Duke Heart Pulse — January 11, 2026
Chief’s message: Happy New Year and End of Era
We return with the weekly Pulse for 2026 and hope you all had a happy and healthy new year. We return with great energy and work towards our goals. We appreciate all the faculty, fellows, residents, and staff that helped cover the holiday weeks.
We have several updates below. The most notable being that Saturday night there was an event to honor Dr. Donald Glower and his wife Sue Ann Glower as he is retiring for CT surgery. Dr. Glower has been a consistent north star in our heart center and cardio-thoracic surgical division – expanding and innovating mitral valve surgery including bringing minimally invasive surgery to our group, training countless surgical residents, and serving our patients and community over 45 years while performing over 7500 heart surgeries. It was telling to hear the number of surgeons, cardiologists, anesthesiologists,APPs, OR nurses, ICU team members, perfusionists, and others that attended and provided their appreciation for the teamwork, culture and patient centered care that Dr. Glower embodied. Funny stores, gifts and Jumbo Honey Buns were shared. We hope Dr. Glower has a wonderful time in retirement.
Highlights of the week:
Happy New Year!
On behalf of the leadership team for Duke Heart & Vascular, we wish each of you a very happy, healthy, and safe 2026!
Glower Celebrated, Officially Retires from Duke
Last night, members of the Division of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery, leadership of Duke Heart & Vascular, CT Anesthesiology, and supporting teams from across Duke gathered to celebrate surgeon Dr. Donald Glower and his wife, Sue Ann Glower as he retires from Duke. The gathering was held on Saturday, Jan. 10 at the University Club in Durham.
After a reception and dinner, remarks in celebration of his long career were made by numerous colleagues and former trainees. Led by Dr. Carmelo Milano, speakers included senior surgeons Drs. Peter Smith, David Harpole, and Tommy D’Amico; Drs. Manesh Patel, Andrew Wang (who read four patient letters honoring Glower), and Jill Engel from cardiology and Duke Heart & Vascular leadership; Drs. Jeff Gaca, Chad Hughes, Jeff Keenan, Adam Williams, Shu Lin, Brittany Zwischenberger, Andrew Vekstein, and Joe Turek from Duke CT Surgery; Drs. Mihai Podgoreanu and Mark Newman of anesthesiology; Richard Sabulsky spoke, representing the CT Surgery physician assistants; Jennifer Ritz spoke, representing OR nursing, as did Sandra Halloway, representing the perfusion team.
The evening was filled with camaraderie, gratitude, well-deserved accolades, lots of laughter, and tributes to his much-loved honey-buns and driver’s caps.
Congratulations, Dr. Glower – you will be missed in the OR!
A longer piece in recognition of Dr. Glower’s accomplishments and contributions to the field of cardiovascular and thoracic surgery will appear in the coming weeks.
Rymer Named Program Director, IC Fellowship
Congratulations to interventional cardiologist Jennifer Rymer, MD, MBA! She has been named program director of our Interventional Cardiology Fellowship program. She is taking the reins from Schuyler Jones, MD, who continues to serve as medical director of the cardiac catheterization lab.
Shout-outs to Kusner, Haywood, Akunor, Arshad, Sink & Champion!
A big shout-out to cardiology fellows Jon Kusner and Hubie Haywood from the Cardiac Diagnostic Unit for being spectacular fellows and making December a wonderful month!
Also, a shout-out to Harriet Akunor, Verda Arshad, Josh Sink, and Cosette Champion for filling in spots where we needed backup.
Having only two fellows for the whole month was rough but Jon and Hubie made the month go by smoothly! — Kelly Shull, MSN, RN, NCME, Clinical Nurse III, Cardiac Diagnostic Unit
Newest Guidelines for Management of Adult Congenital Heart Disease Published
The American College of Cardiology and American Heart Association recently released the statement below regarding publication of updated Guidelines for the Management of Adults with Congenital Heart Disease:
The American College of Cardiology (ACC) and the American Heart Association (AHA), along with several other leading medical associations, issued new guidelines for managing congenital heart disease in adults. The guideline was jointly published on Dec. 18, 2025 in JACC, the flagship journal of the American College of Cardiology, and Circulation, the flagship journal of the American Heart Association.
Congenital heart disease—being born with defects in the heart’s structure—is the most common birth defect. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, it affects nearly 1% of births, or about 40,000 babies per year, in the U.S. Advances in surgical treatments over the last few decades have contributed to over 90% of babies born with heart defects in the United States now surviving well into adulthood. This has led to a rapidly growing population of adults with congenital heart disease (ACHD) who remain at increased risk of cardiac complications as they age, despite early interventions.
The new guidelines provide updated recommendations for monitoring, counseling and treating adults with congenital heart disease. It includes evidence from research published between 2017-2024 and replaces the previous guidance issued in 2018.
Duke cardiovascular and thoracic surgeon, Dr. Tracy Geoffrion, is a co-author.
To see the manuscript for 2025 ACC/AHA/HRS/ISACHD/SCAI Guideline for the Management of Adults With Congenital Heart Disease, please visit either of the following links: JACC, Circulation.
Congratulations, Tracy!
Mandatory Masking on Heart Units; Tier 2 Visitation Restrictions
As of Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026, Duke Heart has implemented mandatory masking for staff and is strongly recommending them for visitors. Meanwhile, Duke has moved to Tier 2 Visitation Restrictions as of Jan. 6. Complete information is available on Duke Health Now.
