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Paediatric / Adult Congenital: Aortopathy and aortic valve surgery in children and young adults

Tracks
Track 8
Friday, August 7, 2026
1:45 PM - 3:15 PM

Speaker

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Dr Emile Bacha
Director, Congenital and Pediatric Cardiac Surgery Program
Columbia/NewYork-Presbyterian Congenital Heart Center

Aortic valve disease in children and congenital heart disease: How I treat

1:45 PM - 2:05 PM

Biography

Dr. Emile Bacha is a board-certified cardiothoracic surgeon with a subspecialization in pediatric cardiac surgery. From 2000-2004, he was the Surgical Director of the Congenital Heart Center at the University of Chicago. From 2004-2009, he was Senior Associate in Cardiac Surgery at the Children's Hospital Boston and Associate Professor of Surgery at Harvard Medical School, as well as Cardiac Surgery Fellowship Program Director, and Director of the Pediatric Heart Valve Center. Since January 2010, Dr. Bacha has been Director of the Congenital and Pediatric Cardiac Surgery program at NewYork-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital, Columbia University's Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons, and Weill Cornell Medical School. In July 2011, he was appointed Chief of the Division of Cardiac, Thoracic, and Vascular Surgery at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center. In 2026, he became Chair of the Department of Surgery and Surgeon-in-Chief for NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia.
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Mr Matthew Liava'a
Cardiac Surgeon
Sydney Children's Hospital Network

Congenital coronary artery anomalies - when to intervene

2:05 PM - 2:25 PM

Biography

MbChb University of Auckland, Master of Surgery (Congenital cardiac surgery) University of Melbourne. Fellow Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (Cardiothoracic). Surgical training in Melbourne and New York. Currently a Paediatric and Adult Congenital Cardiac Surgeon based at the Westmead Health precinct in Sydney, Australia.
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Prof Nelson Alphonso
Cardiac Surgeon
Queensland Children's Hospital

PEARS and aortic dilatation surgery in paediatric and adult congenital heart disease

2:25 PM - 2:45 PM

Biography

Nelson Alphonso is a cardiac surgeon and the ECMO Co-Lead at the Queensland Children's Hospital. He is a Professor at the University of Queensland and has co-authored over 140 publications in paediatric cardiac surgery. He is also the co-founder and Chief Operating Officer of the Australia New Zealand Congenital Outcomes Registry for Surgery (ANZCORS).
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A/Prof Ben Anderson
Cardiologist
QPCS

Debate: Percutaneous approaches to coarctation of the aorta should be considered across the lifespan: Affirmative

2:45 PM - 3:15 PM

Biography

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Prof Christian Brizard
Director, Consultant Cardiac Surgeon
Royal Children's Hospital

Debate: Percutaneous approaches to coarctation of the aorta should be considered across the lifespan: Negative

2:45 PM - 3:15 PM

Biography

Professor Christian Brizard has acquired international leadership as a Cardio-thoracic Surgeon in the field of Paediatric Cardiac Surgery. He is the Director of the Cardiac Surgery Department at the Royal Children’s Hospital, the largest paediatric cardiac centre in Australia. Dr Brizard has extensive experience in cardiopulmonary transplantation, circulatory supports (VAD & ECMO) and reconstructive valve surgery.
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Dr Supreet Marathe
Congenital Cardiothoracic Surgeon
Queensland Children's Hospital

Chairperson

Biography

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Assoc Prof Dominica Zentner
Cardiologist
Royal Melbourne Hospital

Chairperson

Biography

A/Prof Dominica Zentner is an adult cardiologist at the Royal Melbourne Hospital. She is the lead of the multidisciplinary Cardiac Pregnancy Clinic which she co-founded in 2013.
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