Division of Pediatric Surgery

Christian Streck, M.D., serves as Chief of Pediatric Surgery and a professor of surgery and pediatrics. His clinical interests include minimally invasive surgery for a variety of conditions of the chest, abdomen, and pelvis. His specific interests include cancer, inflammatory bowel disease, pectus excavatum, trauma, appendicitis, and ovarian masses. Dr. Streck's research interests include pediatric trauma and minimally invasive surgery.

Dr. Streck also serves the Department of Surgery as the Vice Chair of Education.. Before assuming the Vice Chair role in 2023, he led the General Surgery Residency Program as Program Director for eight years.

He graduated from Duke University in 1994 with a BS in biology and an AB in history. He received his medical degree from the Wake Forest University School of Medicine, completed general surgery residency in Memphis, Tennessee, which included a research fellowship studying children's cancer at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. He then completed pediatric surgery fellowship at LeBonhuer Children's Hospital in Memphis in 2008.

Aaron Cunningham, M.D., is a board-certified pediatric surgeon who maintains a comprehensive practice in pediatric general and thoracic surgery including the surgical care of neonates, pediatric surgical oncology, and minimally invasive surgery in children with congenital anomalies such as congenital pulmonary airway malformations (CPAM), esophageal atresia (EA/TEF), diaphragmatic hernia or a rare hepatobiliary disorder known as biliary atresia. He was trained with a focus in minimally invasive techniques for small neonates and believes in the comprehensive, multidisciplinary care of children with the goal of improving health over the course of a lifetime.

He received his M.D. from the Medical College of Georgia, and completed surgical residency at Oregon Health & Science University, where he also completed a research fellowship in pediatric surgical outcomes. Dr. Cunningham then completed his fellowship training in pediatric surgery at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital at Stanford University. The highly specialized fellowship training that he received while at Stanford predominantly focused on minimally invasive surgical techniques in small neonates including minimally invasive approaches to esophageal atresia, CPAM, diaphragmatic hernia, and an advanced endosurgical technique called peroral endoscopic myotomy (POEM), which was performed on children in only one other center in the country.

Laura Hollinger, M.D., is a board-certified pediatric surgeon who maintains a comprehensive practice in pediatric general surgery covering a wide range of clinical areas including congenital anomalies, neonatal surgery, prenatal consultations, pediatric trauma and emergency care, Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO), and minimally invasive pectus excavatum repair.

Her primary leadership role at the Shawn Jenkins Children's Hospital is as Medical Director of the pediatric ECMO program where she leads a team of experts in neonatal and pediatric critical illness. Through their comprehensive multidisciplinary approach and dedication to exceptional patient care, the Pediatric ECMO program achieved the Platinum Level ELSO Award for Excellence in Life Support, a designation held by only the top tier of children's hospitals across the United States.

She received her medical degree from the University of Texas Health Science Center, completed residency training at Methodist Hospital in Houston, Texas, including a two-year research fellowship where she studied critical illness and the distant organ effects of kidney ischemia-reperfusion injury. She then completed fellowship training in pediatric surgery at the University of Texas Health Science Center.

Aaron Lesher, M.D., is a pediatric surgeon who maintains a comprehensive practice in pediatric surgery, treating neonatal, pediatric, and adolescent surgical conditions, including ECMO, anorectal anomalies, thoracic surgery, pectus excavatum, esophageal atresia, and many other congenital and acquired anomalies. Dr. Lesher specializes further in pediatric burn surgery and also leads the Adolescent Bariatric Surgery Program at MUSC. Focusing on the unique needs of this vulnerable teenage population, Dr. Lesher performs advanced minimally invasive surgery for obese teens and works with a specialized team of adolescent psychologists, obesity medicine doctors, dietitians, and gastroenterologists who provide the full breadth of expertise needed to deliver optimal care for this population.

He received his medical degree from Duke University School of Medicine. He then completed his internship and general surgery residency at MUSC, followed by fellowship training in pediatric general and thoracic surgery at University of Tennessee Health Sciences Center/LeBonheur Children’s hospital, finishing in 2014. During that time, he obtained expertise in trauma and burn injuries in children. He is Board-Certified in General Surgery and board- Pediatric General Surgery.

Since returning to MUSC as faculty in the departments of Surgery and Pediatrics, Dr. Lesher has developed a research program focusing on clinical pediatric surgery, healthcare delivery, and addressing health disparities through telemedicine. He has developed a comprehensive burn telemedicine program at MUSC Children’s Hospital, using mobile health to change healthcare delivery. And, having graduated from the MUSC College of Medicine, Class of 2012, he is honored to serve the Department of Surgery as the Chair the Curtis P. Artz MUSC Surgical Society.

Rohit Mittal, M.D., is the Pediatric Burn Director in the South Carolina Pediatric Burn Center, based at the MUSC Shawn Jenkins Children's Hospital. An expert in burn and reconstructive surgery for children, Dr. Mittal is the Shriners Endowed Professorship in Pediatric Burn Care at MUSC. Dr. Mittal is double board-certified in general surgery and surgical critical care. He treats pediatric burn patients and augments the team at MUSC in their current efforts to perform innovative research that improves quality of care and the lives of burned children. Dr. Mittal also cares for adult patients on the Trauma/Burn Service.

One of the most respected and loved pediatric surgeons in medicine, few have made a more significant impact on patients, faculty, staff and students than H. Biemann Othersen, Jr. M.D., MUSC Emeritus Chief of Pediatric Surgery and past Chair of the Curtis P. Artz MUSC Surgical Society.

When Dr. Othersen joined the faculty at MUSC in 1965, he was the state’s first pediatric surgeon and one of the first in the Southeast. Dr. Othersen remembers when there was not a Children’s Hospital, and he says opening it in 1989 made a remarkable difference.

As one of the founders of the MUSC Children’s Hospital, Dr. Othersen worked hard to ensure that children had the best care that could be found anywhere. Without Dr. Othersen’s vision, determination, and work, the MUSC Children’s Hospital would not be what it is today. He is a giant in the development of pediatric surgery at MUSC.