CARDIOLOGIST RAMON ABARQUEZ JR.; 89

World-renowned Filipino heart specialist Dr. Ramon Abarquez Jr. died at 89 on Jan. 10 after a lingering illness, with his wife Agnes and other family members at his bedside.

Considered among the pillars of Philippine cardiology, Abarquez was in active clinical practice until he was confined in hospital in July 2017. His remains will be interred at Heritage Memorial Park. Public viewing will start on Jan. 14.

Abarquez was professor emeritus of the University of the Philippines College of Medicine and was well known for his pioneering researches, many of which have been published in international peer-reviewed journals, with 27 garnering awards here and abroad.

In 1993, he was elected into the National Academy of Science and Technology (NAST), membership deemed as the highest recognition for Filipino scientists.

“The best legacy a doctor can give is pioneering research outputs and advocacies...” Abarquez said in a commentary in Health and Lifestyle magazine, for which he diligently wrote even while confined in hospital.

In 1960, his research made possible the exercise electrocardiogram (ECG) test, which is now commonly requested worldwide to evaluate pa- tients with suspected blockages in their heart arteries.

A cardiology research fellow then, he was funded and tasked by the New York Heart Association to develop a technique to record the ECG of a patient during exercise, which was not possible at that time. After more than a year of experimentation, he designed the prototype of the current electrodes now being used worldwide.

As senior author of this pioneering study, he presented the research product at a meeting of the American Heart Association Convention in Florida, for which he was recognized by international experts.

In 1979, Abarquez pushed for the treatment of blood pressure at a level of 140/90 mmHg, then considered by international expert bodies to be still normal. High blood pressure then was defined as 160/100 mmHg or higher, but he and his research team at UP-Philippine General Hospital published a study showing abnormal changes in the heart and arteries of persons with as low a level as 140/90 mmHg.

He also published the first paper showing that the calcium channel blockers being used only to control high blood pressure then could also be used for patients with blocked heart arteries.