NEW YORK – Dr. Stamatios Lerakis joined the Mount Sinai Zena and Michael A. Wiener Cardiovascular Institute full time faculty on September 1, 2018, in the rank of Professor of Medicine (Cardiology) and Diagnostic, Molecular and Interventional Radiology, as noted in his biography. He is currently the Director of the Cardiovascular Imaging Program and Imaging for Structural and Valve Interventions for the Mount Sinai Health System and Director of the Imaging for Structural and Valve Interventions Fellowship Program. He is a recognized multimodality cardiac imager and a national and international expert in imaging for Structural and Valve Interventions.
Dr. Lerakis was recently thanked in a post on social media on March 22 by Sam Champion, the well-known weather anchor for Good Morning America, who wrote: “Thank you Dr. Lerakis and Dr. Sharma and the WONDERFUL team of nurses at @mountsinaimedicalcenter Fuster Heart Hospital!”
Champion continued: “Many of you know I had a nuclear stress test last Thursday. And we found some things that needed to be taken care of… So today I went into the cardiac catheterization laboratory… and we took care of it. Thanks to these procedures, I am well and expected to make a full recovery.”
Dr. Lerakis took time out from his busy schedule to speak with The National Herald about his career and choosing cardiology as his specialty. Though he could not comment specifically about Champion’s procedures, he shared his insights, some general information about the life-saving advancements in cardiology, and his advice for young people interested in pursuing cardiology.
TNH: What led you to a career in medicine and were you always drawn to cardiology as a specialty?
Dr. Stamatios Lerakis: Helping people is one of the best things you can do in life. Being a physician makes that happen. Cardiology is one of the best specialties in medicine. Because you are taking care of the most important organ in the body, an organ that is also beating.
The advancements in cardiology are tremendous and being part of this field is very exciting and very rewarding.
TNH: You have treated some high profile patients, but what is something everyone should know about heart procedures?
Dr. Lerakis: Stress testing as well as cardiac computed tomography are part of the evaluation of patients. [If] we suspect coronary artery disease, depending on the findings of these tests, the cardiologist decides how to proceed if needed.
TNH: How common are they and what is the outlook for most patients following such procedures?
Dr. Lerakis: These procedures are very common. Today, they are performed very safely, especially in centers of excellence, like the Mount Sinai Fuster Heart Hospital. The outlook for these patients is fantastic. Basically, these patients return to their normal life in a matter of a few days. And actually, they feel much better, and that’s the purpose of treating the patients, to return back to normal life.
TNH: What advice would you give to young people interested in pursuing cardiology as their specialty?
Dr. Lerakis: I will advise the young people to keep an open mind and to let them know that if they choose cardiology, the future will be very bright, because the advancements and innovations in the field of cardiology will continue to grow since this [cardiovascular disease] is the number one killer worldwide. So, innovations, new treatments and new discoveries will continue to go on, so it will be very exciting for the young physicians to be cardiologists.
Original source: us