My clinical specialty is pediatric general and thoracic surgery. I'm particularly interested in congenital disorders, including diaphragmatic hernias, lung lesions, esophageal atresia, gastroschisis and omphalocele. I also specialize in fetal surgery, minimally invasive surgery and the management of extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO). I take care of patients seen at the Fetal Care Center from their diagnosis through their neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) stay and as they continue to grow as children.
I became interested in pediatric and fetal surgery during my surgical residency and research fellowship at UC Davis with my mentor, Dr. Diana Farmer. I fell in love with the thought of being able to treat diseases before a child is even born. Dr. Farmer is an amazing example of a surgeon-scientist who changed the field through her translational and clinical research on myelomeningocele, and her work and dedication inspire me.
To do our best for patients, we must continue our research efforts to learn more and improve the way we practice. The field of fetal surgery continues to evolve as we develop new procedures and cellular and gene therapies. There are many opportunities for research to start treatment before children are even born. For congenital diaphragmatic hernias, we follow babies from diagnosis to birth, often with an opportunity to improve lung development in utero using the fetal tracheal occlusion balloon. After babies are born, we help with multiple aspects of the patient's care, from ECMO support to surgical repair and respiratory support. Seeing the progress from fetus to neonate to discharge home is fantastic.
I've been involved in fetal surgery since my residency. I won the George Henry Award at the International Fetal Medicine and Surgery Society 37th Annual Meeting for my work with Dr. Diana Farmer on cell therapy for fetal myelomeningocele repair. Since joining Cincinnati Children’s, I have been working on fetal cell and gene therapies, as many genetic diseases, like lysosomal storage diseases or osteogenesis imperfecta, have pathology that affects children before they are born. We hope we can treat a fetus in the womb before its disease progresses, much like we have done with myelomeningocele. Recently, we have seen multiple gene therapies hit the market for adults. It's only a matter of time and rigorous research before we can start preventing disease progression in unborn children.
When I'm not working, I love the Cincinnati Symphony, a good cup of coffee and the sight of downtown Cincinnati when it’s lit up at night.
MD: University of Louisville, Louisville, KY, 2014.
Residency: General Surgery, University of California-Davis, Sacramento, CA, 2021.
Fellowship: Pediatric Surgery, Cincinnati Children's Hospital, 2023.
Pediatric general and thoracic surgery; congenital diaphragmatic hernia; congenital lung lesions, including congenital pulmonary airway malformations; bronchopulmonary sequestrations; extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO); esophageal atresia; gastroschisis and omphalocele fetal surgery
Surgery - General and Thoracic, Fetal Care, Cincinnati Fetal Center
Fetal gene and cellular therapies; fetal surgery; fetal repair of myelomeningocele
General and Thoracic Surgery, Human Genetics
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Fetal Surgery in the Primate 4.0: A New Technique 30 Years Later. Fetal Diagnosis and Therapy: clinical advances and basic research. 2021; 48:43-49.
Surviving Lambs with Myelomeningocele Repaired in utero with Placental Mesenchymal Stromal Cells for 6 Months: A Pilot Study. Fetal Diagnosis and Therapy: clinical advances and basic research. 2020; 47:912-917.
Does the pediatric hemodynamic cliff exist in response to hemorrhagic shock?. Journal of Pediatric Surgery. 2020; 55:2543-2547.
In utero treatment of myelomeningocele with placental mesenchymal stromal cells - Selection of an optimal cell line in preparation for clinical trials. Journal of Pediatric Surgery. 2020; 55:1941-1946.
Spinal Angulation: A Limitation of the Fetal Lamb Model of Myelomeningocele. Fetal Diagnosis and Therapy: clinical advances and basic research. 2019; 46:376-384.
Fetal repair of surgically-created gastroschisis in a lamb model may improve postnatal feeding tolerance and intestinal motility: A pilot study. Journal of Pediatric Surgery. 2019; 54:2061-2068.
Surgical management of pediatric rectal prolapse: A survey of the American Pediatric Surgical Association (APSA). Journal of Pediatric Surgery. 2019; 54:2149-2154.
Fetal myelomeningocele repair. Seminars in Pediatric Surgery. 2019; 28:150823.
Traumatic posterolateral abdominal wall hernia in a pediatric patient. Journal of Pediatric Surgery Case Reports. 2019; 43:23-25.
High density placental mesenchymal stromal cells provide neuronal preservation and improve motor function following in utero treatment of ovine myelomeningocele. Journal of Pediatric Surgery. 2019; 54:75-79.
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