Division Overview

Duke Cardiovascular Medicine is dedicated to excellence in patient care, teaching, and research.

Among the largest cardiology programs in the country, the Division includes more than 75 full-time faculty, 40 cardiovascular fellows, 30 nurse practitioners/physician assistants and registered nurses, and a full team of dedicated health care staff, who together provide care to thousands of patients annually. Duke is consistently ranked among the nation’s best in Heart and Heart Surgery by U.S. News and World Report -- ranked #4 in the nation in 2005.

Research in the clinical sciences is led by the Duke Clinical Research Institute (DCRI), the premier academic research organization worldwide. The predecessor to the DCRI is the Duke Databank for Cardiovascular Disease, which today is the world's oldest and largest compilation of information on the outcomes of heart care; its use has shaped the practice of cardiology around the world.

Excellence in basic science research in all aspects of cardiovascular medicine has been a long-standing tradition and has markedly expanded in recent years. Its growth is coinciding with the development of new genomics and genetics initiatives.

"Firsts" in Cardiovascular Medicine at Duke

First institution to use systemic hypothermia during cardiac surgery -- now a standard procedure worldwide
Invention of the first bioabsorbable coronary stent
Duke doctors were the first to develop and use a coronary artery transluminal extraction catheter (TEC) to clear blocked arteries in patients with angina
First use in the Southeast of a technique called transmyocardial revascularization to induce new blood vessel growth in ischemic heart muscle
First use of the "Heart Port" minimally invasive coronary bypass and mitral valve repair in the Southeast
Development of the first perfusion balloon angioplasty catheter and testing in patients with coronary artery disease
Development and first use of the Anstadt System for circulatory support to keep a dying patient alive until a donor heart became available for transplant