David H. Adams, MD, after being named AATS President and receiving the Association’s Presidential chain.
David H. Adams, MD, the Marie-Josée and Henry R. Kravis Professor and Chair of the Department of Cardiovascular Surgery at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, and Cardiac Surgeon-in-Chief of the Mount Sinai Health System, was named President of the American Association for Thoracic Surgery (AATS) at its 98th annual meeting on Monday, April 30, in San Diego.
The AATS is an international organization of more than 1,300 of the world’s foremost cardiothoracic surgeons representing 41 countries, and publishes four official journals that advance its commitment to science, education, and research.
“Dr. Adams is an internationally recognized leader in the field of heart valve surgery and mitral valve reconstruction,” says Kenneth L. Davis, MD, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Mount Sinai Health System. “That his achievements have been acknowledged by the most prominent organization in the field is a reflection on Dr. Adams and Mount Sinai’s commitment to advancing the treatment and study of heart disease.”
Additionally, Dr. Adams is President of the Mitral Foundation, a not-for-profit organization that promotes best practice standards in mitral valve disease, has co-authored the internationally acclaimed valve textbook, Carpentier’s Reconstructive Valve Surgery, and co-invented or invented several repair rings for mitral and tricuspid valve reconstruction that are used throughout the world. As the Program Director of The Mount Sinai Hospital’s Mitral Valve Repair Center—now one of the largest programs in the world caring for patients with mitral valve disease—Dr. Adams leads a team that has established national benchmarks for repair rates and excellent clinical outcomes.
The mitral valve controls blood flow between the collection chamber from the lungs (left atrium) and the pumping chamber (left ventricle), which is responsible for delivering the now-oxygenated blood to the body. Diseased mitral valve leaflets lead to either regurgitation or stenosis, altering normal blood flow patterns, and requiring repair or replacement. Dr. Adams and his team have pioneered reconstructive techniques that allow patients to keep their own living valve rather than undergo a valve replacement with a mechanical or animal valve.
According to the most recent New York State Department of Health Adult Cardiac Surgery 2013 – 2015 report, Dr. Adams is one of only four surgeons out of more than 230 to be recognized with a two-star safety rating, indicating superior clinical results in all index open heart cases. During this three-year period, Dr. Adams achieved a significantly higher safety level (0.52 percent) than the statewide average (2.25 percent).
“Becoming President of the American Association for Thoracic Surgery and receiving a two-star rating from New York State are really not my individual honors, but rather recognition of the extraordinary team of dedicated health care professionals whom I have the honor of working with every day in taking care of cardiovascular surgical patients at Mount Sinai,” says Dr. Adams.
The Department of Cardiovascular Surgery is currently participating in more than 20 clinical trials, several with a focus on exploring novel strategies that can treat mitral valve disease without opening the chest and placing the patient on a heart-lung machine. Dr. Adams was appointed the national co-Principal Investigator of the Medtronic Food and Drug Administration (FDA) pivotal APOLLO Trial, the first study in the United States to explore closed-chest, beating heart mitral valve replacement in patients who are at increased risk for conventional biological valve replacement.
The trial began in 2017 and will involve more than 40 clinical sites, including The Mount Sinai Hospital. Dr. Adams is also the co-Principal Investigator of the FDA Pivotal ReChord Trial that is exploring beating heart echo-guided valve repair for patients with mitral valve prolapse.
“This is the beginning of an important journey to establish truly less invasive approaches to treat patients with various types of mitral valve disease,” says Dr. Adams. “Investigators at The Mount Sinai Hospital are at the forefront of this research that we believe will revolutionize the treatment of patients in years to come.”
Dr. Adams is the co-inventor of the Edwards Lifesciences’ Carpentier-McCarthy-Adams IMR ETlogix Annuloplasty Ring, the Carpentier-Edwards Physio II ring, and the Medtronic Tri-Ad Adams Tricuspid Annuloplasty Ring. The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai receives royalties from Edwards Lifesciences and Medtronic in connection with the sale of these products. Dr. Adams and Mount Sinai do not receive any royalties when the devices are implanted in patients at Mount Sinai.