Dr. Robert A. Bruce, the father of exercise cardiology and a professor emeritus of medicine at the University of Washington (UW), died February 12, 2004 in his Seattle home. He was 87. Bruce was best known for developing the treadmill test that is now a standard part of cardiology care.

In 1950, Bruce became the UW School of Medicine™s first director of the Division of Cardiology and led the division for more than three decades.

Under his leadership as the first head of the Division of Cardiology, the UW School of Medicine became world-renowned for cardiac research, teaching and clinical care, said Dr. Paul G. Ramsey, UW vice president for medical affairs and dean of the School of Medicine. His career was marked by integrity, innovation and leadership. Dr. Bruce was among the individuals who established the UW as a global leader in medical research, and his major contributions to diagnosis and treatment of heart disease are recognized by all physicians in this country and around the world.

His research in exercise testing defined the way we evaluate for coronary disease. Even to this day, we use the ˜Bruce protocol™ in almost every exercise test, said Dr. Richard Page, who holds the Robert A. Bruce Endowed Chair in Cardiovascular Research, which the School of Medicine established to honor Bruce in 1988.

A native of Massachusetts, Bruce earned a bachelor™s degree from Boston University and his M.D. degree from the University of Rochester in New York in 1943. He also completed an internship and residency in Rochester and was a fellow in medicine before coming to Seattle.
Bruce led the UW Division of Cardiology for more than 30 years, sharing the directorship with Dr. Harold Dodge from 1971 to 1981 before retiring in 1982. He was one of the first attending physicians at University Hospital, now University of Washington Medical Center, when it opened in 1959.

Bruce received an honors award from the American College of Sports Medicine and was named an outstanding graduate of Boston University in 1978. Bruce was a past president of the Western Society of Clinical Investigation and was a founding member and president of the American Association of University Cardiologists. In retirement, he remained active with the American College of Cardiology and advisory groups on exercise and the elderly, in addition to community activities.

From the University of Washington