Rao book marks publishing milestone
Not many people can say they are the editor of a book. Even fewer can say they are still editing at the age of 81.
P. Syamasundar Rao, MD, professor of pediatrics and medicine and emeritus chief of pediatric cardiology, received word that his latest book, “Congenital Heart Defects: Recent Advances” was published on his 81st birthday, Sept. 21, 2022, by IntechOpen. The publication marked IntechOpen’s 6,000th book.
This latest volume addresses the last 50 years of developments in the diagnosis and treatment of congenital heart defects, including the role of echocardiography, echo techniques, and cardiac screenings. It also reviews various types of heart defects, including ventricular septal defect, atrioventricular septal defect, hypoplastic left heart syndrome, and Ebstein’s anomaly of the tricuspid valve.
A pioneer in interventional pediatric cardiology, his contributions span the decades: catheterization and angiography in the 1970s, balloon angioplasty/valvuloplasty in the 1980s, transcatheter catheter closure of cardiac defects in the 1990s, new pediatric cardiology/pediatric cardiovascular surgery program in the 2000s, and educational programs and teaching material for physicians in the 2010s.
Prior to joining the McGovern Medical School faculty in 2002 as the director of the Division of Pediatric Cardiology, Rao served on the faculty of the Medical College of Georgia; the King Faisal Specialist Hospital & Research Center, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia; the University of Wisconsin, Madison; and St. Louis University in Missouri.
He is a graduate of Andhra Medical College, Andhra University, Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, India. Following completion of pediatric training in India and the United States, he received training in pediatric cardiology at Stanford University, Case-Western Reserve University and University of California at Los Angeles.
Rao is a prolific author – having previously published four books during the COVID-19 pandemic.