Mark Talamini

Last updated
Mark A. Talamini
Occupation(s)Surgeon, professor
Employer(s) Stony Brook University, Northwell Health
Known forMinimally invasive gastrointestinal surgery
TitleChairman of Surgery, Stony Brook University
Chief of Surgical Services, Stony Brook Medicine

Mark A. Talamini is an American surgeon specializing in gastrointestinal surgery and minimally invasive surgical techniques. He serves as chairman of the Department of Surgery at Stony Brook University School of Medicine and editor-in-chief of Surgical Endoscopy , the official journal of the Society of American Gastrointestinal and Endoscopic Surgeons (SAGES).

Contents

Biography

Talamini's interest in medicine emerged during childhood. His mother encouraged him to read books about human anatomy and physiology while in elementary school, while his father, an electronics engineer, cultivated his interest in science and technology. During high school, Talamini explored other career paths until an English teacher challenged him to apply his scientific aptitude toward helping others, suggesting he pursue medicine. [1]

He completed his undergraduate education, medical school, and residency training at Johns Hopkins University, where he subsequently joined the faculty. [2] He holds board certification from the American Board of Surgery and the Critical Care Board. [3]

Clinical work and research

Talamini's clinical practice centers on inflammatory bowel diseases such as Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis, emphasizing laparoscopic and robotic-assisted surgical approaches. [1] He has worked with telemedicine applications, including remote guidance of military physicians performing procedures aboard ships. [1]

Talamini has contributed to research on infectious complications in immunocompromised surgical patients. He co-authored a study documenting an atypical case of fungal gallbladder infection in an AIDS patient, providing histological and electron microscopic evidence of tissue invasion by Candida albicans . The research demonstrated how fungal pathogens can cause severe inflammatory conditions in immunosuppressed individuals, manifesting as xanthogranulomatous cholecystitis—a destructive form of gallbladder inflammation often indistinguishable from malignancy on imaging. [4]

While chairman of the Department of Surgery at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, Talamini performed the first natural-orifice appendectomy in the United States alongside Dr. Santiago Horgan. The procedure involved removing the patient's appendix transorally, representing an early application of natural-orifice transluminal endoscopic surgery. Talamini noted that the operation required three hours—significantly longer than a standard 20-minute laparoscopic appendectomy—due to additional safety precautions, including containment of diseased tissue before removal to prevent contamination. He cautioned that substantial evaluation would be needed to determine whether this approach offered clinical advantages over established methods. [5]

Career

Talamini directed the minimally invasive surgery program at Johns Hopkins Hospital from 1992 to 2004. [2] He subsequently became chairman of the Department of Surgery at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine before joining Stony Brook in 2015. [1]

At Stony Brook, he holds multiple appointments including chairman of the Department of Surgery, chief of surgical services, and founding director of the Stony Brook Medical Innovation Institute, which develops and evaluates novel techniques and devices for surgical, medical, and radiological procedures. [1]

Talamini served as president of SAGES from 2008 to 2009. [6] He also serves as co-director of Stony Brook's Surgical Outcomes Analysis Research (SOAR) Collaborative, established in 2014. [7]

He chaired the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's Medical Devices Advisory Committee Gastroenterology and Urology Devices Panel during meetings held on 10 May 2012 [8] , 15 May 2015 [9] , and 26 February 2016 [10] . In this capacity, he facilitated panel proceedings, directed technical discussions, and ensured compliance with FDA procedural and ethical standards.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Front and Center: Mark A. Talamini, MD". www.stonybrookmedicine.edu. Retrieved 2025-07-12.
  2. 1 2 "Post-Op with Dr. Mark Talamini" (PDF). Stony Brook Medicine. Stony Brook Medicine, Department of Surgery. Retrieved 2025-07-19.
  3. ↑ "Mark A Talamini". ieeexplore.ieee.org. Retrieved 2025-07-22.
  4. ↑ Brown, Henry; Talamini, Mark; Westra, William H. (1996). "Xanthogranulomatous Cholecystitis Due to Invasive Candida albicans in a Patient with AIDS". Clinical Infectious Diseases. 22 (1): 186–187. ISSN   1058-4838.
  5. ↑ "'Natural-Orifice' Surgery". Newsweek. 2008-04-05. Retrieved 2025-10-26.
  6. ↑ "SAGES Past Presidents". SAGES. Retrieved 2025-07-12.
  7. ↑ "Surgical Outcomes Analysis Research (SOAR) Collaborative". www.stonybrookmedicine.edu. Retrieved 2025-07-22.
  8. ↑ "Wayback Machine" (PDF). www.fda.gov. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-11. Retrieved 2025-10-26.
  9. ↑ "Wayback Machine" (PDF). www.fda.gov. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-10-23. Retrieved 2025-10-26.
  10. ↑ "Wayback Machine" (PDF). www.fda.gov. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-08-08. Retrieved 2025-10-26.
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