Photo courtesy of Miller Children’s & Women’s Hospital Long Beach.
Dr. Saar Danon, a pediatric cardiologist, has been named the medical director of pediatric cardiology and congenital cardiac catheterization at Miller Children’s & Women’s Hospital Long Beach, it was announced today.
Danon, an expert in interventional cardiology, specializes in the use of catheters and devices to treat children and adults with congenital heart disease. Interventional cardiac catheterization, unlike diagnostic cardiac catheterization, treats or repairs some forms of congenital heart disease, helping patients avoid having to undergo heart surgery, according to the release.
Danon specializes in several interventional cardiac catheterizations, including closure of atrial septal defect (ASD), patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) and ventricular septal defects (VSD), where a device is used to seal a hole which should not be present, according to Miller Children’s. He also performs balloon valvuloplasty, angioplasty and stent placement.
With Danon, the Pediatric Heart Center at Miller Children’s also gains access to 3D modeling technology. By processing images from a computerized tomography (CT), magnetic resonance image (MRI) or angiogram, Danon can use the 3D printer to create a model of a patient’s heart.
“3D heart modeling allows us to physically hold a patient’s heart in our hands, look at the defects and determine a course of action,” said Danon in a statement. “We can take a device, like a transcatheter valve, and test it into the model – making sure the patient is an ideal candidate for the procedure.”
Danon joins the Pediatric Heart Center’s team of board-certified specialists, one of only a handful of programs in Southern California offering comprehensive congenital cardiac care to patients of all ages. The center also has satellite centers in Torrance, Long Beach and Irvine.
“We’re incredibly excited about Dr. Danon joining the Pediatric Heart Center at Miller Children’s,” said Tamra Kaplan, interim chief operating officer at Miller Children’s, in a statement. “His expertise, along with our current pediatric cardiac care team, will help further advance the care of children and young adults with congenital heart disease.”
Danon has spent the past five years expanding his expertise in interventional cardiac catheterization at Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital in Saint Louis. For more than three years, he has made medical trips to Panama to perform transcatheter interventions, provide specialized care and train local physicians to care for children with congenital heart disease, according to the release.
He earned his medical degree from the University of California, Los Angeles School of Medicine.
“As a practicing physician and physician leader, Dr. Danon hopes to further develop the congenital cardiology and catheterization programs at the Pediatric Heart Center,” stated the release. “His research focuses on developing new techniques and devices to increase the number of children that can be treated with cardiac catheterization procedures.”
For more information on Danon, visit the site here.