Skip to main content
Ontario Tech acknowledges the lands and people of the Mississaugas of Scugog Island First Nation.

We are thankful to be welcome on these lands in friendship. The lands we are situated on are covered by the Williams Treaties and are the traditional territory of the Mississaugas, a branch of the greater Anishinaabeg Nation, including Algonquin, Ojibway, Odawa and Pottawatomi. These lands remain home to many Indigenous nations and peoples.

We acknowledge this land out of respect for the Indigenous nations who have cared for Turtle Island, also called North America, from before the arrival of settler peoples until this day. Most importantly, we acknowledge that the history of these lands has been tainted by poor treatment and a lack of friendship with the First Nations who call them home.

This history is something we are all affected by because we are all treaty people in Canada. We all have a shared history to reflect on, and each of us is affected by this history in different ways. Our past defines our present, but if we move forward as friends and allies, then it does not have to define our future.

Learn more about Indigenous Education and Cultural Services

laura_banks_photo

Laura Banks
PhD, RKin

Associate Teaching Professor

Faculty of Health Sciences

Contact information

Shawenjigewining Hall - Room SHA 417
North Oshawa
2000 Simcoe Street North
Oshawa, ON L1G 0C5

905.721.8668 ext. 3623

laura.banks@ontariotechu.ca


Research topics

  • human physiology
  • clinical exercise science
  • cardiac rehabilitation
  • teaching and learning

Research and expertise

  • Background and interests

    Research areas of specialty:

    • exercise physiology
    • cardiac structure, function, and metabolism
    • cardiac rehabilitation

    My current research plan has been developed within the Cardiovascular Prevention and Rehabilitation Program at the University Health Network. The objective is two-fold: 

    • To optimize exercise rehabilitation and physiological outcomes for outpatients with cardiac disease and Type 2 Diabetes; and
    • To facilitate exercise programming as cardiac patients transition into the community.

    This clinically-relevant research program builds on my prior interest and expertise in the areas of heart function, metabolism, and exercise performance.

  • Education
    • Postdoctoral Fellowship, University Health Network
    • Postdoctoral Fellowship, University of Toronto
    • PhD Medical Science, University of Toronto
    • MSc Exercise Science, University of Toronto
    • Bachelor of Physical Education and Health, University of Toronto
  • Courses taught

    Prior teaching experience:

    • Human Anatomy and Physiology
    • Developmental Cardiovascular Physiology
    • Cardiac Rehabilitation
    • Clinical Exercise Testing and Prescription

    Current courses:

    • Human Anatomy and Physiology
    • Altered Physiology: Mechanism of Disease
  • Publications

    For a full list of Publications, visit PubMed

    Banks, L., Al-Mousawy, S., Altaha, M., Koneiczny, K., Osman, W.,  Currie, K.D., Connelly, K., Yan, A., Sasson, Z., Mak, S., Goodman, J., Dorian, P. (2020). Cardiac remodeling in middle-aged endurance athletes: relation between signal-averaged electrocardiogram and LV mass. Accepted in the American Journal of Physiology – Heart and Circulatory Physiology.

    Banks, L.,Randhawa, V.K., Caterini, J.; Colella, T.J.F., Dhanvantari, S., McMurtry, S., Connelly, K.A., Robinson, L., Anand, S.S., Ouzounian, M., Zieroth, S., Mak, S., Straus, S., Graham, M.M. (2020). Sex, Gender, and Equity in Cardiovascular Medicine, Surgery, and Science in Canada : Challenges, Successes, and Opportunities for Change. Accepted in Canadian Journal of Cardiology Open. doi: 10.1016/j.cjco.2020.06.016

    Banks, L., Altaha MA, Yan AT, Dorian P, Konieczny K, Deva DP, La Gerche A, Akhavein F, Bentley RF, Connelly KA, Goodman JM. Left Ventricular Fibrosis in Middle-Age Athletes and Physically Active Adults. Med Sci Sports Exerc. 2020 May 27. doi: 10.1249/MSS.0000000000002411. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 32472930.

    Banks, L., Bentley RF, Currie KD, Vecchiarelli E, Aslam A, Connelly KA, Yan AT, Konieczny KM, Dorian P, Mak S, Sasson Z, Goodman JM. Cardiac Remodeling in Middle-Aged Endurance Athletes and Recreationally Active Individuals: Challenges in Defining the "Athlete's Heart". J Am Soc Echocardiogr. 2020 Feb;33(2):247-249. doi: 10.1016/j.echo.2019.09.014. Epub 2019 Dec 4. PMID: 31812548.

    Banks, L., Cacoilo, J., Carter, J., Oh, P.I. (2019). Age-Related Improvements in Peak Cardiorespiratory Fitness among Coronary Heart Disease Patients Following Cardiac Rehabilitation. Journal of Clinical Medicine, 8(3). pii: E310 . doi: 10.3390/jcm8030310

    Banks, L., Connelly, K. (2019) Pre-exercise stress testing in type 2 diabetes: Another case of choosing wisely? Canadian Journal of Cardiology, 35(2): 150-152. doi: 10.1016/j.cjca.2018.12.008

    West, S.L., Banks, L., Dogra, S., Schneiderman, J.E., Caterini, J.E., Wells, G.D. (2019). Physical activity for children with chronic disease; a narrative review and practical applications. BMC Pediatrics, 19(1): 12.

    Banks, L., Goodman, J.M., Dorian, P. (2018). Correspondence Letter by Banks et al regarding article: “Does High-Intensity Endurance Training Increase the Risk of Atrial Fibrillation? A Longitudinal Study of Left Atrial Structure and Function”. Circulation: Arrhythmia and Electrophysiology, 11(8):e006645. doi: 10.1161/CIRCEP.118.006645.

    Godman, J.M., Banks, L., Connelly K.A., Yan, A.T., Backx, P., Dorian, P. (2018). “Excessive” Exercise in Middle-Aged Endurance Athletes: Is Atrial Fibrillation an Unintended Consequence? Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism, 43(9):973-976. doi: 10.1139/apnm-2017-0764.

  • Research collaborations
    • University Health Network
  • Grants
    • Ontario Tech University, Teaching Innovation Fund, Development of Multi-Course Case Studies for Faculty of Health Sciences Students, 2020-2022,  $7,540

    • Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Planning and Dissemination Grant, Evaluation of Gender Equity in Cardiovascular Medicine and Research Careers, 2018-2019, $9,500