Lawson Scientist Combines Military Service With Innovative Research To Help Canada’s Soldiers

Dr. Raymond Kao’s discoveries aimed at treating soldiers wounded in battle

LONDON, Ontario – Soldiers wounded on the battlefield could have a better chance of survival and experience less complications after being injured thanks to a ground-breaking discovery made by Lawson Health Research Institute scientist, Dr. Raymond Kao.

Dr. Kao’s innovative new research study has shown that a hormone produced by the kidney, when combined with saline, improved blood flow and tissue metabolism better than saline alone.

“You always want to find ways to improve the resuscitative process, so I am
looking at one aspect of that in order to improve a soldier’s survival rate and
decrease complications if they are wounded in battle,” Dr. Kao says. “We are looking at something that a soldier or medic can easily give without a lot of fanfare that can save somebody’s life. That’s what I find so exciting about this research.”

Acting as the principal investigator, Dr. Kao worked with four other scientists on the research project funded by Canada’s Department of National Defence. The research team’s abstract, entitled “The Effects of Erythropoietin on a Hemorrhagic Shock Resuscitation Rat Model,” was selected as one of four finalists out of 1,200 submissions to the European Society of Intensive Care Medicine. The winning abstract will be announced in Berlin, Germany on October 9.

In addition to his research role at Lawson, Dr. Kao is also a Lieutenant
Commander with the Canadian Forces. He recently returned from a five-week humanitarian mission providing medical services to the citizens of Central and South America, and will be returning to Afghanistan this fall to serve as an internal medicine specialist.

As an attending physician in the Critical Care Trauma Centre at London Health Sciences Centre, Victoria hospital, and Assistant Professor in the Department of Medicine (Critical Care) with the Schulich School of Medicine & Dentistry at The University of Western Ontario, Dr. Kao continues to serve as an active-duty officer while dividing his time between deployments and training courses.

Dr. Kao has also served in various battalions and units as a doctor since 1991, and has provided military service since 1977 in places that include Bosnia, Africa, and the Middle East.

About Lawson Health Research Institute
Lawson Health Research Institute is the research institute of London Health Sciences Centre and St. Joseph's Health Care, London. It is one of the largest hospital-based research institutes in Canada and is dedicated to helping people live healthier lives by advancing knowledge of how to prevent, diagnose and treat disease.


For more information, please contact:

Mark Wolfe, Communications Consultant
Lawson Health Research Institute
519-646-6100 ext. 61098
www.lhrionhealth.ca