Simon Urschel

Professor, Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry - Pediatrics Dept

Contact Overview Announcements Publications

Contact

Professor, Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry - Pediatrics Dept

Email: urschel@ualberta.ca
Phone: (780) 407-8361
Address: 4C2.24 WMC Stollery Children's Hospital
8440 112 St

Edmonton AB

T6G 2B7

Overview

About

Dr. Simon Urschel is currently appointed as Professor in the Department of Pediatrics in the Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry.

Dr. Simon Urschel is a Pediatric Cardiologist and Immunologist and Director of the Pediatric Heart Transplant program at the Stollery Children’s Hospital, providing heart transplantation for all western Canadian Provinces and Territories and Professor of Pediatrics, Medical Microbiology and Immunology at the University of Alberta. He received his training in Pediatrics, congenital and acquired immunodeficiencies and Pediatric Cardiology at the Ludwig Maximilians University in Munich, Germany. He worked as a specialist for pediatric heart transplantation in Munich before coming to Edmonton in 2008 for a research term in Transplant Immunology followed by a faculty position in the Department of Pediatrics.

Announcements

Dr. Urschel’s research focuses on the immature immune system of early childhood and how natural weaknesses of the immune response can improve outcomes of organ transplantation. His work on blood group incompatible heart transplantation and desensitization therapies has contributed to establish this technique as a standard option in many parts of the world resulting in shorter wait times, better utilization of donor organs and improved survival after heart transplantation. His second research focus is on quality of life, neurocognitive outcomes and mental health after pediatric transplantation. This includes studies and interventions on social disparities, improved patient integration into care, and communication strategies to reach teenagers to contribute in their medical management.

Dr Urschel serves in many leadership roles on international, national, provincial and local organizations including the Board of Directors of the International Society for Heart and Lung Transplantation (ISHLT), leadership roles in the Pediatric Heart Transplant Society (PHTS), the Canadian Donation and Transplant Research Program (CDTRP), the Alberta Transplant Institute (ATI) and Transplant Services Alberta.

Featured Publications

Let's get physical: Aerobic capacity, muscle strength, and muscle endurance after pediatric heart transplantation

Amanda R. Krysler, Chantal J. Allan, Ingrid Larsen, Sunita Mathur, Catherine Morgan, Steven C. Greenway, Tom Blydt‐Hansen, Michael Khoury, Lori J. West, Simon Urschel

Pediatric Transplantation. 2024 May; 10.1111/petr.14731

ABO-incompatible heart transplantation—evolution of a revolution

Neha Bansal, Lori J. West, Jacob Simmonds, Simon Urschel

The Journal of Heart and Lung Transplantation. 2024 April; 10.1016/j.healun.2024.03.019

Review on clinician bias and its impact on racial and socioeconomic disparities in pediatric heart transplantation

Shahnawaz Amdani, Jeffrey G. Gossett, Valerie Chepp, Simon Urschel, Alfred Asante‐Korang, Jarrod E. Dalton

Pediatric Transplantation. 2024 March; 10.1111/petr.14704

Successful ABO incompatible heart transplantation after desensitization therapy in an older child

Annemarie Krauss, Lori J. West, Jennifer Conway, Michael Khoury, Susann Nahirniak, Anne Halpin, Mohammed Al Aklabi, Simon Urschel

Pediatric Transplantation. 2023 May; 10.1111/petr.14459

Differences in medication adherence by sex and organ type among adolescent and young adult solid organ transplant recipients

Yulia Vaisbourd, Mourad Dahhou, Xun Zhang, Ruth Sapir‐Pichhadze, Heloise Cardinal, Olwyn Johnston, Tom D. Blydt‐Hansen, Lee Anne Tibbles, Lorraine Hamiwka, Simon Urschel, Patricia Birk, Janice Bissonnette, Mina Matsuda‐Abedini, Jennifer Harrison BScPhm, Jeffrey Schiff, Veronique Phan, Sabina De Geest, Upton Allen, Yaron Avitzur, Seema Mital, Bethany J. Foster

