Research on Thoracic Aortic Dissection

Carlos A. Mestres boasts a rich medical background and extensive clinical expertise. Graduating from the University of Barcelona School of Medicine in 1979, he obtained a Doctor of Medicine degree. His specialization spans across general thoracic and cardiovascular surgery, serving as a cardiovascular surgeon at the University Hospital of Barcelona for 30 years (1984-2014). During this tenure, he also served as a visiting teaching fellow in the Department of Surgery at the National University of Singapore and as an assistant professor at the University of Barcelona School of Medicine. He held key positions in several hospitals, including Chief of the Cardiovascular Surgery Section at the University of Murcia's affiliated hospital in Spain and as a senior staff surgeon at the Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases in Barcelona. His international experience encompasses roles as a consultant cardiovascular and vascular surgeon at the Heart and Vascular Institute of the Cleveland Clinic Abu Dhabi, followed by becoming a leading physician at the Department of Cardiovascular Surgery at the University Hospital Zurich in Switzerland. Currently, he is an Extraordinary Professor in the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, The University of the Free State in Bloemfontein (South Africa).

Research interests: Biomaterials, tissue valves, surgery of ischemic heart disease, healthcare systems and management, valvular homografts, infective endocarditis & cardiovascular infections, intrathoracic organ transplantation, vascular homografts, surgery of the aorta.

Siddharth Prakash, MD, is an associate professor at McGovern Medical School at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth).

Board certified in cardiovascular disease and internal medicine, Dr. Prakash’s clinical interests center on bicuspid aortic valve, thoracic aortic aneurysms, and adult congenital heart disease in patients 17 and older. His research concentrates on the genetic causes of bicuspid aortic valves and related congenital abnormalities involving the left ventricular outflow tract and aorta.

Dr. A. Mohammed Idhrees is an outstanding cardiac surgeon having more than 15 years of clinical practice. He is an alumnus of Madurai Medical College from where he completed his general surgery training. He undertook his cardiac surgery training in the prestigious Sree Chitra Tirunal Institute for Medical Sciences & Technology, Trivandrum (Institution of National Importance established by an Act of Parliament in 1980). His expertise in cardiac surgery includes coronary artery bypass grafting and heart valve replacements/repair.

Dr Cristiano Spadaccio is a cardiothoracic surgeon at the Golden Jubilee National Hospital in Glasgow, UK and an Honorary Clinical Lecturer at the University of Glasgow in the College of Medicine Veterinary and Life Science affiliated to the Institute of Cardiovascular and Medical Sciences. He has published numerous papers in international peer-reviewed journals and presented his research results at many international society conferences, including American College of Cardiology, the American Association for Thoracic Surgery, The European Association for Cardiothoracic Surgery, etc.

Research Interests: Aortic surgery, coronary artery surgery, valve surgery, translational research, tissue engineering, regenerative medicine.