Renowned cardiothoracic surgeon Omar Lattouf, MD, Ph.D., FACC, FACS, has joined Tanner Heart Care, Tanner Heart & Vascular Specialists and the medical staff of Tanner Health System, where he will perform open-heart and chest surgery when the new program launches in January 2023.

Dr. Lattouf is board-certified by the American Board of Thoracic Surgery, a national organization dedicated to promoting effective, safe and ethical thoracic surgical practice by maintaining high standards for education, training and knowledge through examination, certification and maintenance of certification.

Throughout his career, Dr. Lattouf has practiced in several states across the U.S., achieving highly respected five-star ratings in New York and Georgia and among many of the healthcare industry’s leading physician review websites, including ShareCare.com, FindTopDoc.com, ZocDoc.com and Healthgrades.com.

He earned his medical degree from Emory University School of Medicine in Atlanta, completing his internship at Grady Hospital, a residency in general surgery at Emory University Hospital and a residency in cardiothoracic surgery and cardiac transplantation at Emory University affiliated hospitals.

Dr. Lattouf has spent more than three decades performing open-heart surgery and mentoring countless medical students, residents and fellows at Emory Healthcare. He remains on staff at Emory University School of Medicine as a professor of cardiothoracic surgery, where he is responsible for the online learning program for the university’s cardiothoracic surgery residents.

As an active faculty member, Dr. Lattouf has been engaged in clinical cardiac surgery in on-pump, off-pump coronary artery bypass procedures, major aortic surgery, catheter-based treatment of cardiac problems, minimally-invasive treatment of atrial fibrillation, treatment of acute and chronic pulmonary emboli (clots in lungs), extraction of tumors of the heart, repair and replacement of heart valves and laboratory research.

He has also completed development work in genetic engineering and stimulated angiogenesis and surgical device development, for which he has received several patents.

Dr. Lattouf was instrumental in helping implant Georgia’s first Abiomed Biventricular assist system in 1986 to support the failing heart of a patient suffering from cardiotomy shock.

He was also a part of the 1988 Emory Heart and Vascular team that performed Georgia’s first domino heart transplant, and he performed the world’s first endoscopic left ventricular resynchronization in 2001.

In 2018, Dr. Lattouf was awarded the Hidden Jewel Teaching Award, and in 2019, he received Emory School of Medicine’s prestigious Award of Honor.

Originally from Amman, Jordan, Dr. Lattouf maintains active local, national and international educational, mentoring and speaking engagements.

Though the road to his success as a cardiothoracic surgeon wasn’t easy, he has had a great team to cheer him on personally and professionally: his wife, Lina, whom he met during his surgical residency, and children Zeena, Amal and Rashid.

In early 2020, Dr. Lattouf and his wife left Atlanta and moved to New York City for the birth of their first grandchildren — almost immediately, the pandemic and shutdown began.

While there, he served as professor of cardiovascular surgery at Mount Sinai Morningside Hospital in New York, New York. Those two years became a surreal experience, and the couple is happy to be back in Georgia.

“I didn’t know what to expect when an Emory colleague suggested I accept an invitation to visit Tanner Health System in Carrollton,” said Dr. Lattouf. “I was pleasantly surprised to find a beautiful and well-appointed heart center with top-notch interventional and general cardiologists, a great support staff and world-class operating suites being built specifically for the new open-heart surgery program.”

Dr. Lattouf is excited about using the soon-to-be-completed suites and creating history for Tanner by performing the first coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG).

“I am honored to join an incredible cardiovascular team and help further build an incredible cardiovascular surgery program at Tanner,” said Dr. Lattouf. “This small health system took a huge first step by establishing an angioplasty and stenting program in Carrollton, then building the Tanner Heart and Vascular Center at Tanner Medical Center/Carrollton in 2008. Since then, Tanner has added interventional procedures such as angioplasty and stenting and a heart center in Villa Rica. Soon, we will set another major milestone.”

Shazib Khawaja, MD, FACC, FSCAI, a board-certified interventional cardiologist with Tanner Heart & Vascular Specialists and chair of heart and vascular services at Tanner Health System, said he and his colleagues are eager to welcome Dr. Lattouf to the medical staff.

“Dr. Lattouf is exactly the caliber of physician to get our open-heart surgery program off to a successful start,” said Dr. Khawaja. “His experience and expertise are going to be a great comfort to our patients and their loved ones as they face what is often a very frightening and complex procedure. That he would choose to take such an important position at Tanner says volumes about his faith in our organization and our heart care program.”

Dr. Lattouf and his wife will move to Carrollton before the first CABG surgery takes place.

“My wife and I fell in love with Carrollton. It’s a beautiful, small city that is still fairly close to Atlanta and is very welcoming,” said Dr. Lattouf. “We look forward to meeting more residents of Carrollton and west Georgia — not just as patients, but as neighbors as we experience all that the area has to offer.”

Dr. Lattouf has already been meeting and engaging with Tanner’s clinical and non-clinical staff, helping guide the procedures and requirements necessary to ensure the open-heart surgery program gets off to a great start.

To learn more about CABG surgery and Tanner Heart Care, visit TannerHeartCare.org. And to learn more about Tanner Heart & Vascular Specialists— with offices in Carrollton, Villa Rica, Bremen and Wedowee — visit HeartandVascularSpecialists.org.