Professional Summary:

I care for patients with a variety of renal diseases, including acute kidney injury, chronic kidney disease, and end-stage renal disease, that require renal replacement therapy and renal transplantation. My clinical interests include various glomerular diseases, hereditary kidney diseases, renal stone and various electrolyte and acid-base disorders. I also have a passion for taking care of patients with resistant hypertension and secondary hypertension, with a focus on renovascular hypertension.

My clinical responsibilities are exclusively at the Buffalo VA Medical Center (Buffalo VAMC) where I take care of both outpatient and inpatient renal patients. The Buffalo VAMC is the medical destination for veterans in Western New York in need of renal services, including patients from Batavia, Rochester, Canandaigua and Bath, NY and Erie, PA. I see outpatients in the renal clinic and dialysis unit at the Buffalo VAMC and serve as the director of the renal clinic. I also provide electronic consultation to primary care physicians who need specialized counsel in managing the care of patients with renal conditions. I am involved in pretransplant testing, screening and consultation for prospective transplant recipients.

I participate in pharmacy-sponsored clinical trials studying the efficacy of various drugs in kidney diseases. One of the multicenter studies for which I am the primary investigator is looking at the effects of canagliflozin. The goal is to assess whether canagliflozin has a renal and vascular protective effect in reducing the progression of renal impairment in patients with Type 2 diabetes mellitus. I also am the co-investigator studying the use of darbopetin alpha, a long-acting erythropetin stimulating agent, to avoid blood transfusion and its associated risks in patients with chronic kidney disease.

As the resident program director of the Nephrology Fellowship Program at the Buffalo VAMC, I am responsible for supervising and providing guidance to the fellows in renal medicine when they are rotating at the medical center. I am also actively involved in lectures and small group sessions of the nephrology module for first-year medical students. I also participate in educating and training medical students, residents and renal fellows during their inpatient nephrology rotations.

Education and Training:

• Fellowship, Research Fellow, Long Island Jewish Medical Center (2000)
• Fellowship, Nephrology, Long Island Jewish Medical Center (1999)
• Residency, Internal Medicine, Long Island College Hospital (1997)
• Orthopedics, Rajendra Medical College and Hospital (1989)
• Orthopedics, Patna Medical College and Hospital (1986)
• Internal Medicine, Dabhanga Medical College and Hospital Laheriasarai (1985)

Employment:

• Clinical Associate Professor, Medicine, University at Buffalo Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences (2010-present)
• Staff Nephrologist and Attending Physician, Veterans Administration Medical Center (2005-present)
• Attending Physician, Internal Medicine and Nephrology, VA Hospital
• Consultative Staff, South Buffalo Mercy Hospital
• Clinical Assistant Professor, Medicine, University at Buffalo Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences (2008–2009)
• Assistant Professor, Medicine, University at Buffalo Jacobs School of Medicine & Biomedical Sciences (2000–2009)
• Medical Director, Dialysis Unit, Wende Correctional Facility (2002–2005)
• Attending Physician, Internal Medicine & Nephrology, Erie County Medical Center (2000–2005)

Awards and Honors:

• F. Carter Pannill Jr. Award for Excellence in Teaching (2005)
• Second Prize in Clinical Research (1999)
• First Prize in Basic Research (1998)
• Ranked First in University (1983)