Feinstein Institutes’ Dr. Kevin J. Tracey elected to the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences

Kevin J. Tracey, MD, was elected to the Academy for his groundbreaking discoveries in vagus nerve stimulation, the inflammatory reflex and bioelectronic medicine

The Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences (IVA) has announced that Kevin J. Tracey, MD, president and CEO of Northwell Health’s Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research has been elected as a Fellow for his pioneering work in bioelectronic medicine. Dr. Tracey’s election – which is considered one of the highest honors for engineers and scientists in Sweden and internationally – will be recognized at the Academy in October 2025.

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Dr. Kevin J. Tracey was elected to the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences for his discoveries in vagus nerve stimulation, the inflammatory reflex and bioelectronic medicine (Credit: Feinstein Institutes).

Dr. Tracey's research has revolutionized our understanding of how the nervous system controls inflammation. He discovered the "inflammatory reflex," a neural circuit that acts as a control switch for the body's inflammatory response. This discovery launched the field of bioelectronic medicine, a cutting-edge discipline combining neuroscience, immunology, and electrical engineering to create innovative therapies. By developing devices that modulate this reflex, Dr. Tracey's work offers the potential to transform treatment for a spectrum of inflammatory diseases, from rheumatoid arthritis and Crohn's disease to life-threatening infections like sepsis. His pioneering efforts have paved the way for new treatments using bioelectronic devices to target and control inflammation.

“I am deeply honored to be elected to the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences,” said Dr. Tracey, executive vice president of research and Karches Family Distinguished Chair in Medical Research at Northwell Health, New York's largest health system. “This recognition reflects the dedication and hard work of my colleagues at the Feinstein Institutes and around the world who are committed to advancing bioelectronic medicine. I am grateful for the opportunity to collaborate with the esteemed members of the IVA to further the development and application of this promising field.”

The IVA is an independent, non-governmental organization comprised of leading researchers, business leaders, and experts from academia and public administration. Its mission is to promote the engineering and economic sciences and the advancement of business and industry for the benefit of society. The IVA was founded over 100 years ago and is the world's oldest academy of engineering sciences. IVA unites the expertise and experience of approximately 1,300 elected Academy Fellows and 250 companies. An additional 41 new members were elected this year.

A globally recognized and highly-cited scientist, Dr. Tracey has dedicated four decades to unraveling the biological mechanisms of inflammation. His prolific research, published with more than 1,000 co-authors, collaborators, post-doctoral researchers, and students, has yielded fundamental discoveries translated into clinical advancements. This work encompasses targeting cytokines with biological agents and pioneering vagus nerve stimulation to leverage evolutionary reflex circuits, effectively suppressing inflammation in both animal models and human trials involving rheumatoid arthritis and inflammatory bowel disease.

Dr. Tracey and his colleagues have also demonstrated a strong link between vagus nerve damage and the inflammatory reflex, revealing how it contributes to the progression and severity of inflammation. This key insight has spurred the creation of new companies and clinical trials exploring nerve stimulation devices to combat inflammation. With several successful clinical trials already published, the ongoing rheumatoid arthritis trials, nearing completion, have received Breakthrough Device Designation from the United States Food and Drug Administration.

An inventor of more than 120 United States patents and author of more than 400 scientific publications, Dr. Tracey co-founded the Global Sepsis Alliance, a non-profit organization supporting the efforts of more than 1 million sepsis caregivers in over 70 countries. Dr. Tracey is the author of Fatal Sequence (Dana Press) and delivers lectures nationally and internationally on inflammation, sepsis, the neuroscience of immunity, and bioelectronic medicine.

Dr. Tracey received his BS in chemistry, summa cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa, from Boston College in 1979, and his MD from Boston University in 1983. He trained in neurosurgery from 1983 to 1992 at the New York Hospital-Cornell University Medical Center and was a guest investigator at the Rockefeller University before moving in 1992 to the Feinstein Institutes. He directs the Laboratory of Biomedical Science and was appointed president and CEO there in 2005.

About the Feinstein Institutes

The Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research is the home of the research institutes of Northwell Health, the largest health care provider and private employer in New York State. Encompassing 50 research labs, 3,000 clinical research studies and 5,000 researchers and staff, the Feinstein Institutes raises the standard of medical innovation through its five institutes of behavioral science, bioelectronic medicine, cancer, health system science, and molecular medicine. We make breakthroughs in genetics, oncology, brain research, mental health, autoimmunity, and are the global scientific leader in bioelectronic medicine – a new field of science that has the potential to revolutionize medicine. For more information about how we produce knowledge to cure disease, visit http://feinstein.northwell.edu and follow us on LinkedIn.

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