Prof Peter Macfarlane DSc FRCP(Glasg) FESC FRSE
Professor of Electrocardiology
Tel: 0141-211-5082 (office) or 0141-211 4724 (direct)
Fax: 0141-552-6114 (direct)
Email: peter.w.macfarlane@clinmed.gla.ac.uk
Professor Macfarlane came to work in the Royal Infirmary over 35 years ago and was a founding member of the University of Glasgow Department of Medical Cardiology which was created shortly after he arrived. His major interest throughout has been the application of computer techniques to ECG interpretation. His work has been adopted commercially and applied world-wide. He has established an ECG Core Laboratory for handling ECGs recorded in national and international clinical trials and epidemiological studies.
He is a Fellow of the British Computer Society, the Royal College of Physicians of Glasgow, the European Society of Cardiology and the Royal Society of Edinburgh. He is currently President of the International Society of Electrocardiology. He was awarded a D.Sc. on the basis of his contribution to research in his own field. He was also jointly awarded the 1998 Rijlant International Prize in Electrocardiology by the Belgian Royal Academy of Medicine.
He currently directs an 8 strong group who work on various aspects of computer assisted reporting of ECGs (CARE) and Clinical Trials.
Research Interests
- Electrocardiography
The ECG Group has pioneered many techniques related to computer analysis of electrocardiograms. Among these are the use of neural networks for ECG interpretation, automated methods of serial ECG comparison, extensive use of age, sex, clinical history and medical therapy in automated ECG reporting among other things. The Group has also established large databases of normal ECG measurements which are of immense value in the development of new electrocardiographic criteria. Developments are in hand to extend these normal limits to other ethnic groups.
Recent work has included optimising age/sex based criteria for acute myocardial infarction. The new ESC/AHA/ACC universal defintion of myocardial infarction has included sex based ECG criteria for acute MI based on the work in Glasgow.
The Group has extensive commercial collaboration with Burdick, a Cardiac Science company,and PhysioControl, Heartlab (Agfa), Medcon (McKesson), Draeger Medical and Spacelabs Healthcare as well as a number of other companies (Epiphany Cardiology, Cardiolex, Schmidt GmbH).
- ECG Core Laboratory
The Department has established an internationally recognised Core Lab for the management of ECGs recorded as part of national and international clinical trials as well as major epidemiological studies. A facility for undertaking Minnesota Coding and automated serial comparison is in routine use. Essentially this development arose from handling ECGs in the West of Scotland Coronary Prevention Study (WOSCOPS) from which many interesting electrocardiographic observations have arisen, particularly in relation to risk factors for ischaemic heart disease. The most recent WOSCOPS publication appeared in the New England Journal of Medicine in October 2007. Currently the Core Lab handles the ECGs from the following studies:
Collaborative work continues with