Dominic J.R. Abrams, MD, MRCP
Co-Director, Cardiovascular Genetics Center; Senior Associate Cardiologist, Department of Cardiology
Associate Professor of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School
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Dominic J.R. Abrams, MD, MRCP
Co-Director, Cardiovascular Genetics Center; Senior Associate Cardiologist, Department of Cardiology
Associate Professor of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School
Medical Services
Languages
English
Education
Undergraduate School
St. Mary's Hospital and The Royal Postgraduate Medical Schools
1991
London
England, United Kingdom
Medical School
St. Mary's Hospital/Imperial College
1994
London
England, United Kingdom
Internship
St. Mary's Hospital
1995
London
England, United Kingdom
Residency
Pediatrics
St. Mary’s, St. Thomas’, Northwick Park, Royal Brompton & Harefield Hospitals
1999
London
England, United Kingdom
Fellowship
Cardiac Electrophysiology
Royal Brompton & Harefield, St. Bartholomew’s and The Heart/University College Hospitals
2007
London
England, United Kingdom
Media
Caregiver Profile
Meet Dr. Dominic Abrams
Professional History
I received my medical education and post-graduate training in the United Kingdom, specializing in cardiology and electrophysiology. My fellowships were in both pediatric and adult cardiology, and in 2007 I was appointed as a Consultant Cardiologist and Electrophysiologist at St. Bartholomew’s Hospital, the largest adult electrophysiology center in the UK, and also continued to perform pediatric electrophysiology at Great Ormond Street Hospital. This dual appointment allowed for detailed evaluation of all family members with varying inherited cardiac condition, including ion channel disorders and cardiomyopathies. In Boston we have developed a rapid access Inherited Cardiac Arrhythmia Program for all patients with a confirmed or suspected inherited/genetic component to their condition, which runs between Boston Children’s and Brigham & Women’s Hospitals allowing for continued clinical care within the family irrespective of age. Patients are comprehensively investigated, including clinical and genetic diagnosis and risk stratification, and appropriate management strategies implemented, including cascade screening across extensive families. We are currently developing a major collaboration with colleagues across New England.
As an adult and pediatric electrophysiologist I also have extensive experience in the management of arrhythmias in the adult congenital population and this has been a major area of clinical and research activity.
Approach to Care
My job as a cardiac electrophysiologist provides an amazing contrast between the varied world of human cardiac genetics and the myriad of different cardiac arrhythmias managed interventionally in the cardiac electrophysiology laboratory.
From the early days of my medical training, I have been fascinated by the complex relationship between human genetics and the associated clinical conditions - how one simple molecular change can lead to such wide ranging and varied conditions, and how understanding human genetics has helped unlock different biological pathways involved in inherited heart disorders. Working with families in the Inherited Cardiac Arrhythmia Program to define different aspects of inherited cardiac conditions is both an exciting challenge and incredible privilege. Each day brings new situations and different scenarios, but adopting a team approach to each different problem provides great satisfaction and will always be a unique and very humbling experience.
Equally challenging and satisfying, and yet requiring a complete different approach, is the interventional approach to arrhythmia management. As a medical student watching a presentation of the treatment of a young patient with highly symptomatic Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, and seeing a picture of him on the summit of Mt. Kilimanjaro after a successful ablation was an inspirational and highly motivating experience. To be able to eliminate symptoms in patients with arrhythmia allowing them to resume a normal quality of life remains as rewarding and satisfying today as performing my first ablation.
From the early days of my medical training, I have been fascinated by the complex relationship between human genetics and the associated clinical conditions - how one simple molecular change can lead to such wide ranging and varied conditions, and how understanding human genetics has helped unlock different biological pathways involved in inherited heart disorders. Working with families in the Inherited Cardiac Arrhythmia Program to define different aspects of inherited cardiac conditions is both an exciting challenge and incredible privilege. Each day brings new situations and different scenarios, but adopting a team approach to each different problem provides great satisfaction and will always be a unique and very humbling experience.
Equally challenging and satisfying, and yet requiring a complete different approach, is the interventional approach to arrhythmia management. As a medical student watching a presentation of the treatment of a young patient with highly symptomatic Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome, and seeing a picture of him on the summit of Mt. Kilimanjaro after a successful ablation was an inspirational and highly motivating experience. To be able to eliminate symptoms in patients with arrhythmia allowing them to resume a normal quality of life remains as rewarding and satisfying today as performing my first ablation.
