Cláudia Febra , Hospital da Luz specialist in Internal and Intensive Medicine, concluded her doctorate degree in Medicine, last May 27, at the Faculty of Medicine of Oporto University (FMUP), obtaining the unanimous approval of the jury with distinction. Her thesis – entitled “New early biomarkers for the diagnosis of acute venous thromboembolism” – revealed innovating results in the metabolomic study of patients with episodes of pulmonary embolism and severe venous thrombosis of the lower limbs in the disease’s hyperacute stage. The main results of the research, published in the Journal of Translational Medicine, point to the existence of a specific metabolomic signature and suggest a panel of potential biomarkers for an early diagnosis of acute venous thromboembolism. In the conclusions of her research, Cláudia Febra, who runs the Hyperbaric Medicine Centre of Hospital da Luz Lisboa, highlights among other aspects: Pulmonary embolism and severe venous thrombosis revealed a specific metabolomic signature, for the first time identified. The panel of potential biomarkers of pulmonary embolism and severe venous thrombosis found, showed high efficacy in the diagnosis of the disease’s acute stage. The results obtained may also be significant in the detection of troponin in pulmonary embolism, which was at the basis of this project’s motivation. The thesis had Victor Gil as advisor (Portuguese Catholic University – UCP) and as co-advisors Deborah Penque (National Health Institute Dr Ricardo Jorge) and Rui Maio (Nova Medical School – Faculty of Medical Sciences, Lisbon Nova University). In the photo above, the new doctor and the doctorate jury: Marta Ferreira (Faculty of Medicine of Lisbon University – FMUL), Maria Cristina Bárbara (FMUL), Joaquim Adelino Leite Moreira (FMUP, and president of the jury), Cláudia Febra, Victor Gil, Cristina Gavina (FMUP), and Inês Marques (FMUP), and behind on the screen, Paulo Bettencourt (UCP), João Abecassis (Hospital dos Lusíadas), and Ana Teresa Timóteo (Nova Medical School), who participated by videoconference.
