Biography:Ivar Mendez

Short description: Canadian neurosurgeon and neuroscientist

Ivar Mendez
Born	La Paz, Bolivia
Alma mater	University of Western Ontario, University of Toronto
Scientific career
Fields	neurosurgery, neuroscience, photography, sculpture, philanthropy
Institutions	University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon Health Region, Dalhousie University, Queen Elizabeth II Health Sciences Centre, Brain Repair Centre, Dalhousie University Neurosurgery

Ivar Mendez is a neurosurgeon and neuroscientist. He is the Fred H. Wigmore Professor and Chairman of Surgery at the University of Saskatchewan and the Unified Head of Surgery for the Province of Saskatchewan. He is internationally known for his work in cell transplantation for Parkinson's disease and the use of remote presence robotics in neurosurgery and primary health care.

He also holds an appointment at the Department of Psychology and Neuroscience at Dalhousie University and he is one of the founders of the Brain Repair Centre. He is also the president and founder of the Ivar Mendez International Foundation that is dedicated to providing health and educational assistance to children in the Bolivian Andes. Mendez is a photographer and sculptor and has published four books of photography.

Biography

Mendez was born in La Paz, Bolivia and immigrated with his family to Canada as a teenager. He obtained a BSc degree from the University of Toronto and then an M.D. from the University of Western Ontario (UWO). He did a neurosurgical residency training in London, and was certified in Neurosurgery from the Royal College of Physician and Surgeons of Canada in 1994 and from the American Board of Neurological Surgery in 1996. He became a fellow of the American College of Surgeons in 1998 and became a member of the College Board of Governors in 2015. His interest in regenerative medicine led him to obtain a PhD in Anatomy and Neurobiology from the UWO his PhD thesis was on "Neurotransmitter Interactions in Nigral Grafts". He did a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Lund in Sweden under the supervision of Anders Björklund, considered the "father" of cell transplantation in Parkinson's disease. In 2014, Saint Mary's University (Halifax) in Nova Scotia awarded Mendez a Doctor of Science (honoris causa) degree for his contribution to Neuroscience and he was inducted a Fellow to the Canadian Academy of Health Sciences. In 2016, Dr. Mendez received the Government of Canada Public Service Award of Excellence for the use of remote presence robotic technology to improve healthcare in the Canadian North.

Scientific contributions

He pioneered the technique of multiple grafts to restore dopamine input to the parkinsonian mammalian brain. This technique was translated into clinical trials in patients with Parkinson's disease and showed long-term survival of those grafts. He also pioneered the use of Glial Derived Neurotrophic Factor (GDNF) in combination with fetal cells in humans. Mendez invented a transplantation delivery system to inject cells into the human brain. With his team, he performed the first long-distance brain surgery robotic telementoring in the world by using a robotic arm to mentor neurosurgeons located 400 km away. He is also pioneering the use of remote presence devices to deliver health care in remote locations. In 2015, Mendez and his team printed the first 3D brain for planning deep brain stimulation surgery. Research in 3D brain printing led in 2016 to the development of a virtual reality (VR) brain for medical education and surgical planning applications. In 2020, Dr. Mendez and his remote presence technology team pioneered the use of telerobotic ultrasonography for abdominal and obstetric sonography. This technology was used to provide prenatal ultrasound to pregnant women living in COVID-19 outbreak communities.

Inventions

• Neural transplantation delivery system: Canadian Patent #2,281,007 and US Patent #7,137,969
• Injection delivery system: US Patent #8,753,314 and US patent #9,067,028

Humanitarian contributions

Mendez has established a Canadian charitable organization, the Ivar Mendez International Foundation, to provide nutrition, dental care and art program to children in remote locations of the Bolivian Andes.

Awards

• Government of Canada Public Service Award of Excellence 2016
• Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal
• Humanitarian of the Year Award, Canadian Red Cross - Atlantic Region
• Ten most influential Hispanics in Canada
• Dr. John Savage Memorial Award
• Royal College Medal Award - Medalist in Surgery

Artistic endeavours

He has published four books of photography and has had several exhibitions of his photography and sculpture In October 2003 He sculpted a bust of Canadian Neurosurgeon Dr. Charles Drake was installed outside the front entrance of University Hospital in London, Ontario where Drake practiced medicine. The statue was unveiled by American Actress and Singer Della Reese whose life was saved by Drake following an Aneurysm in October 1979.

Published books

• Sariri. Travels Through Bolivia. Mendez, I. ISBN:978-1-988783-79-6. ynwp (Regina, Canada). 2022.
• Sariri. Mendez, I. ISBN:978-99954-2-936-2. SPC Impresores S.A. 2013.
• Bolivia - 2nd Edition. Mendez, I. ISBN:978-1-897462-26-3. Glen Margaret Publishing 2012.
• Illimani. Mendez, I. ISBN:978-1-897462-17-1. Glen Margaret Publishing 2010.
• Bolivia. Mendez, I. ISBN:0-920427-64-2. Glen Margaret Publishing 2006.