DUHS Leadership Update
Ian Lee Brown has been named Duke University Health System’s next Chief Community Health & Social Impact Officer. The position reports directly to the Chief Executive Officer, DUHS with a dotted-line reporting relationship to Stelfanie Williams, Vice President for Community Affairs, Duke University, reflecting the close strategic alignment between Duke Health and the University’s community engagement efforts.
In the interim at DUHS, Ian will report directly to Tom Owens, Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of DUHS. Ian will continue to serve as a key member of our senior leadership team.
As Chief Community Health & Social Impact Officer, Ian will lead a comprehensive, system-wide strategy to improve community health outcomes and advance long-term well-being for the populations we serve. He will oversee DUHS’s Office of Community Health and work in very close partnership with our academic partners, population health colleagues, and teams in Duke Community Affairs which focus on critical issues such as economic mobility, education, and nonprofit capacity, as well as civic leaders to address the social and structural drivers of health. He will represent Duke Health in regional and national forums on community health and population well-being.
Congratulations, Ian!
Upcoming Events & Opportunities
National Wear Red Day & Heart Month
February is Heart Month – and National Wear Red Day — part of the American Heart Association’s Go Red for Women awareness campaign — is Friday, Feb. 6th. Wear your red and get some team selfies – submit them to Tracey Koepke for inclusion in Pulse!
Cardiology Grand Rounds
Jan. 13: Percutaneous Management of High Risk Pulmonary Embolism with Daniel Loriaux, MD. 5 p.m., DN 2002 and via Zoom.
CD Fellows Core Curriculum Conference
Jan. 14: DHP Case Presentation with Mugdha Joshi. Noon, DMP 7E39 and via Zoom.
Jan. 16: EP Case Presentation with Verda Arshad and Jon Taylor-Fishwick. Noon, Zoom only.
Jan. 21: HF/Transplant Case Presentation with Nishkala Shivakumar. Noon, DMP 7E39 and via Zoom.
Jan. 23: Topic and speaker to be announced. Noon, Zoom only.
Jan. 28: EP Case Presentation with Dorothy Avoke and Marcus Threadcraft. Noon, DMP 7E39 and via Zoom.
Jan. 30: DHP Case Presentation with Jon Taylor-Fishwick. Noon, Zoom only.
MMCVI Grand Rounds
Multi-Modality Cardiovascular Imaging Grand Rounds: A multi-imaging approach to cardiovascular disease cases. Thursdays, Noon to 1 p.m., via Zoom.
Jan. 15: Tricuspid Valve Pre-interventional Image Screening with Fawaz Alenezi
Jan. 22: Multi-Modality Imaging on Pericardial Disease with Cosette Champion
Jan. 29: NO CONFERENCE
Feb. 5: Quality in the Echo lab with Ashlee Davis
Feb. 12: Mitral Stenosis with Jon Mark
Feb. 19: LV Strain with Fawaz Alenezi
Feb. 26: Mitral Valve Pre-Interventional Imaging Screening with Fawaz Alenezi
Medicine Grand Rounds
Jan. 30: Quality and Safety at Duke: The Integral Role of the Department of Medicine with Drs. Mike Pignone and Rick Shannon. 8 a.m. Trent Semans Great Hall.
DCRI 30th Anniversary Forum Series
Jan. 27: A Fireside Chat with Jay Bhattacharya, MD, PhD, 18th Director, National Institutes of Health. 2 p.m., Zoom.
Bhattacharya will share insights on the NIH’s priorities for the nation’s healthcare and research initiatives as part of this fireside chat, which will be held virtually.
MLK Jr. Commemoration, Jan. 13
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s legacy of service, community, and leadership will be honored on Tuesday, Jan. 13 from 11:30-1:30 in the Trent Semans Great Hall. The program will feature Keynote Speaker Marissa Young, Duke Head Softball Coach, plus lunch, and the presentation of the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Humanitarian Award to outstanding team members who were nominated.
Registration is required to attend in person. Deadline is January 6, 2026. Space is limited.
You can join the celebration online, however! The option to tune in to the commemoration will be available for those who cannot attend in person. Feel free to host a watch party with your team or watch the keynote during your break. Click here to launch the live stream online.
Upcoming CME Activities:
2026 Duke Heart CMEs
The dates for the following 2026 Duke Heart symposia have been set. We will announce others as they are added.
- June 6: Duke Heart Failure Symposium — Course directors are Marat Fudim, Rob Mentz, Richa Agarwal, and Stephanie Barnes. Location: Durham Convention Center, Durham, NC.
- November 30: 18th Annual NC Research Triangle Pulmonary Hypertension Symposium – Course directors are Terry Fortin, Sudar Rajagopal, and Jimmy Ford. Location: Durham Convention Center, Durham, NC.
Please save the dates!
Have news to share?
If you have news to share with the Pulse readership, please contact Tracey Koepke, director of communications for Duke Heart & Vascular at tracey.koepke@duke.edu. We would love to hear about your latest accomplishments, professional news, cool happenings, and any events or opportunities that may be of interest to our team. Please call me with any questions: 919-681-2868. Feedback on Pulse is welcome and encouraged. Submissions by Noon on Wednesdays will be considered for weekend inclusion.
Duke Heart in the News:
December 28 — Joseph Turek
Popular Science
5 breakthrough health innovations in 2025
December 29 — Mitchell Krucoff
tctMD
Chest X-ray Before Cath—Is There a Point?
December 31 — Harry Severance
Becker’s Healthcare Podcast
January 2 — Monique Starks
The Mount Airy News
Pilot Mountain police receive defibrillators from Novant Health
January 5 — Marat Fudim
Citybiz
January 6 — Donavon Harbison and Duke Health
Medicalresearch.com
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