Pediatric Transplantation. 2023 March; 10.1111/petr.14446

Thoracic organ donation after circulatory determination of death

Sanaz Hatami, Jennifer Conway, Darren H. Freed, Simon Urschel

Transplantation Reports. 2023 February; 10.1016/j.tpr.2022.100125

Ventricular assist device support following pediatric heart transplantation

Annemarie Krauss, Tara Pidborochynski, Holger Buchholz, Simon Urschel, Mohammed Al‐Akalabi, Darren H. Freed, Vijay Anand, Paula Holinkski, Angela Bates, Jennifer Conway

Pediatric Transplantation. 2022 December; 10.1111/petr.14363

The experiences of children with a cardiac transplant, their families and health care providers in the COVID‐19 pandemic

Rosslynn T. Zulla, David B. Nicholas, Lori J. West, Sarah Chan, Marie McCoy, Simon Urschel

Pediatric Transplantation. 2022 December; 10.1111/petr.14388

Patient and care provider inclusion in the development of an educational graphic novel for heart transplanted teenagers

Stephanie Dalmer, Sean Caulfield, Faye Murdoch, Simon Urschel

Pediatric Transplantation. 2022 December; 10.1111/petr.14396

Xenotransplantation: Is the future now?

Simon Urschel

Pediatric Transplantation. 2022 August; 10.1111/petr.14271

Alterations in the immune phenotype of thymectomized children and the development of atopic disorders after heart transplantation

Tiffany B. Kim, Lavinia Ionescu, Nicholas Avdimiretz, Faye Murdoch, Ingrid M. Larsen, Bruce Motyka, Lori J. West, Simon Urschel

Pediatric Transplantation. 2022 June; 10.1111/petr.14252

Post-operative fluid overload as a predictor of hospital and long-term outcomes in a pediatric heart transplant population

Pediatric Transplantation. 2021 January; 10.1111/petr.13897

Patient-reported outcome measures in pediatric solid organ transplantation: Exploring stakeholder perspectives on clinical implementation through qualitative description

Quality of Life Research. 2021 January; 10.1007/s11136-020-02743-8

Not just for the birds: The emerging role of B cells in transplant immunology

Journal of Heart and Lung Transplantation. 2021 January; 10.1016/j.healun.2021.07.006

Clinical outcomes of children receiving ABO-incompatible versus ABO-compatible heart transplantation: a multicentre cohort study

The Lancet Child and Adolescent Health. 2021 January; 10.1016/S2352-4642(21)00023-7

Clinical and hemodynamic characteristics of the pediatric failing Fontan

Journal of Heart and Lung Transplantation. 2021 January; 10.1016/j.healun.2021.07.017

Care processes and structures associated with higher medication adherence in adolescent and young adult transplant recipients

Pediatric Transplantation. 2021 January; 10.1111/petr.14106

Basiliximab impairs regulatory T cell (TREG) function and could affect the short-term graft acceptance in children with heart transplantation

Scientific Reports. 2021 January; 10.1038/s41598-020-80567-9

A current era analysis of ABO incompatible listing practice and impact on outcomes in young children requiring heart transplantation

Journal of Heart and Lung Transplantation. 2020 January; 10.1016/j.healun.2020.02.008

CMV-specific T-cells and CD27-CD28-CD4+ T-cells for assignment of cytomegalovirus (CMV) status in adults awaiting organ transplant

Journal of Clinical Virology. 2019 January; 10.1016/j.jcv.2019.03.014

Memory B Cells and Long-lived Plasma Cells

Transplantation. 2019 January; 10.1097/TP.0000000000002594

HLA Alloimmunization Following Ventricular Assist Device Support Across the Age Spectrum

Transplantation. 2019 January; 10.1097/TP.0000000000002798

Epstein-Barr virus associated smooth muscle tumors in solid organ transplant recipients: Incidence over 31 years at a single institution and review of the literature

