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Aaron W. Eckhauser

Aaron W. Eckhauser, MD, MSCI

Languages spoken: English
  • I joined the University of Utah, Division of Pediatric Cardiothoracic Surgery in 2012. I am board certified by the American Board of Thoracic Surgery and American Board of Thoracic Surgery subspecialty Congenital Cardiac Surgery. My clinical interests are focused on caring for all patients, from neonates to adults, with congenital heart defects. I have a special interest in pediatric aortic valve disease (Ross procedure) and pulmonary atresia with ventricular septal defect and major aortopulmonary collaterals. This has been a very exciting time for our section as we have collaborated with several other centers to develop expertise in these areas and have worked diligently to strengthen our local programs. I have also developed an academic interest in quality and safety within our speciality and I currently am a sitting member of the Primary Children's Hospital Surgical Quality Team and a member of the Quality Improvement Team for the Heart Center at PCH. I am currently leading the development of a new multispeciality Enhanced Recovery After Cardiac Surgery program here at PCH. I have also earned a Surgical Leadership certificate degree from Harvard University and I have used these skills specifically to help develop, train and strengthen our OR team. I think that we have a unique opportunity here at Utah to positively impact the quality of many children's lives and their families who are suffering from heart disease.

    Board Certification

    American Board of Surgery
    American Board of Thoracic Surgery
  • I joined the University of Utah, Division of Pediatric Cardiothoracic Surgery in 2012. I am board certified by the American Board of Thoracic Surgery and American Board of Thoracic Surgery subspecialty Congenital Cardiac Surgery. My clinical interests are focused on caring for all patients, from neonates to adults, with congenital heart defects. I have a special interest in pediatric aortic valve disease (Ross procedure) and pulmonary atresia with ventricular septal defect and major aortopulmonary collaterals. This has been a very exciting time for our section as we have collaborated with several other centers to develop expertise in these areas and have worked diligently to strengthen our local programs. I have also developed an academic interest in quality and safety within our speciality and I currently am a sitting member of the Primary Children's Hospital Surgical Quality Team and a member of the Quality Improvement Team for the Heart Center at PCH. I am currently leading the development of a new multispeciality Enhanced Recovery After Cardiac Surgery program here at PCH. I have also earned a Surgical Leadership certificate degree from Harvard University and I have used these skills specifically to help develop, train and strengthen our OR team. I think that we have a unique opportunity here at Utah to positively impact the quality of many children's lives and their families who are suffering from heart disease.

    Board Certification and Academic Information

    Academic Departments Surgery -Primary
    Academic Divisions Cardiothoracic Surgery
    Board Certification
    American Board of Surgery
    American Board of Thoracic Surgery

    Education history

    Post Graduate Training Surgical Leadership Program - Harvard University Certificate
    Congenital Cardiac Surgery - Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia Fellow
    Residency Cardiothoracic Surgery - University of Pennsylvania Resident
    Surgery - Vanderbilt University Medical Center Resident
    Graduate Training Vanderbilt University M.S.C.I
    Vanderbilt University Medical Center Research Fellow
    Residency Surgery - Vanderbilt University Medical Center Resident
    Surgery - Vanderbilt University Medical Center Intern
    Professional Medical Medicine - University of Kentucky M.D.
    University of Notre Dame B.S.

