Meet the Symposium Faculty

DR. THOM IS A PRACTICING EMERGENCY MEDICINE PHYSICIAN PROFESSOR IN THE DEPARTMENT OF EMERGENCY MEDICINE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND SCHOOL OF MEDICINE (UMSOM). HE RECEIVED HIS BA, MD AND PHD (MICROBIAL PHYSIOLOGY) DEGREES FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF ROCHESTER AND RESIDENCY TRAINING IN EMERGENCY MEDICINE AT UCLA. AFTER 28 YEARS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA HE JOINED UMSOM IN 2013. DR. THOM MAINTAINS AN ACTIVE RESEARCH PROGRAM AND CURRENTLY DIRECTS PROJECTS TO ASSESS THE INVOLVEMENT OF INFLAMMATORY MICROPARTICLES IN DECOMPRESSION ILLNESS AND CARBON MONOXIDE EXPOSURES, AND THE INFLUENCE OF SEVERAL GENETIC POLYMORPHISMS ON STEM CELL AND LEUKOCYTE FUNCTIONS IN DIABETIC WOUND HEALING. HE HAS PUBLISHED OVER 160 PEER REVIEWED PAPERS WITH AN H-INDEX OF 54..

RICHARD MOON EARNED BSC AND MD DEGREES AT MCGILL UNIVERSITY IN MONTREAL, CANADA, THEN TRAINED IN INTERNAL MEDICINE AND BIOMEDICAL ENGINEERING AT THE UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO. IN 1979, HE WENT TO DUKE TO TRAIN IN PULMONARY AND CRITICAL CARE MEDICINE. AFTER PULMONARY/CRITICAL CARE FELLOWSHIP HE COMPLETED TRAINING IN ANESTHESIOLOGY AND IN 1983 JOINED THE DUKE UNIVERSITY FACULTY. HE IS PROFESSOR OF ANESTHESIOLOGY, PROFESSOR OF MEDICINE AND MEDICAL DIRECTOR OF THE DUKE CENTER FOR HYPERBARIC MEDICINE & ENVIRONMENTAL PHYSIOLOGY. HIS RESEARCH HAS INCLUDED THE PHYSIOLOGY OF IMMERSION AND PREDICTORS OF ARTERIAL PCO2 DURING UNDERWATER EXERCISE. HIS WORK HAS INCLUDED THE ROLE OF PATENT FORAMEN OVALE (PFO) IN DECOMPRESSION SICKNESS (DCS). HE HAS BEEN PARTICULARLY INTERESTED IN CAUSES AND PREVENTION OF IMMERSION PULMONARY EDEMA, A CONDITION THAT CONTINUES TO OCCUR IN NAVY SPECIAL FORCES TRAINEES. HE HAS BEEN SUPPORTED BY SEVERAL NAVY GRANTS, RECENTLY INCLUDING USE OF AN EXPERIMENTAL BREATHING GAS (PERFLUOROMETHANE) TO DECREASE DECOMPRESSION REQUIREMENTS AFTER HELIOX DIVE. AFTER COMPLETING HUMAN EXPERIMENTS DEMONSTRATING UPREGULATION OF MITOCHONDRIAL BIOGENESIS WITH LOW DOSE CARBON MONOXIDE EXPOSURE, HE IS CURRENTLY STUDYING ITS EFFECT ON TRAINING OF THE RESPIRATORY MUSCLES. HIS WORK HAS ALSO INCLUDED MECHANISMS OF SUDDEN DEATH DURING TRIATHLONS AND CAUSES OF PERIOPERATIVE OPIOID-INDUCED RESPIRATORY DEPRESSION, AND IMPROVED MONITORING TECHNIQUES FOR MONITORING PATIENTS TO DETECT IT. HIS AWARDS INCLUDE THE MENTORSHIP AWARD FROM THE AMA-WOMEN PHYSICIANS CONGRESS PHYSICIAN MENTOR RECOGNITION PROGRAM, LEONARD PALUMBO JR, MD FACULTY ACHIEVEMENT AWARD FOR COMPASSIONATE PATIENT CARE AND EXCELLENCE IN THE TEACHING AND MENTORING OF YOUNG PHYSICIANS, DUKE AWARDS FOR EXCELLENCE IN MEDICAL STUDENT EDUCATION AND TWO AWARDS AS DUKE ANESTHESIOLOGY TEACHER OF THE YEAR..

Full speaker biography pending final approval.

Full speaker biography pending final approval.

MD and associate professor in exercise and sport sciences at the University of Padua. Specialist in Diving and Hyperbaric Medicine, a PHD in muscle pathophysiology and a residency in Nutritional Sciences (Internal Medicine). After focusing my work on basic and clinical sciences on diving and hyperbaric medicine in 2015 I became director of a Master level II in Diving and Hyperbaric Medicine. My mission in research and education is to promote prevention techniques, develop techniques to monitor patients undergoing to HBOT, and get the peak performance in elite athletes and divers, based on the study of human metabolism through different methods: invasive (blood sampling and instrumental analyses) and non-invasive such as oxygen consumption and the determination of oxidative stress and blood transmitters in saliva and urine. My goal is to investigate human metabolism and physical exercise both on the land and in the water, to discover the correct dosage of work out and oxygen, and promote new conditioning and recovery strategies to improve the performance of athletes and the quality of life of sedentary people and patients. I truly believe in interdisciplinary collaboration, promoting the growing of new research fellows worldwide.

Full speaker biography pending final approval.

Francois is the Vice President of Safety Services at the Divers Alert Network (US). He is responsible for all safety and accident prevention initiatives, including hyperbaric facilities in the global recompression chamber network. He has written a series of books, guides, journal articles and other publications, specifically aimed at ensuring safety in the hyperbaric and diving industries, and regularly presents lectures on safety in these fields. Francois serves on a range of hyperbaric industry committees, including the UHMS Safety Committee, and several ISO, ASME-PVHO, NFPA and CSA standards committees..

Elise is currently serving as the Charge Respiratory Therapist and Safety Director of the Hyperbaric Medicine Unit at University Health Network Toronto General Hospital. She has a BSc Kinesiology from York University, a Respiratory Therapist Diploma from the Michener Institute, and specialized training in Hyperbaric Medicine.  She has worked as Core Hyperbaric Staff since 2023 and has worked to ensure the highest safety standards in hyperbaric operations.

Full speaker biography pending final approval.