STONY BROOK, N.Y., August 1, 2011 – Apostolos K. Tassiopoulos M.D., Associate Professor of Surgery, Program Director of the 
Vascular Surgery Residency , and Director of the Surgical Skills Simulation Center in the Stony Brook University School of Medicine , has been appointed Chief of the Division of Vascular Surgery announced Todd K. Rosengart, M.D., Professor and Chairman of the Department of Surgery at Stony Brook. Dr. Tassiopoulos has served as interim chief with distinction since 2008; he joined Stony Brook in 2006.
“The Division of Vascular Surgery has advanced considerably under Dr.
Tassiopoulos’ leadership,” said Dr. Rosengart. “Notably the division has
received international acclaim for their expertise in the area of
venous disease, recently hosting an international conference attended by
a ‘standing room only’ audience."
Comprised of five board-certified vascular surgeons, a PhD vascular
physiologist, a non-invasive vascular technology specialist, two
board-certified podiatric surgeons and a comprehensive clinical and
administrative support staff, the Division of Vascular Surgery at Stony
Brook provides state-of-the-art evaluation and treatment of every aspect
of arterial and venous pathology. The Division offers inpatient and
outpatient services and performs an excess of 2,000 open and
endovascular interventions annually, and oversees the Vascular Laboratory
which performs more than 10,000 non-invasive diagnostic vascular
studies each year. Vascular surgeons in the Division work
collaboratively with the Divisions of Cardiothoracic Surgery and
Cardiovascular Medicine for providing best patient care and achieving
optimal outcomes.
“The Stony Brook
Division of Vascular Surgery has experienced a very significant growth
over the past years,” said Dr. Tassiopoulos. “Its members have a
significant number of original scientific contributions and continuous
presence in national and international vascular organizations and
conferences. Through our collaboration with the Divisions of
Cardiothoracic Surgery and Cardiovascular Medicine we have developed a
comprehensive approach that offers state-of-the-art diagnosis and
treatment to patients with arterial and venous disease in our community.
Our goal is to continue expanding and refining our diagnostic and
therapeutic capabilities overtime and provide the latest and most
advanced treatment options for our patients”
Dr. Tassiopoulos’ role as the Director of the Surgical Skills Center in
the School of Medicine includes oversight of medical education in the
1,800 square-foot facility, which is dedicated to surgical training of
fellows, residents and medical students. Embraced as a training tool and
promoted as an assessment of resident surgical skills by the American
College of Surgeons, surgical simulation is emerging nationwide as a
resource with enormous potential for teaching, learning, and research.
“We focus on the development of surgical and clinical skills early on in
the training process,” said Dr. Tassiopoulos. “The Surgical Skills
Center enables us to provide advanced levels of training to build
surgical leadership skills and foster effective communication and
collaboration between our medical students and the entire healthcare
team. It is the most innovative resource available for providing
critical assessment of patient safety issues and provides an excellent
mechanism for developing and conveying best practices to our students.”
The Division of Vascular Surgery offers a five-year vascular surgery
residency, as well as a traditional two-year residency (fellowship),
both of which are fully accredited by the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education .
Dr. Tassiopoulos is board certified in both general surgery and vascular surgery. He has expertise in minimally invasive endovascular surgery for the management of aortic aneurysms (including treatment for thoracic aortic aneurysm s),lower
extremity peripheral arterial disease (PAD), carotid disease, and
venous disease (endovenous laser and radiofrequency ablation). He also
specializes in open surgical interventions for stroke prevention (carotid endarterectomy ), aortic aneurysms, limb salvage, and dialysis access.
Dr. Tassiopoulos received his MD from Aristotle University Medical
School in Thessaloniki, Greece, in 1989. He subsequently served for two
years as a general medical officer in the Hellenic Air Force of Greece.
In 1992, he moved to Houston, TX, to pursue a one-year postdoctoral
fellowship in cardiovascular surgery at Baylor College of Medicine with
Drs. E. Stanley Crawford and Joseph Coselli. He then completed his
residency training in general surgery at SUNY Upstate Medical University
in 1999, and went on to complete his training in vascular surgery at
Loyola University in Chicago.
An active scholar as well as a dedicated clinician, Dr. Tassiopoulos is
the author of numerous peer-reviewed articles and book chapters. While
training in general surgery, he devoted a year to basic science research
related to the development of pulmonary complications following aortic
surgery. During his vascular fellowship, his basic science research
focused on developing strategies to prevent neo-intimal hyperplasia
after various open and percutaneous vascular interventions. At the same
time he worked on a number of clinical research projects in the
diagnosis and pathogenesis of chronic venous insufficiency.At Stony
Brook, he continues to develop his clinical research activity in aortic
aneurysms and venous disease.
Dr. Tassiopoulos lives in Miller Place. He and his wife Yianna Darsinos have two children Vasia age 6, and Constantine age 4.
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