Departments of Instruction

Division of Cardiology

The Division of Cardiology provides medical students, residents, and fellows with the opportunity to acquire comprehensive clinical training and to carry out both basic and clinical cardiovascular research. Emphasis is placed on new ideas and approaches to experimental and clinical problems, particularly those involving prevention, advanced technology, and acute care.

Division facilities include advanced cardiac catheterization and electrophysiology laboratories; a center for cardiovascular medicine which includes non-invasive (echo, nuclear, P.E.T., peripheral vascular) facilities and a center for statistical programs and core angiographic image  processing; an angiographic animal laboratory; animal physiology laboratories; extensive metabolic, biochemistry, and molecular biology research laboratories; a 17-bed coronary-care unit at Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center; a 56-bed intermediate unit and dedicated cardiovascular ward service.  The P.E.T. facility features positron cameras and a cyclotron. The faculty practice includes teaching clinical diagnosis and management of problems such as heart failure, coronary heart disease, arrhythmias, valvular disease, cardiogenic shock, congenital cardiac disease in the adult, and peripheral vascular disease.  An important part of training is integrating cardiac technology with the art of general medicine and the role of subspecialty consultation.

The division is staffed with M.D.s and/or Ph.D.s whose interests cover the full range of clinical and research cardiology.

Novel aspects include state of the arte intervention in (percutaneous ASD and PFO closure, carotid stenting, and endovascular AAA repair.); state-of-the-art electrophysiology (accessory pathway ablation, pulmonary vein isolation for AFIB, AICD, pacer, and resynchronization pacer implants.), state-of-the-art imaging (P.E.T. for sophisticated myocardial metabolism, 3D echo for Cardiac resynchrinization  therapy, CT angiography and Cardiac MR); and state-of-the-art research (myocardial metabolism, development of agents for targeted drug and gene delivery, stem cell therapy, genetics of aortic aneurysm formation, myocardial salvage therapies).