Welcome Letter
Welcome to the Albany Medical Center Cardiovascular Fellowship!
Albany Medical College was founded in 1839 and since that time boasts a rich history in medical education. Our Cardiovascular Fellowship Program has been in place for over 50 years and has produced many successful academic and clinical cardiologists. I am proud to tell you that I, and many of my colleagues are graduates of this program!
We are collectively committed to the education of our fellows, house staff, and medical students. As an applicant, you have many fellowship programs to consider.
Our goal is to provide you with a superior training experience while also giving mentorship and support as needed. We recognize that during the next three years, life will throw you certain challenges, and we are here for you! I can promise that our fellows have a remarkable sense of camaraderie, which I feel only enhances the training program and allows you to have an experience that will be tremendously rewarding. Our fellows are the heart of our Division of Cardiology and their education and experience coupled with excellent patient care is our priority. We look forward to meeting you!
Sulagna "Suzie" Mookherjee, MD, FACC
Director, Cardiovascular Disease Fellowship Program
About Albany Medical Center
Albany Medical Center is a 766-bed tertiary referral center serving the greater Albany area. With referrals and transfers from over a 100-mile radius, including Western New England, southern Vermont, and up to the Canadian border, there is a wide-spectrum of cardiovascular disease. The hospital boasts multiple dedicated cardiovascular telemetry floors, in addition to a large 18-bed dedicated CCU and 18-bed cardiovascular surgery ICU (CPS). Active heart failure, electrophysiology, interventional cardiology and structural heart disease, and cardiothoracic surgery programs are available at Albany Medical Center.
Albany Medical Center is the cornerstone of the Albany Med Health System, the largest and only regionally governed, not-for-profit health system in northeastern New York and western New England. We offer our communities the most medical specialties.
VA Training
The Stratton Veteran's Administration Hospital is a 156-bed acute and chronic care facility located directly across the street. It’s diverse faculty staffs the cardiology division, including interventional cardiology. Fellows spend two months of each year at the VA Hospital and experience unique advanced pathology in addition to standard cardiac pathology often seen at VA centers.
Research
A minimum of four weeks per year of dedicated research elective time is given to each fellow yearly to pursue either clinical research or quality improvement projects. All fellows are expected to complete their own research/scholarly project with attending guidance and mentorship by the end of fellowship and submit their scholarly work as both an abstract and manuscript to regional or national conferences and peer reviewed journals respectively. We have access to national AHA GWTG Heart Failure and Mission Lifeline STEMI databases.
Albany Medical Center’s Faculty in the Division of Cardiology is proud to participate in research and scholarly activity in the cardiovascular clinical sciences alongside our fellows, residents and students to learn and advance the field for improved treatments in cardiovascular care for our patients. Fellow research is critical to understanding diseases and improving therapies in cardiovascular medicine and fellows are mentored throughout their three years with our faculty to design and undertake a fellows scholarly project based on their interests. Clinical research studies led by fellows with close faculty mentorship strive to uncover answers needed and focus on the care of the patient and to seek to improve quality of life as well as the patient experience.
Hollman T, Torosoff M “A Leak Before the Beat: Diastolic Atrioventricular Regurgitation in Conduction Disease” CASE Cardiovascular Imaging Case Reports, accepted 6/3/2026.
Kirkpatrick P, Dharia S, Pillai M, Lyubarova R, Torosoff M, Chopra A. Simple Echocardiographic “Pleural Effusion Due to Heart Failure Rule Out” Algorithm. ASE Annual Scientific Session, June 26-28, 2026.
Daghstani O, Jensen E, Thomas T, Kumar E, Spiddle P, Torosoff M Appropriate Use Criteria and Actionable Findings on Inpatient Transthoracic Echocardiography ASE Annual Scientific Session, June 26-28, 2026
Burmistrova M, Gulko D, Beshay R, Mannikeri S, Torosoff M Echocardiographic Parameters Affecting Baroreceptor Dysfunction In Patients With Congestive Heart Failure. ASE Annual Scientific Session, June 26-28, 2026
Nozadze N, Zaref S, Fischer K, Marino R, Conklin J, Torosoff M Echocardiographic Left Atrial Volume Assessment Utilizing M-Mode Measurements: A Feasibility Study ASE Annual Scientific Session, June 26-28, 2026
Ternacle J, Hahn RT, Silva I, Alperi A, Giuliani C, Zanuttini A, Théron A, Dahou A, Cristell N, Woods T, Guzzetti E, Turgeon PY, Bernier M, Mahjoub H, Paquin A, Skaf S, Beaudoin J, Kodali SK, Russo M, Kapadia SR, Malaisrie SC, Cohen DJ, Leipsic J, Blanke P, Williams MR, McCabe JM, Brown DL, Babaliaros V, Goldman S, Szeto WY, Généreux P, Pershad A, Nazif TM, Zhang Y, Gunnarsson M, Webb JG, Makkar RR, Thourani VH, Mack MJ, Leon MB, Pibarot P; PARTNER 3 Investigators. Seven-Year Valve Durability With Transcatheter or Surgical Aortic Valve Replacement: An Ad Hoc Analysis of the PARTNER 3 Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Cardiol. 2026 Jun 24:e262299. doi: 10.1001/jamacardio.2026.2299. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 42340728; PMCID: PMC13294825.
