The Goss Lab is part of the Parkland Outcomes after Prematurity Study (POPS).

Cardiac Structure and Function Studies

Did you know the heart is smaller in adolescents and adults born preterm? Prior work by others in the field also demonstrates an increased risk for heart failure. Working with a multidisciplinary team of pulmonologists, cardiologists, medical imagers, and biomedical engineers, we have conducted studies to evaluate the preterm heart. Cardiac imaging (MRI) studies demonstrate a smaller heart long after preterm birth, though for most individuals the heart function remains normal.
Additional studies by our team have evaluated the presence of cardiac fibrosis and abnormal cardiac metabolism to help explain the cause of increased heart failure risk.
Diffuse Myocardial Fibrosis at Cardiac MRI in Young Adults Born Prematurely: A Cross-sectional Cohort Study. François, CJ, Barton, GP, Corrado, P A, Broman, AT, Chesler, NC, Eldridge, MW, Wieben, O and Goss, KN, (2022). Cardiothoracic imaging, 4(3), e210224. https://doi.org/10.1148/ryct.210224
Association Between Preterm Birth and Arrested Cardiac Growth in Adolescents and Young Adults. Goss KN, Haraldsdottir K, Beshish AG, Barton GP, Watson AM, Palta M, Chesler NC, Francois CJ, Wieben O, Eldridge MW, (2020)., JAMA Cardiol. Aug 1;5(8):910-919. doi: 10.1001/jamacardio.2020.1511.
Pulmonary Vascular Disease Studies
Our team previously conducted studies at the University of Wisconsin, demonstrating that a significant 45% of otherwise healthy young adults born preterm have evidence of subclinical or mild pulmonary hypertension. New studies here at UT Southwestern are using echocardiography to screen for pulmonary hypertension, as well as evaluating potential etiologies for pulmonary vascular disease in adults born preterm.
Early Pulmonary Vascular Disease in Young Adults Born Preterm. Goss KN, Beshish AG, Barton GP, Haraldsdottir K, Levin TS, Tetri LH, Battiola TJ, Mulchrone AM, Pegelow DF, Palta M, Lamers LJ, Watson AM, Chesler NC, Eldridge MW.
Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2018 Dec 15;198(12):1549-1558.

Animal Models of Hypoxia
We use postnatal hyperoxia exposure in rats to study the effects of excess oxygen on the developing heart and lungs. Hyperoxia exposure results in pulmonary hypertension as well as a reduced number of cardiac myocytes, which may develop heart failure with age.
Bimodal right ventricular dysfunction after postnatal hyperoxia exposure: implications for the preterm heart, Kumari S, Braun RK, Tetri LH, Barton GP, Hacker TA, Goss KN, Am. J. Physiol. Heart Circ. Physiol. 2019 12 317 6 H1272-H1281
Postnatal Hyperoxia Exposure Durably Impairs Right Ventricular Function and Mitochondrial Biogenesis Goss KN, Kumari S, Tetri LH, Barton G, Braun RK, Hacker TA, Eldridge MW, Am. J. Respir. Cell Mol. Biol. 2017 05 56 5 609-619
