Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery
The Cardiovascular Surgery Program of Rhode Island and The Miriam Hospitals specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of both basic and complex disorders of the heart.
Working in conjunction with Cardiovascular Surgery, the Cardiovascular Research Center (CVRC) and Cardiovascular Institute (CVI) are two of the best-funded cardiac surgery research programs in the country, specializing in areas of blood vessel regulation, myocardial protection and regenerative therapies for the treatment of patients who are not candidates for traditional surgical or medical therapies.
The main objective of the Division's research is collateral vessel formation. with the vast majority of these cases supported by NIH funding. The Division also examines collateral vessel formation in diabetic and non-diabetic patients. This is an extension of other work in animal models to discern whether or not the effects that occur in the porcine collateral formation model do in fact occur in patients.
Faculty
| Frank Sellke, MD Division Chief |
Jun Feng, PhD |
Arun Singh, MD |
| Ruhul Abid, PhD | Afshin Ehsan, MD | Neel Sodha, MD |
| Richard Clements, PhD | Thomas Ng, MD | Ikenna Okereke, MD |
Current Research
In the past six years, the Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery has been involved with the design, monitoring and execution of multiple clinical trials. This includes the Nova Nordisk phase II recombinant activity to Factor VI clinical trial. Dr. Sellke has served on the steering committee and publications committee for this trial and Rhode Island Hospital was involved with the analysis of the data. This resulted in a publication in the journal Circulation. Dr. Sellke was also involved in the design and execution of phase II trial dealing with the effects of dealing with Factor XIII on bleeding following cardiac surgery. This resulted in a publication in The Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery.
Currently, the center is initiating a trial dealing with fibrinogen concentrate on bleeding following aortic surgery. Dr. Afshin Ehsan is the site principal investigator for this trial, sponsored by CSL Behring. Furthermore, Dr. Sellke served as chairman of a data and safety monitoring board for the Cardiothoracic Surgical Network. This is a network funded by the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute and is currently involved with, or in the past has been involved with, approximately eight clinical trials dealing with everything from cell-based therapy to surgical treatment of valvular disease and the surgical treatment of atrial fibrillation.
Active Grants
| PI: Sellke Effect of Cardioplegia and Cardiopulmonary bypass on Coronary Microvascular React Type: R01 HL046716-21 Agency: NHLBI Period: 3/2010 - 2/2016 TC: $1,594,588 |
| PI: Sellke Effects of a Pulse Induced by a Constant-Flow Total Cardiac Replacement Device Type: R01 HL090521-04 Agency: NHLBI/Texas Heart Inst. Period: 9/2009 - 12/2015 TC: $260,220 |
| PI: Clements BKCa Activation for Enhanced Coronary and Myocardial Protection During Cardiac Surgery in Large Animals Agency: AHA Grant-in-Aid Period: 7/2014 - 6/2017 TC: $198,000 |
| PI: Feng Down Regulation of SKCa/IKCa Channels Contributes to Coronary Arterial Endothelial Dysfunction in Diabetic Patients Type: P20 GM103652-02 Agency: COBRE/NCRR Period: 6/2014 - 5/2015 TC: $53,500 |
| PI: Abid Improvement of Coronary Vascular Functions by Endothelium-Targeted Increase in Reactive Oxygen Species (COBRE Project 3) Type: P20 GM103652-02 Agency: COBRE/NCRR Period: 9/2013 - 5/2018 TC: $1,264,860 |
| PI: Abid Mechanisms for Differential Effects of Short-Term and Long-Term Increase in ROS on Endothelium Agency: AHA Grant-in-Aid Period: 7/2014 - 6/2017 TC: $198,000 |
Active IRB Research Protocols
| PI | Protocol |
|---|---|
| Feng | Calcium-Activated Potassium Channels and Protection of Diabetic Coronary Arterioles |
| Okereke | Outcomes of spontaneous pneumomediastinum Outcomes Of Patients with Small Cell Lung Cancer Outcomes of patients with pulmonary carcinoid tumors |
| Singh | Use of IMA - CABG |
Publications
Richard T. Clements, PhD
Afshin Ehsan, MD
Jun Feng, PhD
Ikenna Okereke, MD
Frank Sellke, MD
Arun Singh, MD
Neel Sodha, MD