Schulman-Marcus J. The Paradox of Choice in Imaging Cardiac Masses. JACC Case Rep. 2026 May 6;31(18):107521. doi: 10.1016/j.jaccas.2026.107521. PMID: 42095592; PMCID: PMC13154050.
Lyubarova R, Malik S, Rao R, Patel KK, Le DE, Wenger NK, Volgman A, Puckett C. Correction: Heart Disease in Older Women: Unique Challenges in Diagnosis and Management. Curr Cardiol Rep. 2026 Jun 8;28(1):60. doi: 10.1007/s11886-026-02381-5. Erratum for: Curr Cardiol Rep. 2026 May 9;28(1):53. doi: 10.1007/s11886-026-02376-2. PMID: 42257765.
Lyubarova R, Malik S, Rao R, Patel KK, Le DE, Wenger NK, Volgman A, Puckett C. Heart Disease in Older Women: Unique Challenges in Diagnosis and Management. Curr Cardiol Rep. 2026 May 9;28(1):53. doi: 10.1007/s11886-026-02376-2. Erratum in: Curr Cardiol Rep. 2026 Jun 8;28(1):60. doi: 10.1007/s11886-026-02381-5. PMID: 42103980.
Mustafa M, White C, Harris E, Tawfellos G, Oredegbe AA, Torosoff M. Electrocardiographic abnormalities attributable to infiltrative cardiomyopathies: review and prevalence in patients with congestive heart failure. Clin Res Cardiol. 2026 May;115(5):700-713. doi: 10.1007/s00392-024-02568-2. Epub 2024 Oct 28. PMID: 39466445.
Jensen E, Krugel C, Ghazal M, Chin J, Torosoff M. 26-CCC-17235-ACC LATE BLOOMERS NOT WELCOME: DELAYED POLYSEROSITIS WITH TAMPONADE AFTER ATRIAL FIBRILLATION RF ABLATION. April 2026. Journal of the American College of Cardiology 87(13):A1321. DOI: 10.1016/j.jacc.2026.02.3271.
Andrade-Bucknor S, Rodriguez BPR, Ma C, Lyubarova R, Kondapalli L. Imaging in Cardio-Oncology: Role of Novel Echo Parameters in Breast Cancer and Gynecologic Malignancies. Curr Cardiol Rep. 2026 Apr 23;28(1):52. doi: 10.1007/s11886-026-02373-5. PMID: 42024262.
Sah A, Derakhshesh MI, Bozell HD, Wasim M, Javed F, Kirkpatrick P, Fabian EJ, Shkolnik B, Feustel PJ, Hu K, Judson MA, Lyubarova R, Torosoff M, Chopra A. Diagnostic accuracy of echocardiography in identifying heart failure related pleural effusions. Respir Med. 2026 Feb;252:108627. doi: 10.1016/j.rmed.2025.108627. Epub 2025 Dec 30. PMID: 41478579.
Schulman-Marcus J. Editorial commentary: The Uphill Battle to improve diet in cardiovascular health. Trends Cardiovasc Med. 2026 Feb;36(2):91-92. doi: 10.1016/j.tcm.2025.09.001. Epub 2025 Sep 5. PMID: 40915430.
Leon MB, Mack MJ, Pibarot P, Hahn RT, Thourani VH, Kodali SH, Généreux P, Kapadia SR, Cohen DJ, Pocock SJ, Zhang Y, Szerlip M, Ternacle J, Malaisrie SC, Herrmann HC, Szeto WY, Russo MJ, Babaliaros V, Nazif T, Webb JG, Makkar RR; PARTNER 3 Investigators. Transcatheter or Surgical Aortic-Valve Replacement in Low-Risk Patients at 7 Years. N Engl J Med. 2026 Feb 19;394(8):773-783. doi: 10.1056/NEJMoa2509766. Epub 2025 Oct 27. PMID: 41144631.
