2025 Surgery Research Day Poster and Oral Presentations

Poster Presentations and Voting 

Posters are presented online! 

Voting begins on Monday, October 20 and closes Thursday, October 23 at midnight using this form.

Voting is open to DOS members and is limited to one submission per person (NetID required). *Note that voting on a mobile device requires Microsoft Edge. Printed and electronic posters will be on display beginning Thursday at 5 pm in the Drug Discovery Building lobby.

Stressed Induced Signaling in Aortopathy
Heather Holman, Ying Xiong, Jean Marie Ruddy, Sanford Zeigler, Jeffrey A. Jones

Does Cancer Surveillance Outperform Lung Cancer Screening? Evidence of Stage Migration in Second Primary Lung Cancers
Gabriella R Rasmussen MD (presenting), Eric Klipsch MD, Rupak Mukherjee PhD, Zachary Matthews BS, Ian C Bostock MD MS, Kathryn E Engelhardt MD MS

Predictive Model for Symptom Relief in Claudicants Following Surgical Intervention
Richard Shi, Nicholas Bulatao, Christina Glaser, Thomas Brothers, Jean Marie Ruddy, Rupak Mukherjee, Adam Tanious

Coronary Artery Bypass Graft Outcomes in Patients Being Evaluated for Renal Transplantation
Zachary W. Sollie, Chakradhari Inampudi, Jingwen Zhang, Tristen Covall, Alex Turkopolus, Brett A. Welch, Joseph Scalea, Ruth Campbell, Prabhakar Baliga, Arman Kilic

Mast Cell-Mediated Mechanisms of Pain in TNBS-Induced Chronic Pancreatitis
Wenyu Gou, Tiffany Yeung, Hua Wei,  Charlie Strange and Hongjun Wang

Analyzing Abdominal Adipose Distribution on Computed Tomography as a Predictor of Weight Loss After Bariatric Surgery
Allison Frederick, William Branch, Tania Yacu, Andrew Wright, Ruoyu Zhang, Roshan Mathi, Michael Dostert, John Del Gaizo, Mary Kate Bryant

What Affects Adequate Lymph Node Harvest in Pulmonary Resections? Assessment of Compliance with a National Quality Standard
Eric Klipsch MD, Joshua Braun BS, Saylor Hardin MPH, John Keck BS, Reid Keller, Ian C Bostock MD MS, Barry C Gibney DO, Kathryn E Engelhardt MD MS

Novel inflammation resolution pathways in liver ischemia and reperfusion injury
Yuan Zhai (presenting) N. Xai, T. Huey, Y. Wang, C. Zhong, T. Morinelli, S. Hanish, D. Van der Windt, Y. Zhai

Shared Decision-Making in Stage I Lung Cancer Treatment: A Multiple-Methods Analysis of a Patient Education Guide
Eric Klipsch MD, Reid Keller, Saylor Hardin MPH, Shannon Phillips PhD RN, Barry C. Gibney DO, Brian Lally MD, Kathryn E. Engelhardt MD MS

Fluid sparing intraoperative resuscitation is safe in selected general surgical procedures: a natural experiment in the setting of an IV fluid supply shock
Simon Hwang MD, Maggie L Westfal MD MPH, Jingwen Zhang PhD, Justin Marsden BS MBA, Andrew Schreiner MD, Bruce Crookes MD, Mark Lockett MD, Prabhakar Baliga MD, Thomas Curran MD MPH

Infection Risk After Heart Transplantation in Patients Bridged with Mechanical Circulatory Support Versus Medical Therapy: A Single Center Analysis
Suraj Rao, Sarah Chen, Brett A. Welch, Lucas Witer, Arman Kilic, Marc Katz, Brian Houston, Ryan J. Tedford, Kaylen Dodson, Lindsey Bull, Nicolas Pope

Differences in Patient-Reported Challenges & Outcomes Between Pediatric and Adult Solid Organ Transplant Recipients 
Isabella Ouyang Morgan Overstreet MS, Deanna DeHoff, David Taber, PharmD, MS

A Risk Stratification Guide for Bridging Patients on ECMO to Heart Transplantation
Morgan A. Hill, M.D., Zachary W. Sollie, M.D., Jennie H. Kwon, M.D., Tristan Covell, B.S., Brett A. Welch, MBA, MHA, Arman Kilic, M.D.

