Alan C. Braverman, MD, FACC

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Physician Profile

Research Profile

Education

• BA, Biology with Distinction: University of Missouri-Kansas City (1984)
• MD: University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine (1985)
• Internal Medicine Residency: Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts (1985-1988)
• Fellowship in Cardiovascular Disease: Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts (1988-1990)
• Research Fellow in Medicine: Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts (1989-1990)
• Chief Medical Resident: Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts (1990-1991)

Board Certifications

• Cardiovascular Disease
• Internal Medicine

Recognition

• Distinguished Clinician Award, Washington University School of Medicine
• Benico Barzilai Teaching Award in Cardiology
• US News “Top Doctors in America” US News and World Report and Castle Connelly, Ltc, Top 1% of doctors in USA in specialty,
• Outstanding Teacher Award, Department of Medicine, Barnes-Jewish Hospital, Washington University School of Medicine
• Teacher of the Year Award, Washington University Internal Medicine House staff
• Antoine Marfan Award, The Marfan Foundation
• Hugh D. McCulloch Award, American Heart Association

Clinical Interests

I am the Alumni Endowed Professor in Cardiovascular Diseases and Professor of Medicine in the Cardiovascular Division of the Department of Medicine at Washington University School of Medicine. I specialize in Clinical Cardiology. I have a busy clinical practice and have interests in all aspects of non-invasive cardiology including preventive cardiology, valvular heart disease, heart failure, hyperlipidemia, arrhtyhmias and coronary artery disease . I have a special interest and and international expertise in heritable and genetic aortic and vascular conditions, including Marfan syndrome, Loeys-Dietz syndrome, nonsyndromic heritable thoracic disease, aortic dissection, and bicuspid aortic valve disease/aortopathy.  I also care for individuals with spontaneous coronary artery dissection and women with Turner syndrome and aortopathy.  I serve as Director of the Marfan Syndrome and Aortopathy Center at Washington University School of Medicine and Barnes-Jewish Hospital. I am Director of the Neidorff Aortopathy and Master Clinician in Cardiology Fellowship Program at Washington University School of Medicine. 

I also have a strong interest in teaching our medical students, house officers and fellows.

Research Interests

I am interested in genetic and heritable conditions that lead to predisposition to aortic aneurysm and aortic dissection.  These include Marfan syndrome, Loeys-Dietz syndrome, bicuspid aortic valve disease (including bicuspid aortic valve aortopathy), thoracic aortic aneurysms/dissections, FTAA-D syndromes and aortic dissection. I am Director of the Marfan Syndrome and Aortopathy Center at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine. This clinic has grown into one of the largest multidisciplinary clinics in the country with expertise in caring for people and families with genetic aortic conditions and thoracic aortic aneurysm and related disorders and since 2015, we have prospectively identified over 625 individuals in our center with a recognized gene to explain predisposition for aneurysm disease.  We currently have over 340 individuals with Marfan syndrome collected in our dataset since 2015.

I am serve on the Professional Advisory Board  and the Board of Directors of The Marfan Foundation, on the executive committee of the Montalcino Aortic Consortium, and I Chair the Patients, Families and Clinicians Working Group of the GenTAC Alliance. I am site PI for the International Registry of Acute Aortic Dissection (IRAD), and participate in several other multicenter studies and registries regarding genetic aortic and vascular conditions.

My research interests include BAV aortopathy, pregnancy-related aortic dissection, pregnancy in aortopathy conditions, Marfan syndrome, Loeys-Dietz syndrome, Exercise in Aortopathy conditions, Quality of Life in Genetic Aortopathy/Heritable thoracic aortic disease.

Our aortic team includes two nurse coordinators (Dana Gima, RN and Barb Stehman, RN) and one research data coordinator (Leslie Boyer). I am director of the Neidorff Aortopathy and Master Clinician in Cardiology Fellowship program one of the only programs in the country dedicated to clinical training in aortopathy conditions.