Zhang DT, Dhaliwal S, Tajeshwar N, Stevens GA, Al-Sadawi M, Tao M. Sex-related differences in long-term mortality after coronary artery bypass graft surgery: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Int J Cardiol Cardiovasc Risk Prev. 2026 Feb 26;29:200611. doi: 10.1016/j.ijcrp.2026.200611. PMID: 41800379; PMCID: PMC12961219.
Horowitz E, Kaminsky A, Sidhu M, Fay M, Geis G, D'Agostino L, Bachman W, Barry S, Ostrov BE. Feasibility and impact of emotional intelligence training in preclinical medical education. BMC Med Educ. 2026 Jan 14;26(1):204. doi: 10.1186/s12909-026-08581-5. PMID: 41535874; PMCID: PMC12874979.
Ghazal M, Shaikh S, Daniel Z, Daghstani O, Musumeci J, Gajjala A, Beegle SH, Torosoff M. Acute left ventricular ejection fraction changes in Sepsis: Clinical predictors, management, and hospital outcomes. Heart Lung. 2026 Jan-Feb;75:225-230. doi: 10.1016/j.hrtlng.2025.10.017. Epub 2025 Oct 23. PMID: 41135214.
2025:
Ghazal M, Shaikh S, Daniel Z, Daghstani O, Musumeci J, Gajjala A, Beegle SH, Torosoff M. Acute left ventricular ejection fraction changes in Sepsis: Clinical predictors, management, and hospital outcomes. Heart Lung. 2026 Jan-Feb;75:225-230. doi: 10.1016/j.hrtlng.2025.10.017. Epub 2025 Oct 23. PMID: 41135214.
Thermutis, T. Taniya, O. Daghstani, H. Krishnakumar, M. Torosoff. Temporal Changes in Atrial Fibrillation and Atrial Flutter Prevalence in Patients with ESKD Following Arteriovenous Fistula Placement: TH-PO0330. Journal of the American Society of Nephrology. 36. 10.1681/ASN.2025ewfb8m3a; October 2025.
Ghazal, R. Alrashdan, O. Daghstani, C. Nakai, M. El-Hajjar. A Case of Coronary and Cerebral Protection for Valve-in-Valve Procedure in a Patient with Hypo-Attenuated Leaflet Thickening; Chest 168(4):A687. DOI:10.1016/j.chest.2025.07.411; October 2025.
Ehtesham, D. Long, O. Daghstani, R. Lyubarova. What the Mind Does Not Know, The Eyes Cannot See: Tuberculosis Pericarditis Posing a Diagnostic Challenge in the Developed World. Chest 168(4):A1732-A1733; DOI:10.1016/j.chest.2025.07.986; October 2025.
Fordham M, Lyubarova R, Sidhu M. The Beta-Blocker Dilemma: Revisiting Their Role in Cardiovascular Disease. Cardiovasc Drugs Ther. 2025 Oct;39(5):941-943. doi: 10.1007/s10557-025-07678-1. Epub 2025 Feb 14. Erratum in: Cardiovasc Drugs Ther. 2025 Oct;39(5):1231. doi: 10.1007/s10557-025-07755-5. PMID: 39951206.
Chung J, Yang K, Nozadze N, Kukarni A, Ashwath M, Bui Q, Co-Vu J, Jone PN, Lyubarova R, Andrade-Bucknor S. Transcatheter Structural Heart Interventions in Women. Curr Cardiol Rep. 2025 Jul 23;27(1):118. doi: 10.1007/s11886-025-02254-3. PMID: 40699250.
John Tremblay, Arjun Wali, John Busque, Matthew Derakhshesh, Samuel Kim, Mikhail Torosoff, MD, Anthony Nappi, MD. Hospital Outcomes and Morbidities in Transapical vs. Other Non-Transfemboral Approaches in TAVR Recipients. Journal of the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography & Interventions 4 (2025) 103357.
Thomas T, Daghstani O, Djanie T, Derakhshesh M, Krishnakumar H, Torosoff M. Effects of Arteriovenous Fistula Placement and Long-Term Hemodialysis on Valvular Heart Disease. JACC. 2025 Apr, 85 (12_Supplement) 2264. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0735-1097(25)02748-2.
Mohamad Ghazal, Shayhaan Shaikh, Zachary Daniel, Omar Daghstani, John Musumeci, Abhinay Gajjala, Mikhail Torosoff. Predictors of Left Ventricular Ejection Fraction Response to Septic Shock in Patients with Heart Failure with Reduced Ejection Fraction. ACC. 2025 Apr, 85 (12_Supplement) 1324.https://doi.org/10.1016/S0735-1097(25)01808-X.
