L, Curnis A, Muneretto C.

    Eur J Cardiothorac Surg. 2013 Nov;44(5):919-23

     

    First-in-Man, Mitral Valve-in-Valve Transcatheter Implantation Through an Innovative Minimally Invasive Surgical Approach.

    Muneretto C, Ettori F, Mazzitelli D, Curello S, Chiari E, Mastropierro R, Maffeo D, Bisleri G.

    Ann Thorac Surg. 2015 Aug;100(2):713-5

     

  • VIDEOS/MEDIA/LINKS

    https://minimallyinvasiveheart.com

    Twitter: @GBisleri

  • CONTACT

    Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

    Office Phone: (416) 864 - 5706

Contact Us

  • Chair: Dr. Terrence Yau
  • Divisional Program Administraton: Emily Wu

Toronto General Hospital
200 Elizabeth St., 4NU-469
Toronto, On M5G 2C4
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