Walter Randolph "Ranny" Chitwood Jr. is known for his work as a cardiothoracic surgeon at the

Brody School of Medicine The Brody School of Medicine at East Carolina University (BSOM) is a Public university, public medical school located in Greenville, North Carolina, Greenville, North Carolina, United States. It offers a Doctor of Medicine program, combined Doctor ...

East Carolina University East Carolina University (ECU) is a public university in Greenville, North Carolina, United States. It is the List of universities in North Carolina by enrollment, fourth largest university in North Carolina and the only one in the state with s ...

located in

Greenville, North Carolina Greenville ( ; ) is the county seat of and the most populous city in Pitt County, North Carolina, United States. It is the principal city of the Greenville, NC Metropolitan Statistical Area, and the List of municipalities in North Carolina, 12t ...

. Chitwood is recognized as the first heart surgeon to perform robot-assisted heart valve surgery in the US.

Biography

Chitwood is a native of

Wytheville, Virginia Wytheville ( ) is a town in and the county seat of Wythe County, Virginia, Wythe County, Virginia, United States. It is named after George Wythe, a signer of the United States Declaration of Independence and mentor to Thomas Jefferson. Wytheville ...

. He graduated from

Hampden–Sydney College Hampden–Sydney College (H-SC) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts Men's colleges in the United States, college for men in Hampden Sydney, Virginia. Founded in 1775, it is the oldest privatel ...

and received his medical degree from the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia, United States. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson and contains his The Lawn, Academical Village, a World H ...

in 1974. He obtained all of his surgical training at

Duke University Medical Center Duke University Hospital is a 1062 -bed acute care facility and an academic tertiary care facility located in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Established in 1930, it is the flagship teaching hospital for the Duke University Health Sy ...

under Dr. David C. Sabiston, where he spent 10 years training in general and cardiothoracic surgery, as well as basic science research. He was the first house staff member at Duke to be selected to

Alpha Omega Alpha Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society () is an honor society in the field of medicine. It has active chapters in 132 Liaison Committee on Medical Education, LCME-accredited medical schools in the United States and Lebanon. It annually elects ove ...

. After his chief residency at Duke in 1984, he was selected to develop and head the new cardiac surgery program at the

School of Medicine. His initial appointment was as a full professor of surgery. Except for a two-year hiatus as the chief of cardiothoracic surgery at the

University of Kentucky The University of Kentucky (UK, UKY, or U of K) is a Public University, public Land-grant University, land-grant research university in Lexington, Kentucky, United States. Founded in 1865 by John Bryan Bowman as the Agricultural and Mechanical ...

, he has spent his entire career at ECU, where he was chairman of the Department of Surgery from 1995 to 2003. He also served as senior associate vice chancellor of the Health Sciences Division for Cardiovascular Diseases and paved the way for the development of a new specialty hospital and research institute - the East Carolina Heart Institute. , East Carolina Heart Institute was reported to have performed over 1,200 cardiac surgical, 3,000 interventional, and 5,000 diagnostic catheter-based procedures yearly. The center's research laboratories have been responsible for training residents and supporting established investigators alike. Chitwood's research activities relate to myocardial preservation and angiogenesis, as well as endoscopic and robotic tele-manipulation in cardiac surgery. He has been the principal investigator of the FDA robotic mitral valve trials that led to approval for this use in the United States. He is a member of 25 professional societies which include the

American College of Surgeons The American College of Surgeons (ACS) is a professional medical association for surgeons and surgical team members, founded in 1913. It claims more than 90,000 members in 144 countries. History The ACS was founded in 1913 as an outgrowth of ...

, the Royal College of Surgeons of England, the American Association for Thoracic Surgery, the Society of Thoracic Surgeons, the Southern Thoracic Surgical Association, the Society of University Surgeons, the

American Surgical Association The American Surgical Association is the oldest surgical organization in the United States. History It was founded in 1880. Their publication, ''Annals of Surgery'', was started in 1885. A collection of the association's papers are held at the Na ...

, the American College of Cardiology, and the Cardiac Surgery Biology Club. He is on numerous committees in these societies. He has been President of the International Society of Minimally Invasive Cardiac Surgery, The Society for Heart Valve Disease, and the North Carolina Chapter of the American Heart Association. He serves the editorial boards of the Annals of Thoracic Surgery, the Journal of Cardiac Surgery, the Journal of Heart Valve Disease, the Asian Annals of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery, CTS Net, the Heart Surgery Forum, Chest, and the American Heart Journal. He has authored over 150 peer reviewed scientific and clinical articles, as well as many book chapters and several monographs. He has special expertise in complex valvular surgery, including mitral repair and endoscopic mitral valve surgery. He has written widely and lectured internationally on innovative techniques in minimally invasive and robotic cardiac surgery. In 2003 he was elected to Fellowship in the prestigious Royal College of Surgeons of England. His lifelong avocations have been photography, amateur radio, and antiquarian medical bibliophilia.

References

External links

Biography

See patient reviews, research and videos for Dr. Randolph Chitwood, heart surgeon
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chitwood, Randolph Living people Year of birth missing (living people) University of Virginia School of Medicine alumni Duke University alumni American cardiac surgeons East Carolina University faculty American Surgical Association members