Message from the Chief
Mark Ratcliffe, M.D.
Professor and Vice-Chair, Department of Surgery,
UCSF
Chief of Surgery, San Francisco VA Medical Center
Make a Gift
A gift to the Department of Surgery helps us discover new treatments and cures.
Funding in Cardiothoracic Surgical Research
Parity for surgeon-scientists in research funding is critical for the development of new procedures and devices.
Mark Ratcliffe, M.D.
Professor and Vice-Chair, Department of Surgery
Chief of Surgery, San Francisco VA Medical Center
Director, Cardiac Biomechanics Lab
Contact Information
San Francisco, CA 94121
Tel: 415-750-2057
Fax: 415-750-2181
Education
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M.D.-Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH
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B.A. - Denison University, Granville, OH
Residencies
- Internship - John Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore, MD
- Residency - John Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore, MD
- Residency - University of Pennsylvania Hospital, Philadelphia, PA
- Research Fellow - University of Pennsylvania Hospital, Philadelphia, PA
- Fellowship - University of Pennsylvania Hospital, Philadelphia, PA
Board Certification
- American Board of Surgery, 1989
- American Board of Thoracic Surgery, 1993
Clinical Expertise
- Minimally invasive cardiac surgery
- Off-pump coronary artery bypass surgery
- Valve repair and replacement
- Surgery for heart failure
- Robotic surgery
- Thoracic aortic surgery
Research Interests
- Finite element analysis of failing left ventricle
Biography
Dr. Ratcliffe received his M.D. degree from Case Western Reserve
School of Medicine and completed his General Surgery and
Cardiothoracic residencies at the Univeristy of Pennsylvania. Dr.
Ratcliffe is certified by the American Board of Surgery and
American Board of Thoracic Surgery. His special interest is in
the application of finite element analysis or the failing left
ventricle. Dr. Ratcliffe has been on the faculty since 1993.
Currently, he is the Chief of Cardiothoracic Surgery at the VA
Medical Center (VAMC), Acting Chief of Surgery, VAMC and Acting
Program Director of the Cardiothoracic Residency program.
Dr. Ratcliffe is an active member of the American Society for
Artificial Internal Organs, American Heart Association, Society of
Thoracic Surgeons, Western Thoracic Surgical Association, San
Francisco Surgical Society, American Association of Thoracic
Surgery, and is a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons.
Selected Publications
- Walker JC, Ratcliffe MB, Zhang P, Wallace AW, Fata B, Hsu EW, Saloner DA, Guccione JM. MRI-based finite-element analysis of left ventricular aneurysm Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol. 289:692-700, 2005.
- Zhang P, Guccione JM, Nicholas SI, Walker JC, Crawford, PC, Shamal A, Saloner DA, Wallace AW, Ratcliffe MB.
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Wall ST, Walker JC, Healy KE, Ratcliffe MB, Guccione JM, Theoretical impact of the injection of material into the myocardium: A Finite Element Model Simulation. Circulation, 114:2627-35, 2006.
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Zhang P, Guccione JM, Nicolas SI, Walker JC, Crawford PC, Shamal A, Acevedo G, Guttman MS, Ozturk C, McVeigh ER and Ratcliffe MB, Endoventricular patch plasty for dyskinetic anteroapical left ventricular aneurysm increases systolic circumferential shortening in sheep. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. In Press*
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Mann M, Tendulkar A, Birger N, Howard C, Ratcliffe MB, NIH funding for surgical research, Ann Surg. In Press*
In the News
The Problem of Funding in Surgical Research
Scientists and Engineers for America (SEA) - May 20, 2008"Surgeons may be capable of accelerating the translation of basic research into new clinical therapies. Nevertheless, most surgeon-scientists believe they are at a disadvantage in competing for peer-reviewed funding, despite a recent emphasis on "translational science" by organizations such as the NIH."
