Niamh Hynes

Niamh Hynes

Postdoctoral Researcher

Ms Niamh Hynes is a Senior Registrar in Vascular & Endovascular Surgery at the Galway Clinic, Honorary Clinical Lecturer in Endovascular Surgery at the University of Galway, and co-founder of the Western Vascular Institute (WVI), an international vascular research foundation. Her areas of interest are clinical vascular research, biomedical engineering and vascular medical device design.

Her main areas of interest are the biomechanical properties of the thoracoabdominal aorta and supra-aortic vessels, in particular the carotid and vertebral arteries.  She works with Biomedical Engineering research teams in University of Galway and Houston Methodist Texas researching thoracoabdominal aortic aneurysm and aortic dissection and in Trinity College Dublin investigating the biomechanical properties of carotid artery plaque. Both groups are developing novel imaging protocols using advanced 4D MR and 7 Tesla MR Imaging. She also working on projects in the area of carotid and vertebral artery dissection and has developed international collaborations in this field.

She is the lead author on a Cochrane review on Carotid Artery dissection with the Cochrane Stroke group and co-authors 5 other Cochrane reviews with the Cochrane Vascular Group.

She co-founded the WVI in Galway in 2006. The WVI is a charitable research body committed to translational vascular research, technical innovation, professional and public education. The WVI has secured substantial research funding and has forged collaborative initiatives with other institutions, preeminent physicians, bio-engineers, researchers and industrial partners from a variety of disciplines both nationally and internationally.

In 2013 the WVI established an independent Global Registry using cloud based technology and imaging core lab to monitor clinical outcomes from the use of the novel Multi-layer flow modulator device in the treatment of thoracoabdominal aortic pathologies. The registry employs a highly skilled team of bioengineers, scientists, data mangers and clinicians who use clinical outcomes to inform technical innovation. 

As honorary clinical lecturer in University of Galway, she engages in teaching and research supervision of Medical and Bio-engineering Students. She also co-founded an international post-graduate endovascular Masters programme at University of Galway to train future specialists on the clinical and academic aspects of endovascular surgery.

Ms Hynes has published 102 international-peer reviewed papers, 8 book chapters and 3 patents. She is an investigator in a number of industry-sponsored international multi-centre clinical trials on aortic endografts.

Ms Hynes’ clinical research portfolio has been recognised by 15 international awards. The National Institute of Health in the USA cited her publication on cost-effectiveness of endovascular aortic repair as one of the most significant in its field in the last decade

She committed to translational research and innovation. She has been a Bioinnovate fellow with Enterprise Ireland and is currently working on an Enterprise Ireland commercialisation fund to develop a percutaneous access device for the carotid artery.  She works with a variety of international cardiovascular MedTech companies on a consultancy basis

Related Links

www.vascular.ie