Eric Wise, MD, MA, FACS, FABOM

My research program focuses on improving outcomes for patients with complex surgical and critical illness through an integrated approach that spans clinical data science, vascular biology, and translational large-animal models. Clinically, I use large national databases to answer key questions in gastroenterology and bariatric surgery, examining outcomes, risk factors, and care patterns to guide best practices. This work is supported by funding from the NIH, Department of Defense, and industry, underscoring its importance and relevance to both patients and health systems.

In the laboratory, my team studies how muscle tissues- including venous smooth muscle, airway smooth muscle, and skeletal muscle- respond to pathophysiologic states such as hemorrhage, sepsis, asthma, and ischemia. A major focus is understanding venous responses to sepsis with the goal of developing therapies to target vasoplegia and improve hemodynamic stability in critically ill patients. In parallel, we investigate factors that modify airway hyperresponsiveness, as well as pharmacologic strategies to mitigate ischemic injury during traumatic limb injury, with particular relevance to far-forward and resource-limited environments.

Our group is multidisciplinary and highly collaborative, bringing together residents, students, and full-time research staff, as well as partners at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences and Vanderbilt University. We work closely with clinicians, engineers, PhD scientists, and veterinarians to design and execute studies that are both mechanistically rigorous and clinically meaningful. In conjunction with industry collaborators, we are also developing venous waveform analysis as a novel signal to assess fluid status during shock and other states of physiologic stress, with the aim of creating practical devices for bedside use.

As Large Animal Core Director in the Translational Center for Resuscitative Trauma Research, I have developed unique expertise in using large animal models to simulate complex human pathophysiology, including hemorrhage, abdominal trauma, limb ischemia, surgical sepsis, and endotoxemia. These models provide a crucial bridge from bench to bedside, allowing us to test resuscitation strategies, monitoring technologies, and novel therapies in realistic, clinically relevant scenarios. Across these efforts, the overarching goal of my research program is to understand and modulate muscle and vascular responses to critical illness and injury in ways that translate into better care and improved outcomes for surgical and trauma patients.