Cedars-Sinai Cardiac and Thoracic Surgery Experts Available for Interviews During AATS Annual Meeting April 27-30

Surgeons from the Smidt Heart Instituteat Cedars-Sinai will be attending the American Association for Thoracic Surgery (AATS) Annual MeetingApril 27-30 in Toronto and are available to discuss the latest cardiac surgery news and research.

Cedars-Sinai Smidt Heart Institute is ranked #1 in California and #2 in the nation for Cardiology, Heart and Vascular Surgery, according to U.S. News & World Report's "Best Hospitals 2023-2024, and home to the leading heart and lung transplantation, robotic cardiac surgery and structural heart programs in the US.

Experts Available for Interviews

• Joanna Chikwe, MD, professor and chair of the Department of Cardiac Surgery and the Irina and George Schaeffer Distinguished Chair in Cardiac Surgery in the Smidt Heart Institute at Cedars-Sinai, the Editor-in-Chief of The Annals of Thoracic Surgery, and Principal Investigator of the NHLBI-sponsored PRIMARY trial, will present advanced techniques in mitral valve repair, robotic surgery and pivotal trials of surgery versus transcatheter edge-to-edge repair for primary mitral regurgitation.
• Michael Bowdish, MD, vice chair of the Department of Cardiac Surgery and professor of Cardiac Surgery at Cedars-Sinai,is presenting award-winning research comparing surgical versus transcatheter aortic valve replacement in patients under 65 years old.
• Richard Kim, MD, director of Pediatric and Congenital Heart Surgery and surgical director of the Guerin Family Congenital Heart Program in the Smidt Heart Institute at Cedars-Sinai, is available to discuss the latest advances and innovation in congenital heart surgery.
• Pedro Catarino, MD, director of Aortic Surgery and professor of Cardiac Surgery at Cedars-Sinai, is presenting novel concepts in transplantation and can speak specifically to robotic and minimally invasive lung transplantation, donation after cardiac death in heart transplantation.
• Armin Khiankooy, MD, associate professor of cardiac surgery, can discuss advances in atrial fibrillation surgery.
• Harmik Soukiasian, MD, director of the Division of Thoracic Surgery can speak to robotic lung surgery and the latest techniques and technologies supporting patients in this area.

Scheduling Interviews

Cedars-Sinai can accommodate many virtual interview formats, including Zoom, FaceTime, and Skype. To schedule an interview with a Cedars-Sinai expert, contact:

Jillian Scholten | 949-244-2561 | [email protected]