    Selected Publications

    Journal Article

    1. Robinson DL, Minich LL, Menon SC, Ou Z, Eckhauser AW, Ware AL (2023). Coronary artery dilation associated with bicuspid and unicuspid aortic valve disease in children: a series of 17 patients. Cardiol Young, 33(12), 2610-2615.
    2. Eckhauser AW, Nonu JL, Hobbs RD, Griffiths ER, Husain SA, Doty J (2022). The Ross operation after removal of a transcatheter aortic valve replacement in pediatric patients. JTCVS Tech, 17, 129-132.
    3. Robertson DM, Boucek DM, Martin MH, Gray RG, Griffiths ER, Eckhauser AW, Ou Z, Lambert LM, Williams RV, Husain SA (2022). Transcatheter and Surgical Aortic Valve Implantation in Children, Adolescents, and Young Adults With Congenital Heart Disease. Am J Cardiol, 177, 128-136.
    4. Steurer MA, Schuhmacher K, Savla JJ, Banerjee M, Chanani NK, Eckhauser A, Elhoff J, Jacobs JP, Mikesell K, Peyvandi S, Romano J, Zhang W, Gaynor JW, Tabbutt S (2022). Fetal growth and gestational age improve outcome predictions in neonatal heart surgery. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg.
    5. Barfuss SB, Boucek DM, McFarland CA, Martin MH, Minich LL, Eckhauser AW, Ou Z, Gray RG, Tani LY (2022). Short Term Left Ventricular Reverse Remodeling after Transcatheter Aortic Valve Replacement in Children. J Am Soc Echocardiogr, 35(10), 1077-1083.
    6. Winder MM, Vijayarajah S, Reeder RW, Glenn ET, Moza R, Eckhauser AW, Bailly DK (2021). Successfully Reducing Fat-modified Diet Duration for Treating Postoperative Chylothorax in Children. Ann Thorac Surg, 114, 2363-2371.
    7. Pruitt CR, Menon S, Lal AK, Eckhauser AW, Ou Z, Presson A, Miller T, Niu M (2021). Usefulness of Left Ventricular Myocardial Deformation in Children Hospitalized for Acute Myocarditis who Develop Arrhythmias. Am J Cardiol, 152, 113-119.
    8. Moza R, Truong DT, Lambert LM, Ou Z, Amula V, Eckhauser A, Minich LL, Williams RV (2021). Poor Weight Recovery Between Stage 1 Palliation and Hospital Discharge for Infants with Single Ventricle Physiology: An Analysis of the National Pediatric Cardiology Quality Improvement Collaborative Phase II Dataset. J Pediatr, 234, 20-26.e2.
    9. McFarland CA, Truong DT, Pinto NM, Minich LL, Burch PT, Eckhauser AW, Lal AK, Molina KM, Ou Z, Presson AP, May LJ (2020). Implications of Left Ventricular Dysfunction at Presentation for Infants with Coarctation of the Aorta. Pediatr Cardiol, 42(1), 72-77.
    10. Johnson JT, Sullivan KL, Nelson RE, Sheng X, Greene TH, Bailly DK, Eckhauser AW, Marino BS, Minich LL, Pinto NM (2020). Factors That Contribute to Cost Differences Based on ICU of Admission in Neonates Undergoing Congenital Heart Surgery: A Novel Decomposition Analysis. Pediatr Crit Care Med, 21(9), e842-e847.
    11. Anderson BR, Gotlieb EG, Hill K, McHugh KE, Scheurer MA, Mery CM, Pelletier GJ, Kaltman JR, White OJ, Trachtenberg FL, Hollenbeck-Pringle D, McCrindle BW, Sylvester DM, Eckhauser AW, Pasquali SK, Anderson JB, Schamberger MS, Shashidharan S, Jacobs JP, Jacobs ML, Boskovski M, Newburger JW, Nathan M, Pediatric Heart Network (2020). Registry-based trials: a potential model for cost savings? Cardiol Young, 30(6), 807-817.
    12. Glotzbach KL, Ward JJ, Marietta J, Eckhauser AW, Winter S, Puchalski MD, Miller TA (2019). The Benefits and Bias in Neurodevelopmental Evaluation for Children with Congenital Heart Disease. Pediatr Cardiol, 41(2), 327-333.
    13. Sharma V, Griffiths ER, Eckhauser AW, Gray RG, Martin MH, Zhang C, Presson AP, Burch PT (2018). Pulmonary Valve Replacement: A Single-Institution Comparison of Surgical and Transcatheter Valves. Ann Thorac Surg, 106(3), 807-813.
    14. Winder MM, Eckhauser AW, Delgado-Corcoran C, Smout RJ, Marietta J, Bailly DK (2018). A protocol to decrease postoperative chylous effusion duration in children. Cardiol Young, 28(6), 816-825.