Courtney Falconer, Frances Cavanaugh, Halee Calabrese, Omar Daghstani, Kyle Miller, Mohamad Ghazal, Mikhail Torosoff. Optimization of Cardiac Rehab Referrals in Acute Coronary Syndrome Patients Utilizing Cardiac Rehabilitation Coordination Teams. JACC. 2025 Apr, 85 (12_Supplement) 2515. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0735-1097(25)02999-7.
John Tremblay, Arjun Wali, John Busque, Matthew Derakhshesh, Samuel Kim, Mikhail Torosoff, Anthony Nappi. E-96 | Hospital Outcomes and Morbidities in Transapical vs. Other Non-Transfemoral Approaches in TAVR Recipients, Journal of the Society for Cardiovascular Angiography & Interventions, Volume 4, Issue 5, Supplement, 2025, 103357, ISSN 2772-9303, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jscai.2025.103357.
Fordham M, Lyubarova R, Sidhu M. The Beta-Blocker Dilemma: Revisiting Their Role in Cardiovascular Disease. Cardiovasc Drugs Ther. 2025 Feb 14. doi: 10.1007/s10557-025-07678-1. Epub ahead of print. Erratum in: Cardiovasc Drugs Ther. 2025 Jul 28. doi: 10.1007/s10557-025-07755-5. PMID: 39951206.
Daghstani, Omar, Derakhshesh, Matthew, Ghazal, Mohamad, Lyubarova, Radmila. Navigating Aspirin Allergy with Rapid Desensitization In A Patient Requiring Urgent Coronary Intervention. 150 10.1161/circ.150.suppl_1.4123480 Circulation; 2024/11/12.
Fordham Matthew, Ghazal Mohamad, Derakhshesh Matthew, Daghstani Omar, Nappi Anthony, Lyubarova Radmila, Belov, Dmitri. Stealing from the Heart: A Case of Angina due to Coronary-Bronchial Artery Fistula after Pulmonary Embolism. Circulation. 150. 10.1161/circ.150.suppl_1.4144097; November 2024.
Mohamad Ghazal, Abhinay Gajjala, Omar Daghstani, Issam Halasa, Mikhail Torosoff. Chronic Thrombo-Embolic Pulmonary Hypertension Presenting with Prominent Chest Pulsations and Parasternal Heave Due to Pulmonary Artery Dilation. CHEST, Vol. 166, Issue 4, Supplement A5731–A5732, Published in issue: October 2024.
Mustafa M, White C, Harris E, Tawfellos G, Oredegbe AA, Torosoff M. Electrocardiographic abnormalities attributable to infiltrative cardiomyopathies: review and prevalence in patients with congestive heart failure. Clin Res Cardiol. 2024 Oct 28. doi: 10.1007/s00392-024-02568-2. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 39466445.
Mohamad Ghazal, Abhinay Gajjala, Omar Daghstani, Issam Halasa, Mikhail Torosoff. Chronic Thrombo-Embolic Pulmonary Hypertension Presenting with Prominent Chest Pulsations and Parasternal Heave Due to Pulmonary Artery Dilation. CHEST, Vol. 166, Issue 4, Supplement A5731–A5732, Published in issue: October 2024.
Tarar, N, Babar, N, Saba, S. Case of Concurrent Anomalous Right Coronary Artery and Partial Pericardial Agenesis in a Patient Presenting with Miled Exertional Dyspnea. JACC. 2024 Apr, 83 (13_Supplement) 4300. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0735-1097(24)06290-9
Olsen, P, Schulman-Marcus, J. Management of Right Atrial Mass in Pregnancy. JACC. 2024 Apr, 83 (13_Supplement) 4503. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0735-1097(24)06493-3.
Oredegbe, Al-Ameen & Yoo, Jeanwoo & Miller, Kyle & Waqar, Hafiza & Tremblay, John & Kimball, Zachary & Tawfellos, George & Adelstein, Evan & Torosoff, Mikhail. (2024). Left Atrial Myopathy As Assessed On Echocardiography Is Predictive Of Atrial Fibrillation Recurrence After Coronary Artery Bypass Surgery. Journal of Cardiac Failure. 30. 172. 10.1016/j.cardfail.2023.10.134.
Phillip Olsen, Joshua Schulman-Marcus. Management of Right Atrial Mass in Pregnancy. JACC, 2024 Apr, Vol. 83, Issue No. 13_Supplement, pp 4503-4503.
Matthew Fordham, Nosheen Reza, et. al. Real World Experience of Glucagon-Like Peptide 1 Receptor Agonists in Patients with Hypertrophic Cardiomyopahy. JACC, 2024 Apr, Vol. 83, Issue No. 13_Supplement, pp 561-561.
