Panel Discussion

Dr. Gerdisch trained in general and then cardiovascular and thoracic surgery at Loyola University Medical Center in Chicago. During fellowship, he visited Dr. Alan Carpentier in Paris, where he gained early insight into heart valve repair. He remains on staff at Loyola Medical Center, as an associate clinical professor of thoracic and cardiovascular surgery. Dr. Gerdisch is a fellow of American College of Surgeons, American College of Cardiology and Heart Rhythm Society.

He is a partner of 30 years, in Cardiac Surgery Associates, the largest private cardiac surgical group in the country. Dr. Gerdisch became Chief of Cardiothoracic surgery at Franciscan Health in 2006. With focus on heart valve disease, he has developed a recognized center for heart valve repair and innovation including lead enrollment in multiple pivotal trials, and first in man with devices and regenerative procedures.

Dr. Gerdisch has published and presented on next generation valve devices and repair, surgery for atrial fibrillation and rigid sternal fixation. He trains surgeons in heart valve repair and surgical treatment of atrial fibrillation and his practice ranges from multi-valve redo operations to transcatheter procedures. He is a founding board member of Enhanced Recovery After Surgery – Cardiac Society.  An approach combining minimally invasive and advanced closure techniques with rapid mobilization and recovery has made Dr. Gerdisch an advocate for enhanced recovery, even for the most complex patients.

Niv Ad, MD 

A cardiac surgeon at White Oak Medical center in Maryland and an adjunct professor of Surgery at the Johns Hopkins University. Dr. Ad is the past president of The International Society for Minimally Invasive Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgery (ISMICS) the Editor in Chief of INNOVATIONS.

Dr. Ad’s research is focused on Atrial Fibrillation, patients’ outcome and minimally invasive valve surgery and techniques. He led numerous clinical trials and is very well published in the field. 

Dr. Whitlock is a Professor of Surgery at McMaster University and a practicing cardiac surgeon at Hamilton Health Sciences. He is a lead investigator at the Population Health Research Institute and the principal investigator of the LAAOS III trial, along with co-principal investigator Dr. Stuart Connolly. Dr. Whitlock holds the Canada Research Chair in Cardiovascular Surgery and a career award from the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada. 

Through the multinational studies that he has led, which include SIRS, TRICS III, VISION Cardiac, and LAAOS III, he has established a network of over 200 collaborating cardiac surgical centres in 32 countries.

Dr Dunnington is a cardiothoracic and arrhythmia surgeon practicing in Napa, California.  He has performed over 1000 VATS afib ablations, and specifically has pioneered the "staged hybrid" approach since 2010.  When not at work, he breeds labradors, makes wine, and rides electric unicycles

Marc Gillinov, M.D. is Professor and Chair of the Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery at Cleveland Clinic. Cleveland Clinic is North America’s largest cardiac surgery program, performing more than 5,000 cardiac surgical procedures annually at its Main Campus in Cleveland, Ohio. Dr. Gillinov has a particular interest in mitral valve repair with a focus on robotic mitral valve surgery. He has written extensively on robotic mitral valve repair and has produced a series of educational surgical videos and manuscripts with the intention of “demystifying” mitral valve repair in degenerative disease.

Dr. Gillinov also serves as Chair of the NIH-funded Cardiothoracic Surgical Trials Network (CTSN), the world’s premier cardiac surgical research enterprise. Under Dr. Gillinov’s leadership, the CTSN has conducted numerous randomized controlled trials that have informed guidelines and changed clinical practice.

Dr. Gillinov has been an AATS member for 25 years, and his AATS activities have included Program Co-Director for the Annual Meeting, Co-Director of the STARS meeting, Board membership in the AATS Foundation, and membership and leadership of several AATS committees. Dr. Gillinov has been appointed as a Director of the American Association for Thoracic Surgery, and, reflecting his commitment to training and education, is the designated Director for Education.

He lives in Cleveland, Ohio with his wife, Lisa.