School of Health & Wellbeing

The Robertson Centre for Biostatistics (RCB) is playing an active role in supporting a range of COVID-19 related research.

For Professor Colin Berry’s study investigating whether COVID-19 causes longer-term heart damage, we are providing the eCRF, data management, statistical analysis and research fellow support, and our ECG Core Lab (based at Glasgow Royal Infirmary) is managing the ECG components of the study. We are providing technical support for Professor Jill Pell to analyse data in the Glasgow SafeHaven to inform the Health Board’s strategy on COVID-19 ‘shielding’. The RCB team has also created several UK national registries (supported by the British Cardiovascular Society) to capture cardiovascular complications and interventions associated with COVID-19, and Dr Pierpaolo Pellicori (Clinical Senior Lecturer) is leading a Cochrane Rapid Review on cardiovascular complications of COVID-19. The results of several other research applications are awaited.

Professor John Cleland (Director) and Dr Pellicori have authored several publications relating to COVID-19, including editorials and position papers in the European Journal of Heart Failure and the European Heart Journal (see below).

RCB staff have also been pleased to play a role in making the Lighthouse Laboratory in Glasgow fully operational. Thanks are due particularly to Claire Brunton (Projects Administrator) who is supporting the co-ordination of its operating procedures and organising the training records for its staff and volunteers. Claire has been supported by Alan Stevenson (Senior Application Programmer) and David Cowan (IT Support Officer), who have provided excellent IT and Web assistance.

• At the heart of COVID-19. Pellicori P. Eur Heart J. 2020. doi:10.1093/eurheartj/ehaa415.
• Caring for people with heart failure and many other medical problems through and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic; the advantages of universal-access to home telemonitoring. Cleland JG, Clark RA, Pellicori P, Inglis SC. Eur J Heart Fail. 2020 doi: 10.1002/ejhf.1864.
• Circulating plasma concentrations of angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 in men and women with heart failure and effects of renin-angiotensin-aldosterone inhibitors. Sama IE, Ravera A, Santema BT, van Goor H, Ter Maaten JM, Cleland JGF, Rienstra M, Friedrich AW, Samani NJ, Ng LL, Dickstein K, Lang CC, Filippatos G, Anker SD, Ponikowski P, Metra M, van Veldhuisen DJ, Voors AA. Eur Heart J. 2020;41:1810-1817. doi: 10.1093/eurheartj/ehaa373.
• Conducting Clinical Trials in Heart Failure During (and After) the COVID-19 Pandemic: An Expert Consensus Position Paper from the Heart Failure Association (HFA) of the European Society of Cardiology (ESC). Eur Heart Journal (in press)

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First published: 19 May 2020