About Steven Nissen, M.D.

Steven E. Nissen is chairman of the department of cardiovascular medicine at the Cleveland Clinic and former president of the American College of Cardiology, the professional society representing American cardiologists. His research has focused on intravascular ultrasound, an imaging technique that uses tiny probes to measure the buildup of plaque in the coronary arteries. He has also written extensively on drug safety. In 2001, he was co-author of the first manuscript that raised concerns about the safety of Vioxx, which was withdrawn from the market three years later. In 2007, he reported that the widely used diabetes drug Avandia raised the risk of heart attack, resulting in a warning by the Food and Drug Administration six months later. In 2007, Dr. Nissen was named by Time magazine as one of the “100 most influential people in the world.”