IV PAVC Congress

Prof. Dr. med. vet. habil. Gerhard Wess, ECVIM-CA (Cardiology)

Gerhard Wess graduated from LMU Munich, Germany, in 1996. He completed an internship and residency in internal medicine in Zurich, Switzerland, and obtained his ECVIM diploma in small animal internal medicine. From 2001 to 2003, he completed a cardiology fellowship at UC Davis, USA, and later achieved both ACVIM and ECVIM diplomate status in veterinary cardiology. He is currently Head of the Cardiology Department at the Small Animal Clinic, LMU Munich, Germany.

Prof. Dr. Jens Häggström (SE), Dipl. ECVIM-CA (Cardiology)
Professor at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU) in Uppsala, and a diplomate of the European College of Veterinary Internal Medicine (Companion Animals – Cardiology). For over 30 years, he has been involved in teaching and researching heart diseases in dogs and cats, including myxomatous mitral valve disease (MMVD) and cardiomyopathies. His research focuses on the diagnosis, pathophysiology, genetics, and treatment of MMVD and dilated cardiomyopathy in dogs, and cardiomyopathy in cats. Lead investigator in major international clinical trials (SVEP, QUEST, EPIC). Co-founder of the PawPeds screening program for feline cardiomyopathy. Author of over 230 scientific papers and contributor to many international trials. Member of ACVIM consensus panels responsible for cardiology guidelines.

Kieran Borgeat, BSc BVSc MVetMed, CertVC FHEA, MRCVS, DipACVIM, DipECVIM-CA (Cardiology)
Kieran Borgeat is an RCVS-recognized specialist in veterinary cardiology and a diplomate of both the American and European Colleges of Veterinary Internal Medicine. He graduated from the University of Bristol and completed his residency and master's degree in cardiology at the Royal Veterinary College. He is currently Clinical Director at Eastcott Veterinary Referrals in the UK. He is experienced in cutting-edge interventional cardiology techniques, including angioplasty, stenting, and transcatheter valve repair. He also performs other minimally invasive vascular procedures, such as intrahepatic portosystemic shunt attenuation. He conducts research (currently focusing on contactless pulse measurement in companion animals), publishes widely, and lectures at international conferences.

 

Dr. Jana Friederich (DE), DECVIM-CA
Cardiologist at the Small Animal Medicine Clinic of the Ludwig Maximilian University (LMU) in Munich. She completed her veterinary studies at LMU Munich, followed by an internship at the Veterinary Health Clinic Onderstepoort at the University of Pretoria (South Africa), and a cardiology residency within the ACVIM program at LMU. Since 2019, she has taught echocardiography for ESAVS courses. She has authored numerous scientific publications focused on the diagnosis and treatment of heart diseases in dogs and cats.

Prof. Dr. habil. Agnieszka Noszczyk-Nowak
Specialist in small animal diseases. Earned her PhD in veterinary medicine in 2006. In 2013, she obtained her postdoctoral degree with a habilitation thesis titled “Application of new electrocardiographic and biochemical markers in dogs with heart disease for prognosis evaluation.” She was awarded the title of professor in veterinary sciences in 2019. She is a faculty member at the Department of Internal Diseases and Clinic of Horses, Dogs, and Cats, Wrocław University of Environmental and Life Sciences. She has completed numerous internships in Poland and abroad, expanding her diagnostic and therapeutic skills in cardiology, including training at the Cardiac Arrhythmia Service and Electrophysiology Lab, Stanford University School of Medicine. Author of many JCR-indexed publications, section editor for cardiology in “Weterynaria w Praktyce” and “Polimery w Medycynie,” author of “ECG Interpretation in Dogs and Cats” and “Small Animal Cardiology in Practice,” and supervisor and reviewer of PhD theses.
Privately: mother of Mikołaj and Nadia, sailing enthusiast, and mountain lover.

 

Dr. hab. Magdalena Garncarz
Awarded the title of Veterinary Doctor of the Year in 1999 and obtained her PhD in veterinary cardiology in 2005 (then under the Department of Clinical Sciences). In 1993, she received a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of California, Davis, in Animal Science. From 2005 to 2008, she was Head of the Small Animal Clinic at the Department of Clinical Sciences. Member of the Polish Small Animal Veterinary Association (PSLWMZ) and the European Society of Veterinary Cardiology (ESVC). She has authored numerous publications, primarily on veterinary cardiology. In 2018, she obtained her postdoctoral degree in veterinary cardiology.

DVM, Rafał Niziołek

A graduate of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at SGGW in Warsaw. Specializes in diagnosing and treating heart diseases in dogs, cats, and ferrets. He has extensive experience gained over several years of work in various veterinary clinics and numerous internships abroad (Royal (Dick) Veterinary College in Edinburgh, Scotland, Tierklinik Vetsuisse Faculty University in Bern, Cabinet Veterinaire Amberger-Philip in Geneva, Switzerland, Heart Station of the University Clinic in Uppsala). He has completed various training programs as part of the ESAVS project (CARDIOLOGY I-V, EMERGENCY AND CRITICAL CARE I-II). He is a member of the European Society of Veterinary Cardiologists (ESVC), a member of the International Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care Society (IVECCS), an author of numerous scientific publications, and a lecturer at many conferences in Poland and abroad. For many years, he has been giving lectures in cardiology as part of the Postgraduate Specialization Studies for Dogs and Cats in Warsaw. Among his teachers are renowned specialists: Prof. Christophe Lombard, Prof. Clarence Kvart, Prof. Gerhard Wess, Prof. Claudio Bussadori, Prof. Jens Haggstrom, Prof. David Spreng, Dr. Alan Kovacevic, Dr. Armelle de la Forcade, Dr. Jennifer Devey.

He specializes in echocardiography and in the emergency and intensive care of cardiac and pulmonary patients.

 

DVM, Justyn Gach

A graduate of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Environmental and Life Sciences in Wrocław. He has been involved in veterinary cardiology since his third year of studies. He acquired and continues to acquire his knowledge from numerous authorities in this field in Poland and abroad, including Prof. Gerhard Wess. He completed a 7-month internship at the VetCardia cardiology-pulmonology clinic in Warsaw and internships in veterinary cardiology departments at the University of Ludwig-Maximilian in Munich. He is a participant in doctoral studies, where he deepens his knowledge on degenerative mitral valve disease in dogs. In his daily practice, he consults cardiac patients as well as patients with chronic respiratory conditions.

Ph. D., Piotr Frydrychowski

Graduate of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at the Wrocław University of Environmental and Life Sciences, where he obtained his veterinary degree in 2017. Since 2018, he has been affiliated with the Department of Internal Diseases and the Clinic of Horses, Dogs, and Cats at the same university, currently working as a research and teaching assistant professor. In addition to his scientific and teaching duties, he is involved in the diagnosis and treatment of heart diseases at the Cardiology Unit of the Department of Internal Diseases. In January 2023, he was awarded a PhD in veterinary medicine based on a series of cardiology-focused publications in English-language scientific journals.

He has completed numerous research internships, including a one-month stay at the Cardiology Unit of Iowa State University and at the Hemodynamics and Electrophysiology Laboratory of the 2nd Department and Clinical Ward of Cardiology at the Specialist Hospital in Zabrze.

He delivers lectures, training sessions, and courses for veterinarians in the fields of echocardiography and veterinary cardiology. He is the author and co-author of numerous publications, both in high-impact English-language scientific journals and in national veterinary press.

His main interests include electrodiagnostics and cardiac electrophysiology, as well as pharmacological and non-pharmacological treatment methods for arrhythmias.