Publications
Perioperative Outcomes for Children With Cardiomyopathy Undergoing Noncardiac Procedures. View Abstract
NAXCARE: a clinical outcome registry for Naxos disease and related cardiocutaneous syndromes. View Abstract
Combining polygenic and clinical risk scores in atrial fibrillation risk prediction: Implications for population screening. View Abstract
Correction to: Low Penetrance Sarcomere Variants Contribute to Additive Risk in Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy. View Abstract
Sex-Specific Clinical and Genetic Factors Associated With Adverse Outcomes in Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy. View Abstract
Clinical features and outcomes in carriers of pathogenic desmoplakin variants. View Abstract
Low Penetrance Sarcomere Variants Contribute to Additive Risk in Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy. View Abstract
A Natural History Study of Timothy Syndrome. View Abstract
The Clinical Trajectory of NYHA Functional Class I Patients With Obstructive Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy. View Abstract
Clinical Features and Outcomes of Pediatric MYH7-Related Dilated Cardiomyopathy. View Abstract
Long-Term Outcomes After Septal Reduction Therapies in Obstructive Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy: Insights From the SHARE Registry. View Abstract
A novel tool for arrhythmic risk stratification in desmoplakin gene variant carriers. View Abstract
Antisense Oligonucleotide Therapy for Calmodulinopathy. View Abstract
Management of ultrarare inherited arrhythmia syndromes. View Abstract
Vigorous Exercise in Patients With Congenital Long QT Syndrome: Results of the Prospective, Observational, Multinational LIVE-LQTS Study. View Abstract
A Natural History Study of Timothy Syndrome. View Abstract
Premature ventricular contractions in children and young adults: natural history and clinical implications. View Abstract
Long-Term Arrhythmic Follow-Up and Risk Stratification of Patients With Desmoplakin-Associated Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Cardiomyopathy. View Abstract
Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy and Ventricular Preexcitation in the Young: Cause and Accessory Pathway Characteristics. View Abstract
Left Ventricular Systolic Dysfunction in Patients Diagnosed With Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy During Childhood: Insights From the SHaRe Registry. View Abstract
Gene Therapy for Catecholaminergic Polymorphic Ventricular Tachycardia. View Abstract
Current management of inherited arrhythmia syndromes associated with the cardiac ryanodine receptor. View Abstract
Cascade testing for inherited cardiac conditions: Risk perception and screening after a negative genetic test result. View Abstract
Radiofrequency Catheter Ablation for Pediatric Atrioventricular Nodal Reentrant Tachycardia: Impact of Age on Procedural Methods and Durable Success. View Abstract
Familial Recurrence Patterns in Congenitally Corrected Transposition of the Great Arteries: An International Study. View Abstract
Population Prevalence of Premature Truncating Variants in Plakophilin-2 and Association With Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Cardiomyopathy: A UK Biobank Analysis. View Abstract
Sudden Cardiac Arrest in the Paediatric Population. View Abstract
Exercise Recommendations in Pediatric HCM: Variation and Influence of Provider Characteristics. View Abstract
Accessory pathway ablation in Ebstein anomaly: A challenging substrate. View Abstract
2020 APHRS/HRS expert consensus statement on the investigation of decedents with sudden unexplained death and patients with sudden cardiac arrest, and of their families. View Abstract
Lead age as a predictor for failure in pediatrics and congenital heart disease. View Abstract
Causal Genetic Variants in Stillbirth. View Abstract
Cardiocutaneous Features of Autosomal Dominant Desmoplakin-Associated Arrhythmogenic Cardiomyopathy. View Abstract
2020 APHRS/HRS expert consensus statement on the investigation of decedents with sudden unexplained death and patients with sudden cardiac arrest, and of their families. View Abstract
Risk Factors for Early Recurrence Following Ablation for Accessory Pathways: The Role of Consolidation Lesions. View Abstract
Value of provocative electrophysiology testing in the management of pediatric patients after congenital heart surgery. View Abstract
An International Multicenter Evaluation of Inheritance Patterns, Arrhythmic Risks, and Underlying Mechanisms of CASQ2-Catecholaminergic Polymorphic Ventricular Tachycardia. View Abstract
Clinical and Genetic Findings in Children Presenting With Ventricular Fibrillation as the First Manifestation of Cardiovascular Disease. View Abstract
Predicting Heart Failure in Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Cardiomyopathy. View Abstract
