Deborah O'Leary

Research

My research interests focus primarily on the cardiovascular health of children. The primary experimental measures that I use in my research include arterial blood pressure and blood flow, arterial stiffness, left ventricular function and structure, sympathetic nerve activity and baroreflex function. My recent work involves looking at the effects of childhood obesity and hypertension on blood pressure regulation, arterial health and left ventricular hypertrophy. As well, I am also interested in the effects of childhood age, maturation, gender and posture. My interests in reflex cardiovascular control also extend to those suffering from cardiovascular disease and blood pressure regulation difficulties following exposure to prolonged microgravity.