Kenji Yoshitani, MD, PhD
Dr. Kenji Yoshitani graduated from Nara Medical University and trained in anesthesiology before working at several affiliated hospitals. During this period, he developed a strong interest in perioperative cerebral physiology and neurological complications associated with cardiac surgery. His early research focused on postoperative cognitive dysfunction and cerebral oxygenation monitoring, leading to presentations at international conferences and publications in peer-reviewed journals. This work formed the basis of his doctoral degree at Nara Medical University.
In 2002, he joined the Department of Anesthesiology at the National Cardiovascular Center (currently the National Cerebral and Cardiovascular Center, NCVC), a leading cardiovascular institution in Japan. His research has focused on perioperative neuromonitoring and brain protection in cardiac and aortic surgery, particularly the clinical application and physiological determinants of regional cerebral oxygen saturation (rSO₂) measured by near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS).
From 2005 to 2007, he was a visiting researcher in the Department of Anesthesiology at Duke University in the United States. During this time, he developed and utilized a rat cardiopulmonary bypass model to investigate oxygen transport using perfluorocarbon-based oxygen carriers and participated in studies on the anti-inflammatory effects of anticoagulant agents.
After returning to Japan, he continued research on neuromonitoring and led multicenter clinical studies evaluating intraoperative motor evoked potential (MEP) monitoring in thoracic and thoracoabdominal aortic surgery.
Dr. Yoshitani has also contributed to national guideline development. He participated in the Japanese guideline on regional cerebral oxygen saturation monitoring published in 2018 and currently serves as chair of the working group for its revision. He was also involved in the development of the Japanese guideline on intraoperative motor evoked potential monitoring published in 2021.
He is currently Specially Appointed Professor in the Department of Anesthesiology at Tokyo Women’s Medical University.
