PERIN, Emerson

Emerson C. Perin, MD, PhDEmerson C. Perin, M.D., Ph.D., is the Director of Clinical Research for Cardiovascular Medicine and the Medical Director of the Stem Cell Center at the Texas Heart Institute at St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital (THI at SLEH); and staff interventional cardiologist at St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital. He is also Clinical Assistant Professor of Internal Medicine both at Baylor College of Medicine and The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston.  

Dr. Perin has provided innovative cardiovascular care for 18 years, focusing on minimally invasive interventional approaches to therapy. For the past 10 years, his major research interest has been the study of adult stem cells for the treatment of acute myocardial infarction, chronic heart failure, and peripheral vascular disease. Dr. Perin is an expert in stem cell therapy and delivery. He was the first investigator in the United States to receive approval from the Food and Drug Administration to inject stem cells directly into the hearts of patients suffering from heart failure. He currently is conducting 5 clinical trials using various stem cell types to treat cardiovascular disease. He has more experience with the NOGA mapping and injection catheter system than anyone else in the world. The NOGA system allows investigators to determine via electrical signals which areas of the heart are the most likely to respond to stem cell therapy.

Dr. Perin graduated from Porto Alegre Medical School in Brazil. He continued his studies at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami and completed his internship and residency in Internal Medicine at the University of Miami in Miami, Florida. He completed his interventional cardiology fellowship at THI at SLEH, where he received several awards, including Outstanding Cardiology Fellow and the Mueller Foundation Cardiology Fellowship Award.