Andrea Rigamonti

Dr. Andrea Rigamonti graduated from medical school in 1999 and completed the anesthesia and critical care residency in 2003 at the University of Milan (Italy). He then completed two years fellowship (neuro-anesthesia and neuro-critical care) at University of Toronto from 2005 to 2007. He is the Chief of Critical Care and a Staff Anesthesiologist at St. Michael’s Hospital in Toronto. He is also an Associate Professor in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Toronto.

Dr. Rigamonti has been an active member of the Trauma-Neurosurgery Knowledge Translation Committee at St. Michael’s Hospital. In this capacity, he is involved in the review and evaluation of the most recent evidence on the care of neurosurgical and trauma patients as well as to develop protocols and guidelines. He is also actively involved in the education and training of fellows as program director of the trauma-neuro anaesthesia fellowship at St. Michael’s Hospital. He is also an active reviewer for several anesthesia and neurocritical care journals. 

Research Synopsis

Dr. Rigamonti’s clinical research program is aimed at optimizing patient outcomes following neurosurgery and neurotrauma, with particular interests in the clinical application of transcranial Doppler (TCD) monitoring and developing multimodal treatment strategies to reduce post-craniotomy pain. He has received research grants to address the issue of post-craniotomy pain from the Physicians’ Services Incorporated Foundation and the Canadian Anesthesiologists’ Society. He is also the site principal investigator for a large CIHR-funded Canadian multi-centre prospective study aimed at developing a useful prognostic model to predict the long-term prognosis in patients with severe traumatic brain injury.

Dr. Rigamonti is the leader of the neuro-anesthesia group in the Department of Anaesthesia at St. Michael’s Hospital. In this capacity he facilitated the development of the awake craniotomy program, led by Dr Marco Garavaglia.

Recent Publications

1. M.M. Garavaglia, S. Das, M. Cusimano, C. Crescini, C.D. Mazer, G.M.T. Hare, A. Rigamonti. Anesthetic approach to high-risk patients and prolonged awake craniotomy using dexmedetomidine and scalp block. J Neurosurg Anesthesiol, 2014; 26:226–233 SRA
2. M.M. Garavaglia, T. Mak, M.D. Cusimano, A. Rigamonti, C. Crescini, V.A. McCredie, A. Romaschin, A.J. Baker, G.M.T. Hare. Body mass index as a risk factor for increased serum lactate during craniotomy. Minerva Anestesiol, 2013 October; 79(10):1132-9 C
3. Desjardins P, Turgeon AF, Tremblay MH, Lauzier F, Zarychanski R, Boutin A, Moore L, McIntyre L, English SW, Lacroix J, Rigamonti A, Fergusson DA. Hemoglobin levels and transfusions in neurocritically ill patients: a systematic review of comparative studies. Critical Care,2012;. 16:R54 . C
4. Rigamonti A, Mclaren AT, Mazer CD, Nix K, Liu E, Ragoonanan T, Freedman J, Harrington A, Lollo M, Hare GMT. Storage of Strain Specific Rat Blood Limits Cerebral Tissue Oxygen Delivery During Acute Fluid Resuscitation. Br J Anaesth 2008; 100(3): 357-64. PA
5. Rigamonti A, Ackery A, Baker A. Transcranial Doppler Monitoring in Subarachnoid Hemorrhage: A Critical Tool in Critical Care (Review). Can J Anesth 2008; 55:2 112.123. PA

Grants

• Canadian Anesthesiologists' Society Research Award, $30,000, Awarded: April 2012. Project Title: Effects of perioperative low-dose pregabalin on post-craniotomy pain: A two-centre randomized controlled trial
• The PSI Foundation, $ 120,000.00 (CAD), Awarded: June 2009. 

Courses

Course Number: Annual Resident Seminar on ICP physiology
Course Name: Anesthesia for Brain Tumour Surgery and Awake Craniotomy. (core seminar for PGY4)
Course Number: Annual Transcranial Doppler Workshop
Course Name: Critical Care Department Fellows
Course Number: Transcranial Doppler (TCD): Hands-on Workshop
Course Name: Canadian Anesthesiologists’ Society, 2011 and 2012 Annual Meeting
Course Number: Transcranial Doppler in the Peri-operative Setting. Hands-on Workshop
Course Name: Annual International Symposium of Ultrasound for Regional Anesthesia, Pain Medicine, and Peri-operative Application (ISURA 2014), Toronto, June 23rd, 24th 2014 and June 2016