Selected scientific publications

• Adams, S. J., Penz, E., Imeah, B., Burbridge, B., Obaid, H., Babyn, P., & Mendez, I. Economic Evaluation of Telerobotic Ultrasound Technology to Remotely Provide Ultrasound Services in Rural and Remote Communities. Journal of Ultrasound in Medicine. (2022). https://doi: 10.1002/jum.16070. Online ahead of print.
• Scott Adams, Brent Burbridge, Leslie CHatterson, Paul Babyn, Ivar Mendez. A Telerobotic Ultrasound Clinic Model of Ultrasound Service Delivery to Improve Access to Imaging in Rural and Remote Communities. Journal of the American College of Radiology, 2022;19:162-171., https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jacr.2021.07.023.
• Scott J. Adams, Paul Babyn, Brent Burbridge, Rachel Tang, Ivar Mendez. Access to Ultrasound Imaging: A Qualitative Study in Two Northern, Remote, Indigenous Communities in Canada. International Journal of Circumpolar Health, August 2021, https://doi.org/10.1080/22423982.2021.1961392.
• Scott Adams, Brent Burbridge, Haron Obaid, Grant Stoneham, Paul Babyn, Ivar Mendez. Telerobotic Sonography for Remote Diagnostic Imaging: Narrative Review of Current Developments and Clinical Applications. Journal of Ultrasound in Medicine, July 2021, Volume 40, Issue 7, p. 1287-1306 (https://doi.org/10.1002/jum.15525).
• Scott Adams, Brent Burbridge, Leslie Chatterson, Veronica McKinney, Paul Babyn, Ivar Mendez. Telerobotic Ultrasound to Provide Obstetrical Ultrasound Services Remotely During the COVID-19 Pandemic. Journal of Telemedicine and Telecare, October 2020. sagepub.com/journals-permissions, DOI: 10.1177/1357633X20965422journals.sagepub.com/home/jtt.
• Scott Adams, Brent Burbridge, Haron Obaid, Grant Stoneham, Paul Babyn, Ivar Mendez. Telerobotic Sonography for Remote Diagnostic Imaging. J Ultrasound Med 2020; 9999:1-20.
• S Adams, B Burbridge, A Badea, N Kanigan, L Bustamante, P Babyn, I Mendez. A Crossover Comparison of Standard and Telerobotic Approaches to Prenatal Sonography. J Ultrasound Med 2018; 37:2603-2612.
• C Ekstrand, A Jamal, R Nguyen, A Kudryk, J Mann, I Mendez. Immersive and Interactive Virtual Reality to Improve Learning and Retention of Neuroanatomy in Medical Students: A Randomized Controlled Study. CMAJ Open. March 2018. 6; 1 E103-E109. DOI: 10.9778/cmajo.20170110.
• T Holt, G Hansen, M Prodanuk, M Bradshaw, V McKinney, R Johnson, N Sari, I Mendez. Remote Presence Robotic Technology Reduces the Need for Pediatric Interfacility Transportation from an Isolated Northern Community. Telemedicine and e-Health. February 2018: DOI: 10.1089/tmj.2017.0211.T
• Adams S, Burbridge B, Langford L, Vergara V, Badea A, Bustamante L, Bryce R, Mendez I, Babyn P (2017). Initial Experience Using a Telerobotic Ultrasound System to Perform Adult Abdominal Examinations. Canadian Association of Radiologists Journal 68(3):308-314. PMID: 28159435
• "Long-term health of dopaminergic neuron transplants in Parkinson's disease patients". Cell Reports 7 (6): 1755–1761. 26 June 2014. doi:10.1016/j.celrep.2014.05.027. PMID 24910427. 
• "The use of remote presence for health care delivery in a northern Inuit community: a feasibility study". International Journal of Circumpolar Health 72 (72): 21112. 2013. doi:10.3402/ijch.v72i0.21112. PMID 23984292. 
• "Mobile remote-presence devices for point-of-care health care delivery". Canadian Medical Association Journal 185 (17): 1512–6. November 19, 2013. doi:10.1503/cmaj.120223. PMID 23775612. 
• "Point-of-Care Programming for Neuromodulation: A Feasibility Study Using Remote Presence". Neurosurgery 72 (1): 99–108. 2013. doi:10.1227/NEU.0b013e318276b5b2. PMID 23096417. 
• "Lack of functional relevance of isolated cell damage in transplants of Parkinson's disease patients". Journal of Neurology 256 (Suppl 3): 310–316. 2009. doi:10.1007/s00415-009-5242-z. PMID 19711122. 
• "Dopamine neurons implanted into people with Parkinson's disease survive without pathology for 14 years". Nature Medicine 14 (5): 507–9. May 2008. doi:10.1038/nm1752. PMID 18391961. 
• "Spinal GABAergic transplants attenuate mechanical allodynia in a rat model of neuropathic pain". Stem Cells 25 (11): 2874–85. November 2007. doi:10.1634/stemcells.2007-0326. PMID 17702982. 
• "Benefits, risks and ethical considerations in translation of stem cell research to clinical applications in Parkinson's disease". Journal of Medical Ethics 33 (3): 169–73. March 2007. doi:10.1136/jme.2005.013169. PMID 17329391. 
• "Cell type analysis of functional fetal dopamine cell suspension transplants in the striatum and substantia nigra of patients with Parkinson's disease". Brain 128 (Pt 7): 1498–510. July 2005. doi:10.1093/brain/awh510. PMID 15872020. 
• "A multitarget basal ganglia dopaminergic and GABAergic transplantation strategy enhances behavioural recovery in parkinsonian rats". Brain 131 (Pt 8): 2106–26. August 2008. doi:10.1093/brain/awn149. PMID 18669492.