    15. Newburger JW, Sleeper LA, Gaynor JW, Hollenbeck-Pringle D, Frommelt PC, Li JS, Mahle WT, Williams IA, Atz AM, Burns KM, Chen S, Cnota J, Dunbar-Masterson C, Ghanayem NS, Goldberg CS, Jacobs JP, Lewis AB, Mital S, Pizarro C, Eckhauser A, Stark P, Ohye RG, Pediatric Heart Network Investigators (2018). Transplant-Free Survival and Interventions at 6 Years in the SVR Trial. Circulation, 137(21), 2246-2253.
    16. Boucek DM, Lal AK, Eckhauser AW, Weng HC, Sheng X, Wilkes JF, Pinto NM, Menon SC (2018). Resource Utilization for Initial Hospitalization in Pediatric Heart Transplantation in the United States. Am J Cardiol, 121(8), 981-985.
    17. Griffiths ER, Pinto NM, Eckhauser AW, Al-Dulaimi R, Presson AP, Bailly DK, Burch PT (2017). Differences in clinical outcomes and cost between complex and simple arterial switches. Cardiol Young, 28(1), 134-141.
    18. Arnaoutakis GJ, Blitzer D, Fuller S, Eckhauser AW, Montenegro LM, Rossano JW, Gaynor JW (2017). Mechanical Circulatory Support as Bridge to Transplantation for the Failing Single Ventricle. Ann Thorac Surg, 103(1), 193-197.
    19. Ware AL, Malmberg E, Delgado JC, Hammond ME, Miller DV, Stehlik J, Kfoury A, Revelo MP, Eckhauser A, Everitt MD (2016). The use of circulating donor specific antibody to predict biopsy diagnosis of antibody-mediated rejection and to provide prognostic value after heart transplantation in children. J Heart Lung Transplant, 35(2), 179-85.
    20. Eckhauser A, South ST, Meyers L, Bleyl SB, Botto LD (2015). Turner Syndrome in Girls Presenting with Coarctation of the Aorta. J Pediatr, 167(5), 1062-6.
    21. Johnson JT, Eckhauser AW, Pinto NM, Weng HY, Minich LL, Tani LY (2015). Indications for intervention in asymptomatic children with chronic mitral regurgitation. Pediatr Cardiol, 36(2), 417-22.
    22. Mart CR, Eckhauser AW (2014). Development of an echocardiographic scoring system to predict biventricular repair in neonatal hypoplastic left heart complex. Pediatr Cardiol, 35(8), 1456-66.
    23. Mart CR, Eckhauser AW, Murri M, Su JT (2014). A systematic method for using 3D echocardiography to evaluate tricuspid valve insufficiency in hypoplastic left heart syndrome. Ann Pediatr Cardiol, 7(3), 193-200.
    24. Eckhauser AW, Jones C, Witte MK, Puchalski MD (2014). Transthoracic echocardiographic predictors of left atrial hypertension in patients on venoarterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation. World J Pediatr Congenit Heart Surg, 5(1), 67-9.
    25. Tamboli RA, Hossain HA, Marks PA, Eckhauser AW, Rathmacher JA, Phillips SE, Buchowski MS, Chen KY, Abumrad NN (2010). Body composition and energy metabolism following Roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgery. Obesity (Silver Spring), 18(9), 1718-24.
    26. Fabbrini E, Tamboli RA, Magkos F, Marks-Shulman PA, Eckhauser AW, Richards WO, Klein S, Abumrad NN (2010). Surgical removal of omental fat does not improve insulin sensitivity and cardiovascular risk factors in obese adults. Gastroenterology, 139(2), 448-55.
    27. Aslam M, Eckhauser AW, Dorminy CA, Dossett CM, Choi L, Buchowski MS (2009). Assessing Body Fat Changes during Moderate Weight Loss with Anthropometry and Bioelectrical Impedance. Obes Res Clin Pract, 3(4), 209.
    28. Hill KD, Eckhauser AW, Marney A, Brown NJ (2009). Phosphodiesterase 5 inhibition improves beta-cell function in metabolic syndrome. Diabetes Care, 32(5), 857-9.
    29. Rauth TP, Eckhauser AW, LaFleur BJ, Melvin WV, Holzman MD (2008). Intraband pressure measurements describe a pattern of weight loss for patients with adjustable gastric bands. J Am Coll Surg, 206(5), 926-32; discussion 932-4.
    30. Eckhauser A, Torquati A, Youssef Y, Kaiser JL, Richards WO (2006). Internal hernia: postoperative complication of roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgery. Am Surg, 72(7), 581-4; discussion 584-5.
    31. Eckhauser A, Sharp K, Melvin W (2006). The Evaluation and Management of General Surgery Problems in Patients with Left Ventricular Assist Devices. Am Surg, 72(2), 158-61.

