Dr. John Pacella received his undergraduate degree in Mechanical Engineering with a Biomedical Emphasis from Carnegie Mellon University, and then a Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from Lehigh University. Dr. Pacella earned his medical degree from the University of Pittsburgh, during which time he worked at Pitt’s Musculoskeletal Research Center and served as a Bioengineering Consultant with Cardiac Assist Technologies, Inc.  Dr. Pacella returned to the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center as a Resident in Internal Medicine and then completed his clinical training at the University of Pittsburgh Cardiovascular Institute as a Cardiology Clinical Investigator and an Interventional Cardiology Fellow.

Dr. Pacella is currently an Associate Professor in the School of Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh.  He also holds an adjunct appointment as an Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering at Carnegie Mellon University.  Dr. Pacella is an Interventional Cardiologist within the UPMC Heart and Vascular Institute, who practices at Presbyterian Hospital, Monongahela Valley Hospital, McKeesport Hospital, and the South Hills and Monongahela Valley clinics. He is also an accomplished researcher and has worked on numerous grants from a variety of funding sources. Currently, Dr. Pacella is PI on an NIH R01 that was scored in the fifth percentile.

Dr. Pacella is a member of the American Medical Association, the American Society of Echocardiography, the International Contrast Ultrasound Society, and the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers.  He is a Fellow of the American College of Cardiology, the American Heart Association (Council on Clinical Cardiology), and the Society for Coronary Angiography and Intervention.  Dr. Pacella holds specialty certification with the American Board of Internal Medicine/Internal Medicine, American Board of Internal Medicine/Cardiovascular Disease, and the American Board of Internal Medicine/Interventional Cardiology.  He has been honored with many awards for his research, such as the National Institute of Health K08 Career Development Award, the National Institute of Health Loan Repayment Award for Research, and the American Society of Echocardiography Young Investigator Award, amongst others.  Dr. Pacella holds 5 patents and 3 patents pending.

Dr. Pacella is a reviewer for the following publications:  American Journal of Cardiology, American Journal of Physiology, American Society of Artificial Internal Organs, Biorheology, Cardiovascular Research, New England Journal of Medicine, and Microvascular Research.

Dr. Pacella’s current research interests include microcirculation; vulnerable plaque; hemodynamics; and interventional cardiology.

View a list of Dr. Pacella’s publications here.