The Laboratory of Douglas Mathisen, MD

About the Lab

The Laboratory of Douglas Mathisen, MD, in the Division of Thoracic Surgery at Massachusetts General Hospital performs clinical research focused on elucidating diseases of the airway and thoracic oncology.

Notable Contributions and Publications

• Tapias LF, Wright CD, Lanuti M, Muniappan A, Deschler D, Mathisen DJ. Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy in the Prevention and Management of Tracheal and Oesophageal Anastomotic Complications. Eur J Cardiothorac Surg. 2020 Jun 1. 57(6):1203-1209. doi: 10.1093/ejcts/ezz364. PMID: 31930317 
• Wright CD, Li S, Geller AD, Lanuti M, Gaissert HA, Muniappan A, Ott HC, Mathisen DJ. Postintubation Tracheal Stenosis: Management and Results 1993 to 2017. Ann Thorac Surg. 2019 Nov. 108(5):1471-1477. doi: 10.1016/j.athoracsur.2019.05.050. PMID: 31299233
• Stock C, Gukasyan N, Muniappan A, Wright C, Mathisen D. Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy for the Treatment of Anastomotic Complications After Tracheal Resection and Reconstruction. J Thorac Cardiovasc Surg. 2013 Dec 13. pii: S0022-5223(13)01329-9. doi: 10.1016/j.jtcvs.2013.11.014
• Wang H, Wright CD, Wain JC, Ott HC, Mathisen DJ. Idiopathic Subglottic Stenosis: Factors Affecting Outcomes Following Single-Stage Repair. Ann Thorac Surg. 100:1804-11. doi: 10.1016/j.athoracsur.2015.05.079
• Muniappan A, Wain JC, Wright CD, Donahue DM, Gaissert HA, Lanuti M, Mathisen DJ. Surgical Treatment of Nonmalignant Tracheoesophgeal Fistulae: A 35-Year Experience. Ann Thorac Surg. 2013 Apr. 95(4):1141-6. doi: 10.1016/j.athoracsur.2012.07.041

About Douglas Mathisen, MD

Douglas Mathisen, MD, is a thoracic surgeon and visiting surgeon at Mass General, and distinguished Hermes Grillo professor of surgery at Harvard Medical School.

He received his medical degree from University of Illinois College of Medicine in 1974. He was a general surgery resident and cardiothoracic resident at the Mass General from July 1974 to December 1982. He spent two years in the surgery branch of the National Cancer Institute of Health, Bethesda. He joined the Mass General Department of Surgery in 1984.

He is a past director of the American Board of Thoracic Surgery, past president of the Thoracic Surgery Directors Association, past treasurer and president of the Society of Thoracic Surgeons and past councilor of the European Association of Cardiothoracic Surgery. He has published over 400 articles/book chapters and five books.

At Mass General, he was the chief of the Division of Thoracic Surgery from 1994-2019, the chief of the Division of Cardiac Surgery from 2007-2011 and the program director of cardiothoracic surgery from 1995-2017. He was a member of the Mass General Physicians Organization executive committee, board of directors and general executive committee. He has been the director and co-director of the postgraduate course in thoracic surgery since 1985. Dr. Mathisen received the Distinguished Service Award from the Society of Thoracic Surgeons in 2014.