    Book Chapter

    1. Eckhauser AW, Spray TL (2018). Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome. In Spray TL, Acker MA (Eds.), Operative Cardiac Surgery (6th Edition). London: Taylor & Francis Ltd.
    2. Eckhauser AW, Spray TL (2014). Transposition of the Great Arteries. In Larry Kaiser, Irving Kron, Thomas Spray (Eds.), Mastery of Cardiothoracic Surgery (3rd). Philadelphia: LWW.
    3. Eckhauser A, Grau J, Hargrove C (2014). Endoscopic Mitral Repair: Evolution to Robotics (Endoballoon Technique). In Atlas of Robotic Cardiac Surgery. Springer.
    4. Eckhauser A, Spray T (2014). Congenital Lung Malformation, Chapter 27. In European Society of Thoracic Surgery Textbook (pp. 471-478). Exeter, UK: ESTS.
    5. Eckhauser AW, Spray TL (2014). Myocardial Protection. In Pediatric Critical Care Medicine (Second Edition, 4: Peri-operative Care of the Critically Ill or Injured Child). London: Springer Science + Business Media.
    6. Eckhauser A, Sharp H (2008). Complications of Laparoscopic Cholecystectomy. In Cameron JL (Ed.), Current Surgical Therapy (9th ed., pp. 425-429). Mosby.

    Commentary

    1. Eckhauser A (2020). The Early Bird Gets the Worm. Ann Thorac Surg, 112(5), 1671.

    Case Report

    1. Griffiths ER, Gray RG, Martin MH, Husain SA, Eckhauser AW (2020). Limited durability of expandable pericardial tissue valves in the mitral position in children. JTCVS Tech, 5, 84-86.
    2. DeBoard ZM, Eckhauser AW, Griffiths E (2017). Single-Ventricle Palliation in a 4-Year-Old With Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome. Ann Thorac Surg, 105(1), e31-e32.
    3. McRae R, Lambert L, Lee J, Gociman B, Scaife E, Eckhauser A (2014). Repair of a wide sternal cleft in a young female. J Pediatr Surg, 2(6), 277–279.
    4. Eckhauser AW, OByrne ML, Weinberg PM, Ravishankar C, Spray TL, Gaynor JW (2013). Hypoplastic left ventricle and scimitar syndrome. Ann Thorac Surg, 96(6), 2232-4.
    5. Eckhauser AW, Hannon D, Molitor M, Scaife E, Gruber PJ (2013). Repair of traumatic aortoinnominate disruption using CorMatrix. Ann Thorac Surg, 95(4), e99-e101.
    6. Eckhauser AE, Melvin WV, Sharp KW (2006). Management of general surgical problems in patients with left ventricular assist devices. Am Surg, 72(2), 158-61.

    Editorial

    1. Eckhauser AW (2022). Neonatal Tetralogy of Fallot, You're the Next Contestant on The Price Is Right! J Am Coll Cardiol, 79(12), 1181-1182.
    2. Hobbs RD, Eckhauser AW (2022). Commentary: Cumulative preoperative risk modeling in single-ventricle patients…crystal clear or clear as mud? J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg.
    3. Eckhauser A (2021). Commentary: One for the money, two for the show, delaying the Ross is the way to go! J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg, 163(2), 385-386.
    4. Eckhauser A (2021). Commentary: Neonatal heart transplant: Conservation status-critically endangered. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg, 162(5), 1369.
    5. Eckhauser A (2020). Commentary: Aortic valvuloplasty au naturel, where longevity is not just skin deep. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg, 162(4), 1190.
    6. Eckhauser A (2021). Commentary: What's in a Name? That Which We Call a Truncus, by Any Other Name Would Look Like a Tetralogy. Semin Thorac Cardiovasc Surg, 33(3), 787-788.
    7. Eckhauser A (2020). Commentary: The fast train to nowhere is still worth the ride! J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg, 162(2), 447-448.
    8. Eckhauser A (2021). Commentary: What to expect when you're expecting! Semin Thorac Cardiovasc Surg, 33(4), 1080.
    9. Eckhauser A (2020). Commentary: Maybe there is just 1 way to skin a cat! J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg, 160(5), 1282-1283.
    10. Eckhauser A (2020). Commentary: Go out on a limb, that's where the fruit is! JTCVS Tech, 4, 253.
    11. Eckhauser A (2019). Commentary: Are pediatric aortic leaflet reconstructions a long run for a short slide or a home run? J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg, 159(6), 2379.
    12. Eckhauser A (2019). Commentary: No harm, no foul-Staged pulmonary artery banding in complete canal defects. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg, 159(4), 1507.
    13. Eckhauser A (2019). Commentary: Aortic valvuloplasty in children…if you like it then you should've put a ring on it! J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg, 159(2), e141.
    14. Eckhauser A (2019). Commentary: Who wins after renal replacement therapy in congenital heart surgery? J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg, 158(5), 1456.
    15. Eckhauser A (2019). Commentary: A bandage for dilated left ventricular cardiomyopathy. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg, 157(6), 2431-2432.
    16. Eckhauser A (2018). Transplanting heterotaxy…out with the vague, and in the with new. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg, 157(2), 741-742.