Beneficial Effects of Sodium Butyrate on Bone Remodeling in a Mouse Model of Osteogenesis Imperfecta
Jackson Goddard, Zachariah Hedley, Shikhar Mehrotra, Meenal Mehrotra

Identifying combination therapy targets for neoantigen vaccines in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma
Shubham Mehta, David Barr, Felicia Zhang, Usman Panni, Jack Whelchel, Hesham El-Shewy, William Gillanders, Dirk Spitzer, Timothy Barnoud , Malachi Griffith William Hawkins

Early Initiation of Continuous Renal Replacement Therapy in Neonatal Extracorporeal Life Support
Allison B. Frederick, Jill Newman, Courtney Tresslar, David Selewski, Laura Hollinger, Heidi Steflik

Reappraisal of the Impact of Institutional Volume on Outcomes After Heart Transplantation
Natalia Roa-Vidal MD, Zachary W. Sollie MD, Christa Haran MS, Jingwen Zhang MS, Brett A. Welch MBA MHA, Chakradhari Inampudi, Arman Kilic, MD

MerTK and Axl restrain Kupffer cell inflammatory activation in liver ischemia reperfusion injury
Yuan Zhai (presenting) C. Zhong, N. Xia, T. Huey, T. Morinelli, S. Hanish2, D. Van der Windt, Y. Zhai

CD137 Enrichment and Cytokine Programming Improve Ovarian TIL Expansion and Anti-Tumor Function
Paramita Chakraborty, Stephanie Mills, Jadan Zavestoski, Satyajit Das, Suganya Subramanian, Tracy Aggrey-Ansong, Nicolina Mascia, Jian Liu, Stefano Berto, Brian Orr, Shikhar Mehrotra 

The Impact of an IBD Patient-Centered Medical Home on Surgical Resource Utilization
Maggie L. Westfal, Sidney Nottingham, Mallorie L. Huff, Jingwen Zhang, Justin Marsden, Erin Forster, Garth Swanson, Thomas Curran

Predictors of surveillance imaging non-compliance among patients with TEVAR for blunt thoracic aortic injury
Boris Pekar, Matthew Anderson, Rupak Mukherjee, Jean Marie Ruddy

Survival outcomes in DCD vs DBD Heart Transplants in HeartMate 3 patients
Zachary W. Sollie, Chakradhari Inampudi, Jingwen Zhang, Lefan Xuan, Brett A. Welch, Arman Kilic

Impella 5.5 as a Bridge to Transplant Through Suprasternal Incision in the Congenital Heart Disease Population
Zachary W. Sollie, Kenichi Okamura, Katerina Boucek, Minoo Kavarana, Lloyd M. Felmly

Predictive Limits of Psychological Screening in Adolescent Bariatric Surgery
Cole K, Squeglia LM, Christon L, Castellanos R, Kilpatrick, R, Frederick A, Wedin S, Lesher A, Bryant MK

Prolonged duration of Impella 5.5 does not impact clinical outcomes
Zachary W. Sollie, Tobi Kamoru, Lefan Xuan, Bipul Mainali, Brady Gunn, Jingwen Zhang, Brett A Welch, Lucas Witer, Brian A. Houston, Anthony Carnicelli, Arman Kilic

Weighed Down by Paperwork: Identifying barriers to bariatric surgery evaluation
Stephen Moorhead, Kalina Siehl, Mary Kate Bryant

The posterior approach for removal of all thoracic disc herniations: A single surgeon experience using the partial transpedicular approach with ultrasonic bone aspiration and ultrasound guidance in 108 consecutive patients 
Brian Fabian Saway, MD¹; Parker Dhillon, B.S¹.; Rishishankar Suresh, B.S.¹; Noah Nawabi, B.S.¹; Matheus Pereira, MD¹; Thomas Eckert, B.S.¹; Conor Cunningham, MD¹; Habib Rafka, B.S.¹; Julio Isidor, MD¹; Rahim Abo Kasem, MD¹; Mahdi Sowlat, MD¹; Aimee Weber MD1; Stephen P. Kalhorn, MD¹ 

Comparison of Mechanical, Biologic Handmade Root, and Dry-Stored Biologic Root and Valve Conduits in Bentall Procedures with STS Risk Stratification
Suraj Rao, BS, Andew Fiorentino, MS, Roshan Mathi, MS, Jack Patterson, BS,Andres Villegas Jarmillo, BS, Perwaiz Nawabi, DO, Zachary Sollie, MD, Brett A. Welch MBA,MHA, Marc Katz, MD, Arman Kilic, MD, Stanford Zeigler, MD, Nicolas Pope, MD

