Dr. Mark J. Eisenberg
Director of the Cardiovascular Health Services Research Group, Jewish General Hospital
Professor of Medicine, McGill University
Principal Investigator, Centre for Clinical Epidemiology and Community Studies

Dr. Eisenberg is a tenured Professor of Medicine at McGill University and a Staff Cardiologist at the Jewish General Hospital. He is the Director of Clinical Research of the McGill Cardiology Fellowship Program and an Associate Member of the McGill Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics, and Occupational Health. In addition to his clinical responsibilities, Dr. Eisenberg is the Director of the Cardiovascular Health Services Research Group of the Jewish General Hospital and a Principal Investigator at the Centre for Clinical Epidemiology and Community Studies.

Dr. Eisenberg was born in Rochester, New York. He completed a BA in Chemistry in 1980 at Cornell University, followed by an MD at the University of Rochester. After completing his MD, Dr. Eisenberg did a residency in internal medicine at McGill University, a Masters of Public Health at Harvard University, a research fellowship in echocardiography and epidemiology and a cardiology fellowship at the University of California in San Francisco. Finally, in 1995, Dr. Eisenberg completed an interventional cardiology fellowship at the Cleveland Clinic.

In 2008-2009, Dr. Eisenberg spent a year in Israel as a visiting professor in the Department of Human Metabolism and Nutrition at the Joseph H. and Belle R. Braun Hebrew University, Hadassah School of Public Health and Community Medicine. During this sabbatical, he also completed an International Master’s of Health Leadership at McGill University and wrote a book entitled, The Physician-Scientist’s Career Guide (Springer-Humana Press).

Dr. Eisenberg is married and has five children. He is fluent in English, French, and Hebrew.

Major Research Activities

Dr. Eisenberg’s research focuses on preventative measures for cardiovascular disease. His research team is examining the use and effectiveness of various smoking cessation pharmacotherapies with several randomized controlled trials. The Zyban as an Effective Smoking Cessation Aid (ZESCA) trial compares the efficacy of bupropion (Zyban) to that of a placebo as a means of reducing smoking rates in patients following an enzyme-positive acute coronary syndrome (ACS). A sub-study of the ZESCA trial examines genetic variants that may alter the efficacy of bupropion. Finally, the Evaluation of Varenicline (Champix™) in smokIng cessation for paTients post-Acute coronary syndrome (EVITA) trial examines the efficacy and safety of varenicline for smoking cessation post-ACS.

Dr. Eisenberg has expanded the focus of his research from smoking to other cardiovascular risk factors, including obesity and the metabolic syndrome. Among these projects are a meta-analysis of popular diets and a meta-analysis of cardiac outcomes in patients with the metabolic syndrome. The latter project included a systematic review of fibrates and a meta-analysis of the efficacy of weight loss pharmacotherapies. Current projects include a systematic review and meta-analysis of legislative approaches to decreasing obesity and a meta-analysis examining the efficacy and safety of diets, exercise, pharmacotherapies, and surgical interventions for weight loss.