    Other

    1. Callahan CP, Jegatheeswaran A, Blackstone EH, Karamlou T, Baird CW, Ramakrishnan K, Herrmann JL, Brown JW, Nelson JS, Polimenakos AC, Lambert LM, Eckhauser AW, Kirklin JK, DeCampli WM, Aghaei N, St Louis JD, McCrindle BW, Congenital Heart Surgeons Society Pulmonary Conduit Working Group (2021). Time-Related Risk of Pulmonary Conduit Re-replacement: A Congenital Heart Surgeons' Society Study. Ann Thorac Surg (113(2), pp. 623-629). Netherlands.
    2. Nathan M, Levine JC, Van Rompay MI, Lambert LM, Trachtenberg FL, Colan SD, Adachi I, Anderson BR, Bacha EA, Eckhauser A, Gaynor JW, Graham EM, Goot B, Jacobs JP, John R, Kaltman JR, Kanter KR, Mery CM, LuAnn Minich L, Ohye R, Overman D, Pizarro C, Raghuveer G, Schamberger MS, Schwartz SM, Narasimhan SL, Taylor MD, Wang K, Newburger JW, Pediatric Heart Network Investigators (2020). Impact of Major Residual Lesions on Outcomes After Surgery for Congenital Heart Disease. J Am Coll Cardiol (77(19), pp. 2382-2394). United States.
    3. Eckhauser AW, Van Rompay MI, Ravishankar C, Newburger JW, Ram Kumar S, Pizarro C, Ghanayem N, Trachtenberg FL, Burns KM, Hill GD, Atz AM, Hamstra MS, Mazwi M, Park P, Richmond ME, Wolf M, Zampi JD, Jacobs JP, Minich LL, Pediatric Heart Network Investigators (2019). Variation in care for children undergoing the Fontan operation for hypoplastic left heart syndrome. Cardiol Young (29(12), pp. 1510-1516). England.
    4. Gakenheimer-Smith L, Glotzbach K, Ou Z, Presson AP, Puchalski M, Jones C, Lambert L, Delgado-Corcoran C, Eckhauser A, Miller T (2019). The Impact of Neurobehavior on Feeding Outcomes in Neonates with Congenital Heart Disease. J Pediatr (214, pp. 71-78.e2). United States.
    5. Domingo L, Carey JC, Eckhauser A, Wilkes J, Menon SC (2018). Mortality and Resource Use Following Cardiac Interventions in Children with Trisomy 13 and Trisomy 18 and Congenital Heart Disease. Pediatr Cardiol (40(2), pp. 349-356). United States.
    6. Glotzbach JP, Sharma V, Tonna JE, Pettit JC, McKellar SH, Eckhauser AW, Varghese TK Jr, Selzman CH (2018). Value-driven cardiac surgery: Achieving "perfect care" after coronary artery bypass grafting. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg (156(4), pp. 1436-1448.e2). United States.
    7. Eckhauser A, Pasquali SK, Ravishankar C, Lambert LM, Newburger JW, Atz AM, Ghanayem N, Schwartz SM, Zhang C, Jacobs JP, Minich LL (2018). Variation in care for infants undergoing the Stage II palliation for hypoplastic left heart syndrome. Cardiol Young (28(10), pp. 1109-1115). England.
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