David Kalfa
Pediatric cardiac surgeon-scientist.
He joined the institute in 2026.
He currently serves as chief of Cardiovascular Surgery and co-director of the Nicklaus Children’s Heart Institute , Miami, USA, and he is Professor of Surgical Sciences and Pediatrics and Biomedical Engineering at the Florida International University Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine.
He is the director of the MIH funded pediatric heart valve laboratory.
Dr Kalfa completed postdoctoral training in pediatric cardiac surgery at Marie Lannelongue Hospital, Paris Sud University, in France. He served as the Florence Irving Associate Professor of Surgery at Columbia University Irving Medical Center in New York City and site director of Pediatric Cardiac Surgery at NewYork-Presbyterian – Cornell University until 2025. Dr. Kalfa is also a faculty member of the FIU Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine as a professor in the Department of Pediatrics and Department of Surgical Sciences.
An internationally recognized expert in pediatric and congenital cardiac surgery, Dr. Kalfa is an expert in complex neonatal heart procedures, advanced pediatric valve repair, adult congenital heart procedures and heart/valve transplants. He is a pioneer in developing and utilizing cutting-edge technologies, heart valve transplantation and xenotransplantation , innovative growth-accommodating cardiovascular devices and AI based technologies along with minimally invasive hybrid and robotic techniques to enhance outcomes in children and adults born with a congenital heart disease.
