Dr. Gordon Boyd
Kingston General Hospital Research Institute
Not only can neurological deficits be acquired from brain disease, but also from other health complications. However, because the underlying problem is centralized elsewhere in the body, the presence of these neurological deficits are often ignored or misunderstood. Dr. Gord Boyd, a clinician-scientist at Kingston Health Sciences Centre, is pioneering the use of Kinarm Labs for identifying and assessing sensorimotor and cognitive deficits caused by non-neurological disease. His research is bringing comprehensive, quantitative neurological assessments to new patient groups and refining treatment strategies.
Dr. Boyd’s first research projects with the Kinarm investigated how poor brain tissue oxygenation (BtO2) during the first 24 hours of critical illness impacts brain function and long-term neurologic health. He is the first to connect low cerebral oxygen levels to an increased risk of developing delirium, a devastating and costly problem for patients in critical care.
His subsequent work with the Kinarm explored the relationship between cerebral oxygenation levels during coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) surgery and postoperative neurological impairment. His research has begun to shed light on previously obscure connections, helping clinicians to understand patient recovery, and quantifying the neurological effects of cardiac surgery.
Dr. Boyd’s current research focuses on the neurological impacts of kidney disease and kidney dialysis. By using the Kinarm Labs and monitoring blood oxygenation levels, Dr. Boyd and his team of researchers are trying to uncover which form of dialysis – hemodialysis or home dialysis – is less damaging to the patient’s cognitive function. They are also working with Dr. Sam Silver, a nephrologist at KHSC, to study how brain function is affected by acute kidney injury. The Kinarm labs and Kinarm Standard Test suite provides Dr. Boyd’s research with the objective and quantified brain function data needed to test hypotheses and improve patient care.
