Professor Gianfranco Parati

Professor Gianfranco Parati is a clinician-scientist recognised for his contributions to cardiovascular medicine, hypertension research, and the physiological links between sleep-related breathing and cardiovascular risk. He holds a full professorship in Cardiovascular Medicine at the University of Milano-Bicocca and serves as Scientific Director and Head of the Cardiology Department at the Istituto Auxologico Italiano IRCCS in Milan. He also leads national and international scientific initiatives, including his role as President of the World Hypertension League.

Parati’s research portfolio includes diagnostic and pathophysiological studies on arterial hypertension, blood pressure monitoring and variability, autonomic cardiovascular control, and the cardiovascular effects of environmental and physiological stressors. He has published hundreds of articles, contributed to European and Italian guidelines on Hypertension and on blood pressure measurement, and held editorial leadership roles in major journals such as Journal of Hypertension, Hypertension, European Journal of Preventive Cardiology, Hypertension Research, JAHA.

Sleep-related breathing disorders and their cardiovascular consequences are a longstanding focus in his work. Parati has investigated how obstructive sleep apnoea contributes to hypertension and cardiovascular risk, exploring mechanisms such as nocturnal blood pressure changes, autonomic regulation, and the impact of continuous positive airway pressure on blood pressure control.

Within Sleep Health Europe, Professor Parati adds depth to the scientific case for recognising sleep as integral to cardiovascular health and prevention. His perspective underscores how disruptions in sleep-related breathing have measurable effects on blood pressure and long-term health outcomes, and how these insights can inform policy-relevant prevention strategies across Europe.