Okla HO HO ma greetings

" Good friends are hard to find, harder to leave, and impossible to forget." With this thought, the Department of Surgery wishes all of  you a very Merry Christmas and all the luck the New Year could possibly bring to you.

Welcome aboard

Dr. Dunn is a colon and rectal surgeon and a native of Oklahoma City. He is Board Certified in Colon and Rectal surgery as well as general surgery. Dr. Dunn received his undergraduate degree from Oklahoma State University and his medical degree from New York Medical College. He completed both his residency in general surgery and his residency in  colon and rectal surgery at LSUHSC in Shreveport, Louisiana where he has practiced for the last 10 years. He serves on several national committees and has numerous publications with his main focus being rectal cancer, complex anorectal disease and surgical education. He is retired from the U.S. Army Reserve Medical Corps. He joined our faculty as an Associate Professor in Surgery in December of 2009.

Oklahoma's first thorascopic surgery for esophageal atresia

In November, a team of OU pediatric surgeons performed the state’s first thoracoscopic surgery to repair esophageal atresia. The surgical team included Nikola K. Puffinbarger, M.D., pediatric surgery, and chief residents Beth Terry, M.D., and Nate Kreykes, M.D. It is estimated that worldwide, the procedure has been performed by fewer than 200 surgeons. Esophageal atresia is a lethal condition that occurs when a baby’s esophagus has not developed properly and does not connect to the baby’s stomach. As a result, the baby has no way to receive adequate nourishment. The condition occurs in about one in 4,000 babies. According to David W. Tuggle, M.D., section chief, Pediatric Surgery, about eight cases are seen here annually.

Will you get accepted?

The OU College of Medicine  Office of Admissions has begun the annual application cycle for medical students.  Each year the OU College of Medicine receives over 1,200 initial applications filed with AMCAS for evaluation.  Currently, Dr. Ron Squires (’94) is serving as the Chairman of the Admissions Board.

American College of Surgeons in Chicago

If you will be in Chicago for the American College of Surgeons meeting in October, please join us at our annual cocktail reception.

Details:

Monday, October 12, 2009

6:30 to 8:00 P.M.

Private Dining Room 3

Chicago Hilton

720 South Michigan Avenue

Sad to report

News we never want to hear, but thought you might want to know. We've learned that several members of our surgery family passed away this year.

• William O. Coleman, M.D., Oklahoma City, clinical faculty, on June 13, 2009
• William D. Maril, M.D, Oklahoma City, clinical faculty, on June 12, 2009
• Bob J. Rutledge, M.D., Oklahoma City, clinical faculty, on August 20, 2009
• Taylor Dan Wagner, M.D., Benton, Arkansas, general surgery chief resident 1968, on March 12, 2009

Pittsburgh ...

Home of the 2009 Stanley Cup and NFL Champs, Pittsburgh is now the home of Aaron M. Scifres, MD ('02). He is working at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center in trauma and critical care.

Moving to Big D

Joshua G. Barton, MD ('04) completed his Gastrointestinal Surgery fellowship at the Mayo Clinic and has taken a position at Methodist Dallas Medical Center.

No problems this time, Houston

Karl K. Boatman, MD ('57), one of Dr. Schilling's early general surgery residents recently moved to Houston to spend more time with his children and grandchildren.

The Big 5-0

Cardiothoracic surgery has reached a major milestone this year.

The residency program started 50 years ago with I. Ross Grimes, MD as the first thoracic surgery resident.

Also in 1959, fifty years ago -

• January 21, 1959 - the first open heart surgery at Children's Hospital.
• June 8, 1959 - the first open heart surgery at the VA.
• November 1, 1959 - The first case of open-heart correction for total anomalous pulmonary venous drainage reported at Children’s Hospital.

During this time, fifty-six residents trained with Gil Campbell, MD (1959-1965), then G. Rainey Williams, MD (1965-1975) and Ronald C. Elkins, MD (1975-2002) and currently Marvin D. Peyton, MD (2002-present).

What do you remember about your thoracic surgery rotation?

30 Rocks

Since the arrival of William R. Richardson, M.D. in January, 1957, the OU Department of Surgery has provided surgical care to the pediatric population of Oklahoma, but it wasn't until 1979 - thirty years ago that the pediatric surgery residency program was established. Since then, doctors E. Ide Smith, William P. Tunell and David W. Tuggle have provided leadership as the section chief for pediatric surgery. James "Kit" Carson, M.D. was the first pediatric surgery fellow and since then 16 more have trained at OU with two more, Beth Terry and Nathaniel Kreykes, currently in training. Happy 30th to Pediatric Surgery.

On the Road to Chiefdom - 2010

On July 1, the new PGY-5's or general surgery chiefs took on their new roles as the 2010 academic year kicks off. Valerie Jolly and Tim Vavricka are both from Oklahoma and are in charge of the Presbyterian Tower service. Kristi Prejeant, from Louisiana and Jay Snow, from Missouri are taking charge at the VA.

New Year's Resolutions:

• study harder
• give more
• no more excuses
• it matters
• and of course, exercise

We only part to meet again

Chief Residents completing their residency in June 2009 are Joshua Gierman, M.D. who is staying on the surgery faculty for a year, then has been accepted into a vascular fellowship at Baylor. Kevin Jolliff, M.D. is going into private practice at St. Anthony’s Hospital in Oklahoma City. Roy Greenwood is also going into private practice in Oklahoma City at Integris Southwest.

-- "Learning is a treasure that will follow you every where".

Happy New Year

It is not quite July 1, when the new "academic" year begins, but already we are in the midst of both campus and surgery orientations for the new recruits. Welcome and let the games begin!

Conjoined twins 2009

Conjoined twins born in October were successfully separated by the surgeons at Children's Hospital at OU Medical Center during an operation that lasted a little more than three hours on January 19, 2009. The twins who had been joined at the chest since birth are believed to be the first known American Indian conjoined twins.

Dr. David Tuggle who spearheaded a team of fifteen doctors and medical staff, also separated Oklahoma’s only other surviving conjoined twins in 1986. The twins required four operations to surgically separate their shared liver, rib cage and heart, as well as repair an abdominal hernia.

Instead of using a skin graft to cover their open wounds, the team used a vacuum-assisted closure to promote faster healing as drainage is continuously removed and new skin is pulled to the surface. Dr. Tuggle believes this is the first use of this technology on infants. The girls’ skin recovered in a month without the added risk of more surgery.

Welcome to the OU Surgery Blog

Welcome to the OU Surgery blog - a place for news about the not only the current faculty, residents and staff but former residents and faculty as well. Just a way to keep in touch. So join in the fun and let us know what you are doing. News and photos are encouraged.