Stony Brook University Medical Center
General Thoracic
Member Since: 2000
Biography:
I was born in New Jersey, the oldest of 3 children. Our family moved to Europe due to illness of my mom and work requirements of my dad. That is the reason why I went to med school at the University of Zurich. There I witnessed the first angioplasty in a human (renal a.) and the first coronary angioplasty all encouraged and supervised by Ake Senning, a visionary surgeon, which is a little-known fact. He sent me to David Skinner with a one-line recommendation letter. (I know this boy and he is ok). That was the start of a residency in surgery at the University of Chicago, finishing with a CT residency and ECMO fellowship at UTMB. In Chicago I worked for CE Anagnostopoulos who later hired me at Stony Brook, at the time the first Hospital in the US to be fully computerized. There, I practiced the full gamete of cardio-thoracic surgery including congenital surgery. An early highlight was a grant from American Airlines to fly children and parents from Guatemala to the US for cardiac surgery after we went there to select them deep in the jungle. Over the years I gave up congenital heart surgery because it became a highly specialized entity of its own and concentrated on the two other main fields of adult cardio-thoracic surgery. By now this is an anachronistic career pathway no longer recommended, although still useful in many parts of the world. The Oslerian principles seem to take second seat compared to cutting edge highly technological skill sets. However, this career path allowed me to contribute ~300 publications encompassing basic, clinical and public health research. The NIH, TSF, NSF and Industry made this possible. After COVID I started to predominantly teach, med students, residents but also undergraduate pre-med students. I also spend several months of the year in Africa teaching and operating and trying to integrate American and African students, all while still pursuing research projects here and abroad.
What Does the AATS Mean to You:
My initial impression was that AATS epitomizes academic surgery. It still does, but my romanticized initial impression has evolved.
My First Experience with AATS:
My first encounter with this mysterious AATS was as a young resident spending entire nights worrying about deadlines for abstracts for meetings in faraway places that I was never allowed to go.
Why I became an AATS member:
I never wanted to be anything else but an academic surgeon. I understood that the AATS and the Am. Surgical were the forums where the most erudite academic exchange took place.
The most impactful presentation I have seen at an AATS meeting:
What comes to mind is Randall Griep's presentation on spinal cord perfusion
The first presentation I gave is:
Bilfinger T. V., Harper P., Lin C. Y., Ryan J., Anagnostopoulos C. E. Measurement of extravascular lung water with short lived isotopes. American Society of Nuclear Medicine, 1982, Miami
The first paper I had published is:
Bilfinger T.V., Lin C. Y., Anagnostopoulos C. E., In vitro determination of accuracy of cardiac output measurements by thermal dilution. Journal Surgical Research, 33:409, 1982.
A significant case/patient interaction that impacted my career is:
In hindsight watching and talking to the man who received the first coronary angioplasty (I had no idea then). The relentless admonition to attention to details and careful planning with reproducible steps."
My career in CT Surgery was inspired by:
Watching Ake Senning as a student
A significant case/patient interaction that impacted my career is:
In hindsight watching and talking to the man who received the first coronary angioplasty (I had no idea then). The relentless admonition to attention to details and careful planning with reproducible steps.
The topic most important to advancing the field of CT Surgery is:
Not being focused on RVU's alone
The most pressing issues impacting CT surgery are:
Cost; the growing proportion of commercial/economic consideration occupying the daily thinking of a ct-surgeon.
Advice for Trainees:
Test yourself; what kind of a person are you after 24/48 hours up? Is that something you can handle (all aspects) or should you be looking for something else.