Message from the Chief
Mark Ratcliffe, M.D.
Professor and Vice-Chair, Department of Surgery,
UCSF
Chief of Surgery, San Francisco VA Medical Center
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Funding in Cardiothoracic Surgical Research
Parity for surgeon-scientists in research funding is critical for the development of new procedures and devices.
Christopher D. Owens, M.D., M.Sc.
Assistant Professor of Surgery
Contact Information
400 Parnassus Avenue, A-6110
San Francisco, CA 94143-0957
Phone: (415) 353-2357
Fax: (415) 353-2669
Education
- 1986-1990, Indiana University, B.S., Chemistry/Biology
- 1994-1998, Indiana University, M.D.
- 2005-2007, Harvard Medical School, M.Sc.
Residencies
- 1998-1999, Beth Israel Deaconness Medical Center, Intern, General Surgery
- 1999-2003, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Resident, General Surgery
Fellowships
- 2003-2004, St. Elizabeth Medical Center, Clinical Fellowship, Vascular Medicine and Endovascular Surgery
- 2004-2006, Brigham and Women's Hospital, John Homans Fellow, Vascular and endovascular Surgery
Board Certification
- American Board of Surgery, 2006
- American Board of Surgery, Vascular Surgery, 2008
Clinical Expertise
- Carotid Artery Disease
- Thoracic Aortic Aneurysms
- Abdominal Aortic Aneurysms
- Dialysis Access
- Peripheral Artery Disease (PAD)
Research Interests
- Exploring novel drugs or biologics designed to prevent vein graft failure and restenosis after angioplasty and stenting
- Vein graft endothelial function
- Temporal sequence of the physiological, biomechanical, and biochemical changes during vein graft healing
Biography
Dr. Christopher Owens received his undergraduate and medical degree from Indiana University. He went on to complete a general surgery residency and vascular surgery fellowship at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, MA. In addition, he completed a clinical fellowship in vascular medicine and endovascular surgery from St. Elizabeth Medical Center in Boston, MA.
Dr. Owens' clinical interests include peripheral artery disease (PAD), thoracic and abdominal aortic aneurysms, carotid artery disease, and dialysis access procedues. He is particularly interested in lower extremity limb revascularization for patients with PAD and critical limb ischemia (CLI).
Research Summary
Dr. Owens' research is focused on exploring novel drugs or biologics designed to prevent vein graft failure and restenosis after angioplasty and stenting. He is pursuing a better understanding of the factors that modify vein graft remodeling to the arterial environment, and a better appreciation of adaptive physiology and healing kinetics. Dr. Owens hopes to gain insights into the temporal sequence of the physiological, biomechanical and biochemical challenges during veing graft healing. He is currently the PI of an NIH-funded research project studying endothelial function and vein graft remodeling.
Selected Publications
- Owens CD, Ridker PA, Belkin M, Hamdan AD,
Pomposelli F, LoGerfo FW, Nguyen LL, Creager MA, Conte MS. Elevated
C-reactive protein levels are associated with postoperative events
in patients undergoing lower extremity vein bypass surgery. J Vasc
Surg 2007;45:2-9.
PubMed - Owens CD, Rybicki FJ, Wake N, Schanzer A,
Ifantides C, Mitsouras D, Mulkern RV, Gerhard-Herman MD, Belkin M,
Creager MA, Conte MS. Early remodeling of lower extremity vein
grafts: Inflammation influences biomechanical adaptation. J Vasc
Surg 2008; 47 (6): 1235-1242.
PubMed - Ho KJ, Owens CD, Longo T, Sui XX,
Ifantides C, Conte MS. C-reactive protein and vein graft
disease: evidence for a direct effect on smooth muscle cell
phenotype via modulation of PDGF receptor-beta. Am J Physiol
Heart Circ Physiol 2008; 295 (3):H1132-H1140.
PubMed - Owens CD, Wake N, Conte MS,
Gerhard-Herman M, Beckman JA. In vivo human lower extremity
saphenous vein bypass grafts manifest flow mediated vasodilation. J
Vasc Surg 2009.
PubMed - Owens CD. Adaptive changes in autogenous vein
grafts for arterial reconstruction: Clinical implications. J Vasc
Surg 2009.
PubMed
