Biography

Satyam Sarma, M.D., is an Associate Professor in the Department of Internal Medicine in UT Southwestern Medical Center, and a memer of its Division of Cardiology.

Dr. Sarma holds a bachelor's degree in bioengineering and biology from the Univesity of Pennsylvania. He earned his medical degree from Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, and completed internal medicine residency training at Boston University Medical Center, where he served as Chief Resident. Interested in molecular biology research, he worked at Baylor Medical College as a postdoctoral fellow in the Department of Biophysics and Molecular Physiology, focusing on abnormalities in cardiac ryanodine receptor function. After two years of research fellowship, he then received advanced training through a fellowship program in cardiology at Northwestern University Memorial Hospital in Chicago, where he served as Chief Fellow. 

Dr. Sarma is interested in heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), a type of heart failure common in seniors, and came to UT Southwestern in 2012 to study new treatment options for patients with this common but difficult-to-treat condition.

He also specializes in metabolic disorders, specifically diabetes and insulin resistance, and his clinical practice focuses on exercise training programs to improve patient symptoms and quality of life.

Personal Note

Dr. Sarma is an avid runner and enjoys working with his hands. A violinist since childhood, he also enjoys origami – the Japanese art of paper folding – which, like playing the violin, is about combining artistic inspiration with precision. “The fold that you make at the first or second step, if you don't do it right it's going to come back to haunt you 15 steps down the line. Those little imperfections add up.”

Education

Medical School
Jefferson Medical College of Thomas (2003)
Residency
Boston University Medical Center (2006), Internal Medicine
Research Fellowship
Baylor College of Medicine (2009), Cardiology
Fellowship
Northwestern University (2012), Cardiology

Research Interest

  • Cardiac Steatosis
  • Cardiopulmonary Exercise Testing
  • Exercise Training
  • Heart Failure

Publications

Featured Publications LegendFeatured Publications

The Effects of Age and Aerobic Fitness on Myocardial Lipid Content.
Sarma S, Carrick-Ranson G, Fujimoto N, Adams-Huet B, Bhella PS, Hastings JL, Shafer KM, Shibata S, Boyd K, Palmer D, Szczepaniak EW, Szczepaniak LS, Levine BD Circ Cardiovasc Imaging 2013 Sep
Association between diabetes mellitus and post-discharge outcomes in patients hospitalized with heart failure: findings from the EVEREST trial.
Sarma S, Mentz RJ, Kwasny MJ, Fought AJ, Huffman M, Subacius H, Nodari S, Konstam M, Swedberg K, Maggioni AP, Zannad F, Bonow RO, Gheorghiade M Eur. J. Heart Fail. 2013 Feb 15 2 194-202
Use of clinically available PPAR agonists for heart failure; do the risks outweigh the potential benefits?
Sarma S Curr Mol Pharmacol 2012 Jun 5 2 255-63
Nutritional assessment and support of the patient with acute heart failure.
Sarma S, Gheorghiade M Curr Opin Crit Care 2010 Oct 16 5 413-8
Genetic inhibition of PKA phosphorylation of RyR2 prevents dystrophic cardiomyopathy.
Sarma S, Li N, van Oort RJ, Reynolds C, Skapura DG, Wehrens XH Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 2010 Jul 107 29 13165-70
Heart-specific overexpression of CUGBP1 reproduces functional and molecular abnormalities of myotonic dystrophy type 1.
Koshelev M, Sarma S, Price RE, Wehrens XH, Cooper TA Hum. Mol. Genet. 2010 Mar 19 6 1066-75
Calmodulin kinase II-mediated sarcoplasmic reticulum Ca2+ leak promotes atrial fibrillation in mice.
Chelu MG, Sarma S, Sood S, Wang S, van Oort RJ, Skapura DG, Li N, Santonastasi M, Müller FU, Schmitz W, Schotten U, Anderson ME, Valderrábano M, Dobrev D, Wehrens XH J. Clin. Invest. 2009 Jul 119 7 1940-51
Exercise as a physiologic intervention to counteract hypertension: can a good idea go bad?
Sarma S, Schulze PC Hypertension 2007 Aug 50 2 294-6

Honors & Awards

  • Medical Student Clinical Teaching Award
    Northwestern University (2012)
  • Robert O. Bonow, M.D. Award for Excellence in Research
    Northwestern University (2010)
  • 2nd Place
    Northwestern University Young Investigators Forum (2008)
  • Alpha Omega Alpha
    Medical Honor Society (2007)

Professional Associations/Affiliations

  • American College of Cardiology (2008)
  • American Heart Association (2008)