Stable but Not Static: Breast Density Changes After Bariatric Surgery
Barber R, Bryant MK, Litts K, Hughes K, Abbott A 

A Novel Approach to Abdominal Wall Reconstruction Utilizing Biologic Mesh for Posterior Sheath Reconstitution with Retrorectus Mesh Repair
Arjun N. Patel, MD; Allison B. Frederick, MD; Jeffery Fallah, MD; Mallorie L. Huff, MD, MPH; Stephen A. Fann, MD, FACS

Macrophage Heterogeneity in Liver Ischemia Reperfusion Injury
Yue Wang, Chen Zhong, Xia Nan, Tori Huey, Hesham El-Shewy, Dirk J. van der Windt, Kristi Helke, Thomas A. Morinelli, and Yuan Zhai

The Potential Use of Artificial Intelligence in Heart Transplantation Decision-Making and Allocation: A Nationwide Survey of Transplant Directors
Zachary W. Sollie, Stephany Kim, Brett Welch, Dee Ford, Tuomas Sandholm, Rema Padman, Arman Kilic

Postoperative Outcomes for Immunosuppressed Hidradenitis Suppurativa Patients undergoing Soft Tissue Reconstruction 
Lauren E.  Cox  BA,  Rachel Maile BS, Fernando A. Herrera MD

MSC-EVs Modulate Inflammation and Immune Cell Infiltration in Acute Pancreatitis
Sara Shoeibi, Wenyu Gou, Tiffany Yeung, Kristi Helke, and Hongjun Wang

Workflow Disruption Cascades in the Operating Room: An Empirical Framework for Modeling High-Risk, High-Disruption Surgical States
Catchpole, Kenneth; Del Gaizo; John; Kanji, Falisha; Anger, Jennifer; Cohen, Tara

En Bloc Simultaneous Pancreas-Kidney Transplant Demonstrates Similar Clinical Outcomes to Traditional Technique 
Daniel P. McGough, MD, David R. Mann, DO, Meredith E. Taylor, MD, Dirk J. van der Windt, MD, Angello Lin, MD

Heart Transplant Outcomes in Re-do Heart Transplants vs Bridge to Heart Transplant with HeartMate 3 Left Ventricular Assist Device in the Modern Era 
Zachary W. Sollie, Tobi Kamoru, Jennie H. Kwon, Brett A. Welch, Chakradhari Inampudi, Arman Kilic

Pulmonary Complications After Thoracic Aortic Versus Non-Aortic Cardiac Surgery
Chi Chi Do-Nguyen, DO, Natalia Roa Vidal, MD, Estefania Rivera, Andres Villegas Jaramillo, Jacqueline Walker, Roshan Mathi, MS, Andrew Wright, MS, Brett Welch, MBA, MHA, Nicolas Pope, MD

AI-Enhanced Automated Processing of Investigational New Drug Applications and Clinical Research Documentation
Chase Walton, MS, Jihad Obeid, MD, Kevin Hughes, MD, and Nancy DeMore, MD

Traumatic Brain Injury in Surfing: A Meta-Analysis of Biomechanical Forces, Protective Measures, and Neurosurgical Implications in an Emerging Olympic Sport 
Caleb Ratz, B.S; Parker Dhillon, B.S; Brian Fabian Saway, MD; Mustafa Al-Batryni MD; Liz Iglesias B.S; Alejandro Spiotta MD; Stephen Kalhorn MD 

Contemporary Evaluation of Hospital Readmissions Following Durable Left Ventricular Assist Device Implant
Zachary W. Sollie, Corey Mealer, Connor McPherson, Jingwen Zhang, Brett A. Welch, Chakradhari Inampudi, Arman Kilic

Description and Outcomes of Patients Listed for Heart Transplant as Status 6 
Natalia Roa-Vidal, MD, Zachary W. Sollie, MD, Brett A. Welch, MBA MHA, Ryan J. Tedford, MD, Brian A. Houston, MD, Chakradhari Inampudi, MD, Lucas Witer, MD, Krishna Bhandari, MD, Arman Kilic, MD