Adverse event rate during inpatient sotalol initiation for the management of supraventricular and ventricular tachycardia in the pediatric and young adult population. View Abstract
An International Multicenter Evaluation of Type 5 Long QT Syndrome: A Low Penetrant Primary Arrhythmic Condition. View Abstract
Outcomes of catheter ablation of anteroseptal and midseptal accessory pathways in pediatric patients. View Abstract
Arrhythmia Mechanisms and Outcomes of Ablation in Pediatric Patients With Congenital Heart Disease. View Abstract
2019 HRS expert consensus statement on evaluation, risk stratification, and management of arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy: Executive summary. View Abstract
Molecular mechanisms of arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy. View Abstract
Phenotypic Manifestations of Arrhythmogenic Cardiomyopathy in Children and Adolescents. View Abstract
Insights Into the Pathogenesis of Catecholaminergic Polymorphic Ventricular Tachycardia From Engineered Human Heart Tissue. View Abstract
Gene Therapy for Catecholaminergic Polymorphic Ventricular Tachycardia by Inhibition of Ca2+/Calmodulin-Dependent Kinase II. View Abstract
2019 HRS expert consensus statement on evaluation, risk stratification, and management of arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy. View Abstract
Overlooked Leadership Potential: The Preference for Leadership Potential in Job Candidates Who Are Men vs. Women. View Abstract
Phenotypic Characterization of Individuals With Variants in Cardiovascular Genes in the Absence of a Primary Cardiovascular Indication for Testing. View Abstract
International Triadin Knockout Syndrome Registry. View Abstract
The Real-World Utility of the LINQ Implantable Loop Recorder in Pediatric and Adult Congenital Heart Patients. View Abstract
Genetic Testing for Inherited Cardiac Arrhythmias: Current State-of-the-Art and Future Avenues. View Abstract
Arrhythmias in congenital heart disease: a position paper of the European Heart Rhythm Association (EHRA), Association for European Paediatric and Congenital Cardiology (AEPC), and the European Society of Cardiology (ESC) Working Group on Grown-up Congenital heart disease, endorsed by HRS, PACES, APHRS, and SOLAECE. View Abstract
Channelopathies That Lead to Sudden Cardiac Death: Clinical and Genetic Aspects. View Abstract
SCN5A mutations in 442 neonates and children: genotype-phenotype correlation and identification of higher-risk subgroups. View Abstract
Utility of incomplete right bundle branch block as an isolated ECG finding in children undergoing initial cardiac evaluation. View Abstract
Postmortem Genetic Testing for Cardiac Ion Channelopathies in Stillbirths. View Abstract
Cardiac Conduction System in Congenitally Corrected Transposition of the Great Arteries and Its Clinical Relevance. View Abstract
Dynamic QT Interval Changes from Supine to Standing in Healthy Children. View Abstract
Genotype-phenotype-guided medical and surgical intervention in long QT syndrome. View Abstract
Role of Genetic Testing in Inherited Cardiovascular Disease: A Review. View Abstract
Cardiac Events During Competitive, Recreational, and Daily Activities in Children and Adolescents With Long QT Syndrome. View Abstract
Circadian Variation of Ventricular Arrhythmias in Catecholaminergic Polymorphic Ventricular Tachycardia. View Abstract
Ebstein Anomaly. View Abstract
How to develop a clinic for sudden cardiac arrest survivors and families of non-survivors. View Abstract
Relation of Left Atrial Size to Atrial Fibrillation in Patients Aged =22 Years. View Abstract
Whole-Exome Molecular Autopsy After Exertional Sudden Cardiac Death: Not a Panacea but a Step in the Right Direction. View Abstract
Radiofrequency ablation of atrial tachyarrhythmias in adults with tetralogy of Fallot - predictors of success and outcome. View Abstract
PACES/HRS expert consensus statement on the use of catheter ablation in children and patients with congenital heart disease: Developed in partnership with the Pediatric and Congenital Electrophysiology Society (PACES) and the Heart Rhythm Society (HRS). Endorsed by the governing bodies of PACES, HRS, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), the American Heart Association (AHA), and the Association for European Pediatric and Congenital Cardiology (AEPC). View Abstract
Response to Letters Regarding Article, "Clinical Management of Catecholaminergic Polymorphic Ventricular Tachycardia: The Role of Left Cardiac Sympathetic Denervation". View Abstract
Evolution of Electrocardiographic and Structural Features Over 3 Decades in Arrhythmogenic Cardiomyopathy. View Abstract
Clinical Management of Catecholaminergic Polymorphic Ventricular Tachycardia: The Role of Left Cardiac Sympathetic Denervation. View Abstract
Mechanism and ablation of arrhythmia following total cavopulmonary connection. View Abstract
Time dependence of risks and benefits in pediatric primary prevention implantable cardioverter-defibrillator therapy. View Abstract