Transplant Infectious Disease. 2019 January; 10.1111/tid.13010

Characteristics, risks, and outcomes of post-transplant lymphoproliferative disease >3 years after pediatric heart transplant: A multicenter analysis

Clinical Transplantation. 2019 January; 10.1111/ctr.13521

The management of antibodies in heart transplantation: An ISHLT consensus document

Journal of Heart and Lung Transplantation. 2018 January; 10.1016/j.healun.2018.01.1291

Risk stratification to determine the impact of induction therapy on survival, rejection and adverse events after pediatric heart transplant: A multi-institutional study

Journal of Heart and Lung Transplantation. 2018 January; 10.1016/j.healun.2017.05.010

Posttransplant Heart Failure

Heart Failure in the Child and Young Adult: From Bench to Bedside. 2018 January; 10.1016/B978-0-12-802393-8.00047-8

Pediatric outcomes in transplant: Personalising immunosuppression to improve efficacy (POSITIVE Study): The collaboration and design of a national transplant precision medicine program

Transplantation Direct. 2018 January; 10.1097/TXD.0000000000000842

Assigning cytomegalovirus status in children awaiting organ transplant: Viral shedding, CMV-specific T cells, and CD27−CD28−CD4+ T cells

Journal of Infectious Diseases. 2018 January; 10.1093/infdis/jiy309

Mechanical ventricular assist device as a bridge to recovery post-ABO-incompatible heart transplantation for failed Fontan circulation

Transplant International. 2014 January; 10.1111/tri.12294

C3d plasma levels and CD21 expressing B-cells in children after ABO-incompatible heart transplantation: Alterations associated with blood group tolerance

Journal of Heart and Lung Transplantation. 2014 January; 10.1016/j.healun.2014.04.023

ABO-incompatible heart transplantation in early childhood: An international multicenter study of clinical experiences and limits

Journal of Heart and Lung Transplantation. 2013 January; 10.1016/j.healun.2012.11.022

Advanced therapies for congenital heart disease: Ventricular assist devices and heart transplantation

Canadian Journal of Cardiology. 2013 January; 10.1016/j.cjca.2013.02.008

Randomized controlled trial of high-dose intradermal versus standard-dose intramuscular influenza vaccine in organ transplant recipients

American Journal of Transplantation. 2013 January; 10.1111/ajt.12149

Absence of donor-specific anti-HLA antibodies after ABO-incompatible heart transplantation in infancy: Altered immunity or Age?

American Journal of Transplantation. 2010 January; 10.1111/j.1600-6143.2009.02877.x

Relevance of biallelic versus monoallelic TNFRSF13B mutations in distinguishing disease-causing from risk-increasing TNFRSF13B variants in antibody deficiency syndromes

Blood. 2009 January; 10.1182/blood-2008-02-141937

Successful ABO-incompatible heart transplantation in a child despite blood-group sensitization after ventricular assist device support

Pediatric Transplantation. 2009 January; 10.1111/j.1399-3046.2008.01030.x

Differences of humoral and cellular immune response to an acellular pertussis booster in adolescents with a whole cell or acellular primary vaccination

Vaccine. 2008 January; 10.1016/j.vaccine.2008.09.064

Somatic gene therapy for X-chromosomal recessive severe combined immunodeficiency (X-SCID),Somatische gentherapie bei X-chromosomal vererbtem schwerem kombiniertem immundefekt (X-SCID)

Monatsschrift fur Kinderheilkunde. 2003 January; 10.1007/s00112-003-0757-3

Reactive arthritis in childhood. Pathogenesis, classification, diagnosis and therapy,Reaktive arthritis im kindesalter. Pathogenese, klassifikation, diagnostik und therapie

Monatsschrift fur Kinderheilkunde. 2002 January; 10.1007/s00112-002-0465-4

Discontinuation of primary Pneumocystis carinii prophylaxis after reconstitution of CD4 cell counts in HIV-infected children [4]

AIDS. 2001 January; 10.1097/00002030-200108170-00024

View additional publications