Research: An unresolved challenge following catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation is distinguishing favorable atrial recovery from persistent abnormalities in the underlying substrate. My MSc thesis aims to uncover improvements in cardiac function that may remain undetected under resting conditions by examining cardiovascular responses to physiological stressors, including stress echocardiography and head-up tilt testing. My broader research has characterized venous and arterial responses of the lower limbs during lower body negative pressure, investigated how cardiac output aligns, or fails to align, with the peripheral demands of thermoregulation and tissue perfusion, and evaluated the ability of different methods to represent ventricular-arterial coupling during coordinated changes in contractility, preload, and afterload.
Funding: Graduate Student Research Dissemination Award, QEII-GSST, David Johnston International Experience Awards, NSERC MSFSS, NSERC CGS-M, President’s Graduate Scholarship, NSERC USRA
Bio: I grew up in Hong Kong and moved to Markham ON in 2017. I completed a BSc in Biomedical Sciences with a minor in Medical Physiology at the University of Waterloo. If I'm not in the lab, I can probably be found travelling the world with my camera, curled up at home with my cats and a good book, or working on a whittling project with a good show in the background.
Email: skye.ling@uwaterloo.ca