Gier C, Gilchrist I, Fordham M, Riordan L, Milchan E, Patel N, Mohedi A, Choudhury S, Kits T, Cohen R, Doughtery J, Reilly JP, Kalogeropoulos A, Rahman T, Chen O. The role of structured inpatient lipid protocols in optimizing non-statin lipid lowering therapy: a review and single-center experience. Front Cardiovasc Med. 2024 Jan 25;11:1284562. doi: 10.3389/fcvm.2024.1284562. PMID: 38333418; PMCID: PMC10851935.
Joseph T. Doyle, MD, Endowed Prize in Cardiology
Joseph T. Doyle, MD, Endowed Prize in Cardiology: Omar Daghstani, MBBS
Dr. Joseph T. Doyle graduated from Harvard College (1935) and Harvard Medical School (1943). He completed his internship at Boston City Hospital and then entered the United States Army Medical Corps. Following the war, he returned to Boston to complete his training in medicine, serving as chief resident at Boston City Hospital from 1948-1949. He completed his postgraduate training as the Whitehead fellow in physiology from 1949-1950 at Emory University in Atlanta, Ga. He later had teaching appointments at Emory and Duke University. Dr. Doyle was recruited to Albany in 1952 to create and direct the Cardiovascular Health Center (CHC). The CHC was one of the pivotal cardiovascular epidemiology projects that led to much of our current understanding of cardiovascular disease. Dr. Doyle was the dean of Albany's cardiology community, having served on the Albany Medical College faculty since 1952 and achieving the rank of full professor in 1961. From 1960 through 1984, he served as head of the division of cardiology for the college and Albany Medical Center.
Dr. Doyle served as president of the Medical Society of Albany County, as president of the Heart Association of Eastern New York, as a member of the cardiac advisory committee of the New York State Health Department and the committees on cardiovascular disease and medical school relationships for the Medical Society of the State of New York. He served as the committee chair of the committee on conduct of the Office of Professional Medical Conduct. He was a former governor of Upstate New York for the American College of Cardiology.
He served as chair of the American Heart Association's council on epidemiology and as a member of the committee on smoking. He was a consultant to the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute, and the National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Md. Dr. Doyle was the author of over 130 publications, many of the products of his research as the director of the CHC. His landmark articles in the New Eng1and Journal of Medicine in 1962 and in the Journal of the American Medical Association in 1964 first alerted the world to the association between cigarette smoking and coronary heart disease. His publications using the combined data from the CHC and Framingham Heart studies resulted in our knowledge of the risk factors associated with sudden cardiac death, of the risk associated with a low HDL level, and of the perceived health benefits of moderate alcohol consumption on raising HDL levels. For 55 years, Dr. Doyle was a tireless servant to the people of the Capital Region, the State of New York, the nation, and, through his landmark research, the world.
Theodore L. Biddle, MD, Endowed Prize in Cardiology
Theodore L. Biddle, MD, Endowed Prize in Cardiology: Matthew Fordham, MD
Dr. Theodore L. Biddle was born in Pittsburgh. He graduated from Shady Side Academy in Pittsburgh, Bucknell University in Lewisburg, Pa., and Temple Medical School in Philadelphia. Following graduation from medical school, he completed an internship at Conemaugh Valley Memorial Hospital in Johnstown, Pa. He was then commissioned in the U.S. Navy as a lieutenant and served as a medical officer in Vietnam and Japan. After military service, he completed three years of residency training in internal medicine at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital, Philadelphia, and a two-year fellowship in cardiology at the University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, N.Y. where he continued on as a member of the faculty in the Division of Cardiology and Director of the Coronary Care Unit. He left Rochester in 1984 to accept appointments at Albany Medical Center and the Albany College of Medicine as professor of medicine and head of the Division of Cardiology succeeding Dr. Joseph T. Doyle.
Under Dr. Biddle’s leadership, the cardiology fellowships of the Albany Veteran’s Hospital and Albany Medical Center were combined. He was instrumental in expanding the full-time faculty and the clinical capabilities of the division in interventional cardiology, electrophysiology, and non-invasive testing. Dr. Biddle will be most remembered for his devotion to detailed physical examination and bedside teaching and especially for his caring, humanistic and sensitive approach to medicine and patient advocacy. Dr. Biddle retired in 2002 and was awarded the distinguished faculty title of Emeritus Professor of Medicine prior to his untimely death in 2003.
Past Recipient
Theodore L. Biddle, MD, Endowed Prize in Cardiology: Casey White, MD
Joseph T. Doyle, MD, Endowed Prize in Cardiology: Casey White, MD