Implantable cardioverter-defibrillators in children. View Abstract
Sudden arrhythmic death syndrome: diagnostic yield of comprehensive clinical evaluation of pediatric first-degree relatives. View Abstract
Long QT syndrome. View Abstract
Feasibility and outcomes of ajmaline provocation testing for Brugada syndrome in children in a specialist paediatric inherited cardiovascular diseases centre. View Abstract
Transbaffle mapping and ablation for atrial tachycardias after mustard, senning, or Fontan operations. View Abstract
The role of cardiac resynchronization therapy for arterial switch operations complicated by complete heart block. View Abstract
The use of an integrated electroanatomic mapping system and intracardiac echocardiography to reduce radiation exposure in children and young adults undergoing ablation of supraventricular tachycardia. View Abstract
Pharmacological and non-pharmacological therapy for arrhythmias in the pediatric population: EHRA and AEPC-Arrhythmia Working Group joint consensus statement. View Abstract
The electrophysiological characteristics of accessory pathways in pediatric patients with intermittent preexcitation. View Abstract
Current genomics in cardiovascular medicine. View Abstract
Chest pain and ST elevation. View Abstract
Variable QRS morphologies in Ebstein's anomaly: what is the mechanism? View Abstract
The DSPII splice variant is crucial for desmosome-mediated adhesion in HaCaT keratinocytes. View Abstract
Inflammatory skin and bowel disease linked to ADAM17 deletion. View Abstract
Accuracy of algorithms to predict accessory pathway location in children with Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome. View Abstract
Wherein lies children's intergroup bias? Egocentrism, social understanding, and social projection. View Abstract
Does ventricular dyssynchrony on echocardiography predict response to cardiac resynchronisation therapy? A randomised controlled study. View Abstract
Catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation on uninterrupted warfarin: can it be done without echo guidance? View Abstract
[Long QT syndrome]. View Abstract
Identification and characterization of DSPIa, a novel isoform of human desmoplakin. View Abstract
Resolution of dyssynchronous left ventricular failure via cardiac resynchronization and subsequent radiofrequency ablation in an infant with pre-excitation. View Abstract
Long QT syndrome. View Abstract
Cryoablation versus radiofrequency ablation for treatment of atrioventricular nodal reentrant tachycardia: cryoablation with 6-mm-tip catheters is still less effective than radiofrequency ablation. View Abstract
Validation of a classification system to grade fractionation in atrial fibrillation and correlation with automated detection systems. View Abstract
Uninterrupted warfarin for periprocedural anticoagulation in catheter ablation of typical atrial flutter: a safe and cost-effective strategy. View Abstract
Electrophysiologic and anatomic characterization of sites resistant to electrical isolation during circumferential pulmonary vein ablation for atrial fibrillation: a prospective study. View Abstract
Comparison of noncontact and electroanatomic mapping to identify scar and arrhythmia late after the Fontan procedure. View Abstract
Invasive electrophysiology in paediatric and congenital heart disease. View Abstract
The impact of CT image integration into an electroanatomic mapping system on clinical outcomes of catheter ablation of atrial fibrillation. View Abstract
Successful ablation of atrioventricular nodal reentry tachycardia following the atriopulmonary Fontan procedure. View Abstract
Validation of the noncontact mapping system in the left atrium during permanent atrial fibrillation and sinus rhythm. View Abstract
Radiofrequency ablation of arrhythmias guided by non-fluoroscopic catheter location: a prospective randomized trial. View Abstract
Validation of three-dimensional cardiac image integration: use of integrated CT image into electroanatomic mapping system to perform catheter ablation of atrial fibrillation. View Abstract
Transhepatic pulmonary artery stenting via a short intravascular sheath following neonatal repair of truncus arteriosus. View Abstract
Mechanism and mapping of atrial arrhythmia in the modified Fontan circulation. View Abstract
Catheter ablation of permanent atrial fibrillation: medium term results. View Abstract
Prolapse of the antero-superior leaflet of the tricuspid valve secondary to congenital anomalies of the valvar and sub-valvar apparatus: a rare cause of severe tricuspid regurgitation. View Abstract
Images in cardiovascular medicine. Membranous pulmonary atresia treated by radiofrequency-assisted balloon pulmonary valvotomy. View Abstract
Guidelines for the design and conduct of AIDS clinical trials. AIDS Clinical Trials Group. View Abstract
Serum beta 2-microglobulin decreases in patients with AIDS or ARC treated with azidothymidine. View Abstract