A single surgeon’s experience with postoperative complications following Bilateral Breast Reduction in patients with complex autoimmune and immunodeficient conditions Fhu
Lauren Cox, Tristan Thomson, Justin Taylor, Erika Andrade, Ashish Patel, Milton B. Armstrong 

Impact of Patient Education on Awareness and Adherence to Pancreatic Cancer Screening in BRCA2 Mutation Carriers
Tania Yacu, Savanna Faulcone, Kevin Hughes 

Endovascular Aortic Root Reconstruction in No-Option Patients: Early Lessons in Feasibility and Futility
Bipul Mainali BS, Zachary W. Sollie MD, Stanford Zeigler MD, Matthew Wooster MD, Brett A Welch MBA MHA, Nicolas Pope MD 

Oral Presentation Abstracts

12-Month Outcomes of a Randomized Controlled Trial Comparing the Tolerability and Efficacy of Maribavir vs. Valganciclovir for CMV Prophylaxis in High-Risk Kidney Transplant Recipients
Hannah Culpepper, CCRC; Morgan Overstreet, MSc; Stephanie Schorr, CCRC, MPH; Karim Soliman MD, MSc, PhD; Michael Casey, MD, MS; Teresa “Tracy” Rice, MD; Joseph Scalea, MD; John McGillicuddy, MD; Neha Patel, PharmD, BCPS; David J. Taber, PharmD, MS, BCPS

Extracellular Vesicles from Alpha-1 Antitrypsin Overexpressing Mesenchymal Stromal Cells Improve Function of Islets in a Murine Syngeneic Islet Transplantation Model
Tiffany Yeung, Ahmed Lotfy, Judong Kim, Sara Shoeibi, Wenyu Gou, Hanna Jiang, Alexandra Strange, Yue Wang, Yuan Zhai, Charlie Strange, and Hongjun Wang

Comparison of Outcomes of High-Risk Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting at Centers With Versus Without Advanced Heart Failure Surgery
Jennie H. Kwon, Lucas J. Witer, Nicolas H. Pope, Sanford M. Zeigler, Khaled Shorbaji, Walker M. Blanding, Krishna Bhandari, Arman Kilic

Reduced calcification signaling, abrogated growth, and preserved aortic compliance can be achieved by inhibiting SGK-1 in small AAA
Matthew Anderson, Alexander Rovner, Vinitha Uppalapati, Casey Donahoe, Brooks Winer, Ying Xiong, Rupak Mukherjee, Jeffery Jones, Jean Marie Ruddy

Inhibition of iNOS/COX2 Signaling Enhances T Cell Infiltration and Antigen Presentation in Hepatocellular Carcinoma
Y. Li, R. Wang, D. Geller, D. Wink, T. Billiar, S. Hanish, D. van der Windt, C. Kaltenmeier

Medicaid expansion is associated with improved lung transplant survival
John Keck, Josh Powers, Natalia Roa-Vidal MD, Barry Gibney DO, Kathryn E. Engelhardt MD MS

Artificial Intelligence for Venous Thromboembolism Risk Stratification in Surgical Patients: A Systematic Review
Kavin Shah, BS, College of Medicine, MUSC, Michael Gadelrab, BS, College of Medicine, MUSC, Emily A. Brennan, MLIS, MUSC Libraries, MUSC,Maggie L. Westfal, MD, Department of Surgery, MUSC, Colleen A. Donahue, MD, Department of Surgery, MUSC,John Del Gaizo, PhD, Department of Surgery, MUSC,Arman Kilic, MD, Department of Surgery, MUSC,Thomas Curran, MD, Department of Surgery, MUSC

Healthcare provider perceptions of a HVIP: significant impact on quality of care, reducing provider distress, and need for sustainability
Claire Jacoby, Dulaney Wilson, Christa Green, Jae Arda, Shantone Curry, Chantelle Mitchell, Ada Washington, Ashley Hink

SETI – The Semi-Elective Transplant Initiative: Leveraging Logistics in Transplantation to Improve Access for Previously Declined Organs
Christof Kaltenmeier MD; Steven Hanish, MD; Santosh Nagaraju, MD; Patrick Cawley, MD; Thomas Crawford, PhD; Prabhakar Baliga, MD; Joseph Scalea, MD

Resolvin D2 Inhibits Murine Thoracic Aortic Aneurysm Formation
Chi Chi Do-Nguyen, DO, Ying Xiong, PhD, Jeffrey Jones, PhD, Nicolas Pope, MD