Last Wednesday, Dr. Ramon Abarquez Jr., world-renowned Filipino heart specialist and one of the most brilliant minds in Philippine medicine, passed away. He was 89.
He left a legacy of selfless service, generosity in sharing expertise, innovativeness in research, healthy lifestyle advocacy and passion for academic and professional excellence.
Dr. Abarquez’s career spanned more than six decades, and thousands of medical students at the University of the Philippines College of Medicine (UPCM) and trainees at the Philippine General Hospital (PGH) in internal medicine and cardiology benefited from his strict but transformative mentoring.
When news of his death was shared on social media, the Facebook pages of doctors were flooded with anecdotes of how he helped mold them into the specialists they are now.
Even after his official retirement from UPCM, Dr. Abarquez continued to hold lectures to medical students and attend medical conferences.
He was given the title of emeritus professor by the college, but he remained active in academe, in research activities and clinical practice.
Scholarly articles
He was prolific in writing scholarly articles published in medical journals and in Health and Lifestyle magazine, where he wrote a column.
With a sterling record as a UPCM faculty and scientist, Dr. Abarquez was elected academician of the National Academy of Science and Technology (NAST) in 1993. Academicians are distinguished members of the NAST—the highest recognition for Filipino scientists.
They also serve as the highest scientific advisory body in the country. From their ranks are nominated the National Scientists. Dr. Abarquez was nominated for this distinguished title.
It’s probably a testament to his dedication as a scientist, that two days before his death, the DOST-NAST sent him a memorandum of agreement, requesting him to come up with an authoritative paper to provide relevant insights in the local management of hypertension.
Peers recognize Dr. Abarquez’s contribution to Philippine medicine. He provided clinical practice-changing insights with his pioneering researches, many of which have been published in international peer-reviewed journals. Close to 30 of his research papers received awards and recognition here and abroad.
“The best legacy a doctor can give is pioneering research outputs and advocacies perceived to be the first at that point in time,” Dr. Abarquez said in one of his commentaries in Health and Lifestyle magazine.
He chaired the medical advisory board of the magazine, and was one of its most diligent columnists who submitted articles way ahead of the deadline. Even when he was already confined in the hospital, he maintained his column, and would dictate his piece to his nurse.
As early as 1960, Dr. Abarquez’s research work were already groundbreaking. His innovative research made possible the stress test or exercise electrocardiogram (ECG) test, commonly requested worldwide to evaluate patients suspected to have blockages in their heart arteries.
As a cardiology research fellow then, he was funded and tasked by the New York Heart Association to develop a technique to record the ECG of a patient during exercise, which was not possible at that time. Despite initial setbacks, he persevered, and after more than a year of experimentation, was able to design successfully the prototype of the stress test electrodes currently used worldwide.
Dr. Abarquez’s prototype produced a successful recording of the ECG during exercise. As senior author of this pioneering study, he presented an innovative research in a scientific meeting of the American Heart Association Convention in Florida, for which he was recognized by prominent international authorities in cardiovascular medicine.
Innovative research
It’s no exaggeration to say that hundreds of millions of patients with blocked arteries from 1960 to the present benefited from Dr. Abarquez’s innovative research early in his career. For this, he was given the Cultural Heritage Award by the Philippine government in 1963, after returning from training abroad.
In 1979, he pushed for the treatment of hypertension at a level of 140/90 mmHg, then considered by international expert bodies to be still normal. High blood pressure then was defined as 160/100 mmHg or higher, but he and his research team at the University of the Philippines-Philippine General Hospital published a study showing that there were already abnormal changes in the heart and arteries of individuals with as low a level as 140/90 mmHg.
Dr. Abarquez also published the first paper showing that a certain class of drug, the calcium channel blockers, which was then being used only to control high blood pressure, could also be used for patients with blocked heart arteries.
Although Dr. Abarquez advocated adequate drug treatment for various heart ailments, he always emphasized the importance of healthy lifestyle changes, which, to him, should be the foundation of treatment of all cardiovascular diseases.
To promote this, he coined the catchy slogan “SEX-HDL,” which stood for smoking cessation, exercise, control of high blood pressure, diabetes and lipid (fats) abnormalities by means of a healthy diet and a physically active lifestyle.
Dr. Abarquez emphasized that SEX-HDL should be a family affair, meaning parents should set the example to motivate their children to lead a healthy lifestyle.
He was past president of the Philippine Heart Association/ Philippine College of Cardiology, Philippine College of Physicians and Philippine Society of Hypertension.
The Philippine medical community will certainly miss Dr. Abarquez. He cast a giant shadow on the practice of medicine in the country. Though he’s now gone, I’m sure the legacy of his teachings, philosophy and ideals will remain in the hearts and minds of everyone whose lives he has touched.
Godspeed, Ninong!