“The goal of World Heart Day is to promote cardiovascular disease and heart disease awareness for a better heart lifestyle,” said Millie Occhionero, director of marketing and communications. “Here at MMRI, we’re doing a lot of research on cardiovascular health.”

Dr. Maria Kontaridis said historically, the MMRI focused on cardiac arrhythmia. Kontaridis has a Ph.D. and is executive director, director of research/Gordon K. Moe Professor, and Chair of Biomedical Research and Translational Medicine.

“But when I first arrived here at the MMRI five years ago, we expanded the scope of the cardiovascular research and now study everything from children’s genetic heart diseases, obesity-related cardiomyopathy, and end-stage heart failure to name a few,” Kontaridis said.

To help themselves, Kontaridis encouraged people to listen to their bodies and be aware of where they are health-wise.

“While it’s important to have a good diet and exercise program, you should also reduce stress and recognize the signs and symptoms of heart disease or a heart attack,” she explained. “It can present very differently and not always be that sudden chest pain. Sometimes, it’s just numbness in the arm or feeling sweaty and hot. Recognize if something isn’t right with your body and seek medical attention.”