Keynote Speaker
Sharon L. Mulvagh, M.D.
Dr. Mulvagh is Professor of Medicine, Mayo College of Medicine, Consultant in Cardiovascular Diseases and Internal Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota. She is a clinical cardiologist active at the international, national, local and institutional levels in non-invasive cardiovascular imaging, specifically echocardiographic imaging using newer technologies including contrast echocardiography and myocardial perfusion imaging.
Dr. Mulvagh is the Director of the Women’s Heart Clinic, Mayo Clinic, and has a special interest in heart disease in women. She is an active investigator in clinical imaging research, and an internationally recognized educator and speaker on cardiovascular imaging and women’s cardiovascular issues. Dr. Mulvagh has ongoing studies investigating the role of non-invasive testing for the diagnosis of coronary heart disease in women at risk.
She earned her doctorate in medicine, graduating magna cum laude, from the University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Canada. She completed her internship at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia, residency in internal medicine at Boston University Medical Center, Boston, MA, and fellowship in cardiology at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, TX. She has practiced emergency and internal medicine in Ontario, Canada, and was a visiting scientist at NASA Johnson Space Center, and Clinical Instructor for the Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, TX, prior to arriving at Mayo Clinic in 1990.
Dr. Mulvagh is a fellow of the American College of Cardiology, the American Heart Association Council on Clinical Cardiology, the American Society of Echocardiography, and the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. She is an elected member of Sigma Xi, and has served on the Board of Directors for the American Society of Echocardiography as well as having past elected membership in the Aerospace Medical Association. She has chaired and participated in numerous committees including the American Society of Echocardiography Task Force for Clinical Applications of Ultrasound Contrast, Committee on Live Programs, and NASA Scientific Working Group and Peer Review sessions. Dr. Mulvagh has moderated and chaired many scientific sessions for the American College of Cardiology, the American Society of Echocardiography, and the American Heart Association. She was the medical chair for the First Inaugural Go Red ForWomen American Heart Association Luncheon in Rochester, MN. Her publications include numerous manuscripts in peer-reviewed journals and invited articles and book chapters addressing investigative frontiers in echocardiography, and women and heart disease. She was the primary author of the initial and updated consensus statements of the American Society of Echocardiography on the “Clinical Applications of Ultrasonic Contrast Agents in Echocardiography”.
Our Survivor
Renee Ticknor
When Renee awoke one morning nauseous and sweaty, she assumed she had the flu, but called 911 when her symptoms escalated. EMS told her it was just anxiety, but after a visit to the doctor later that day, tests confirmed her suspicion: Renee had experienced a heart attack. 
Renee Ticknor
When Renee awoke one morning nauseous and sweaty, she assumed she had the flu, but called 911 when her symptoms escalated. EMS told her it was just anxiety, but after a visit to the doctor later that day, tests confirmed her suspicion: Renee had experienced a heart attack.
In route to another hospital, Renee passed out. After six separate defibrillations, she was finally revived and woke up in the ICU. Realizing the gravity of her situation, she asked the nurse, "Am I out of the woods?" The nurse's face said it all.
Despite a slow and challenging recovery, Renee is thankful for her experience. "I got a wake-up call in my 30s that most people don't get until their 60s."
Like most women, before her heart attack, finding balance was hard. As a new mom, Renee put the needs of her family before hers, followed by career and housework. There was simply no time for herself or her health.
Today Renee is taking care of herself through exercises and a heart-healthy diet. Looking back, she feels intense gratitude that she listened to her body and fought to make her heart heard.
"The best thing to do is follow your intuition. If you're tired or don't feel well, go to your doctor and insist that you know your body and that something is wrong."
Renee's story has inspired women to put their health first. As a result, many friends and family have visited their own doctors and gotten their cholesterol and blood pressure checked. Nothing warms Renee's heart more than that.
"I Go Red for all the women out there trying to find balance in their life."
