Vincent Tam, MD

Medical Director, Cardiothoracic Surgery

Vincent Tam, MD

Medical Director, Cardiothoracic Surgery

Cook Children's Heart Center - Dodson Specialty Clinics

1500 Cooper St
Fort Worth, TX 76104

Main Phone Number Icon 682-885-6400

Languages Icon Language(s): English

Accepting New Patients Icon Accepting new patients

Meet Dr. Vincent K.H. Tam

When it comes to your child, any kind of surgery is concerning. When that surgery is related to the heart, it can be a very frightening time. Dr. Vincent Tam, Medical Director, Cook Children's Cardiothoracic Surgery, is recognized for his skill and expertise and knows how challenging it is for you and your child. He works closely with you to ensure you understand your child's surgery and to provide the best plan of treatment.

Dr. Tam spent two of his undergraduate years at Dartmouth College as an art major. At the time, he was on the fence between medicine and art because he is one of those rare individuals with highly developed left and right sides of the brain. He could have envisioned himself as a comic book illustrator, but the art world's loss became pediatric heart surgery's gain.

At Johns Hopkins School of Medicine he became fully enthralled by medicine. His love of science and nature, while being highly detail oriented and extraordinarily hard working, led him to a home in the world of pediatric care. Where his natural creative leanings also proved valuable, just in a different form than being an artist. Dr. Tam says, "I like to think that I'm very creative in what I do for the kids and I'm proud of the results. Because of this I'm comfortable in taking on highly complicated and high risk cases."

At Cook Children's, Dr. Tam diagnoses and treats patients with very difficult heart and cardiovascular defects. His cardiothoracic surgery team provides complete care for newborns, infants and children with heart and cardiovascular defects.

Dr. Vincent Tam, trained at Johns Hopkins Hospital and Children's Hospital in Philadelphia under William Norwood, M.D., who developed the Norwood procedure in the early 1980s.

He views his skills and gifts in medicine as a talent and is most proud of "the quality of the surgery I perform and how well the children do afterward."

He was born and raised in Hong Kong, immigrating to America when he was 12. Those roots spurred his interest in global charity work. He has led a cardiac team in Ethiopia, served in a medical capacity in the Eurasian country of Georgia and performed the first open heart surgery in El Salvador.

Dr. Tam was very knowledgeable. He was very professional, straight forward, and empathetic. I appreciate the time he took with me and my husband to explain our situation, and to give us options available. – Patient family

Services

Aortic translocation/Nikaidoh procedure
Arterial switch repair
Atrioventricular canal repair
Cardiothoracic surgery
Ebstein’s repair
Norwood procedure
Ross-Konno procedure
Unifocalization

Publications

Publications:

Lo Chang Ou, Faulkner,Charles, Tam, VKH, Leiter, James C Liver function in rats Acclimatized to a simulated altitude of 5500m High Altitude Medicine and Biology, Vol 14, Number 4; 2013
Erez E, Tam VKH, Galliani Carlos, Lashus Andrew, Doublin Nancy, Peretti J. Valve-sparing aortic root replacement for patients with a Fontan circulation Journal of Health Valve Disease, 21(2):175-180, 2012
Erez E, Tam VKH, Doublin Nancy, Stakes Jeanie Outcome in Infants less than 3 Kilograms for placement of Saphenous Venous Homograft as Systemic to Pulmonary Artery Shunts Cardiology in the Young, 18(4):386-391, 2008
Erez E, Tam VKH, Doublin Nancy, Stakes Jeanie Anomalous Coronary Artery with Aortic Origin and Course Between the Great Arteries: Improved Diagnosis, Anatomic Findings, and Surgical Treatment Annals of Thoracic Surgery, 82:973-977, 2006
Mahle WT, Cuadrado AR, Tam,VKH. Early Experience with Modified Norwood Procedure Using Right Ventricle to Pulmonary Artery Conduit Annals of Thoracic Surgery, 1084(6) October 2003
Mahle WT, Crisalli J, Coleman K, Campbell RM, Tam,VKH, Vincent RN, Kanter KR. Deletion of Chromosome 22q11.2 and Outcome in Patients with Pulmonary Atresia and Ventricular Septal Defect Annals of Thoracic Surgery, 76(2):567-71 August 2003
Erez E, Kanter KR, Isom E, Williams WH, Tam,VKH. Mitral Valve Replacement in Children Journal of Heart Valve Disease, 12(1):25-9 January 2003
Erez E, Kanter KR, Tam,VKH, Williams WH. Konno Aortoventriculoplasty in Children and Adolescents: From Prosthetic Valves to the Ross Operation Annals of Thoracic Surgery, 74(1):122-6 July 2002
Kanter KR, Budde JM, Parks WJ, Tam VKH, Sharma S, Williams WH, Fyfe DA.
One Hundred Pulmonary Valve Replacements in Children after Relief of Right Ventricular Outflow Tract Obstruction Annals of Thoracic Surgery, 73(6): 1801-6 June 2002
Kanter KR, Doelling NR, Fyfe DA, Sharma S, Tam VKH. DeVega Tricuspid Annuloplasty for Tricuspid Regurgitation in Children Annals of Thoracic Surgery, 72(4):1344-8 October 2001
Erez E, Tam VKH, Kanter KR, Fyfe DA. Successful Biventricular Repair after Initial Norwood Operation for Interrupted Aortic Arch with Severe Left Ventricular Outflow Tract Obstruction Annals of Thoracic Surgery, 71(6):1974-7 June 2001
Erez E, Tam VKH, Williams WH, Kanter KR. The Konno Aortoventriculoplasty for Repeat Aortic Valve Replacement European Journal of Cardiothoracic Surgery, 19(6)793-6 June 2001
Tam VKH, Murphy K, Parks WJ, Raviele AA, Vincent RN, Strieper M, Cuadrado AR. Saphenous Vein Homograft: A Superior Conduit for the Systemic Arterial Shunt in the Norwood Operation Annals of Thoracic Surgery, 71(5):1537-40 May 2001
Sharma S, Ensley AE, Hopkins K, Chatzimavroudis GP, Healy TM, Tam VKH, Kanter KR, Yoganathan AP. In Vivo Flow Dynamics of the Total Cavopulmonary Connection from Three- Dimensional multi-slice Magnetic Resonance Imaging Annals of Thoracic Surgery, 71(3):889-98 March 2001
Kanter KR, Vincent RN, Berg AM, Tam VKH. Twelve Year Experience with Pediatric Cardiac Re-transplantation Journal of Heart Lung Transplantation, 20(2):231 February 2001
Vincent RN, Porter AG, Tam VKH, Kanter KR. Diagnosis and Catheter Treatment of Innominate Artery Stenosis Following Stage I Norwood Procedure Catheterization and Cardiovascular Intervention, 49(4):415-8 April 2000
Kanter KR, Erez E, Williams WH, Tam VKH. Extra-anatomic Aortic Bypass via Sternotomy for Complex Aortic Arch Stenosis in Children Journal of Thoracic Cardiovascular Surgery, 120(5):885-90 November 2000
Bailey JM, Miller BE, Lu W, Tosone SR, Kanter KR, Tam VKH. The Pharmocokinetics of Milrinone in Pediatric Patients After Cardiac Surgery Anesthesiology, 90(4):1012-8 April 1999
Kanter KR, Tam VKH, Vincent RN, Cuadrado AR, Raviele AA, Berg AM. Current results with Pediatric Heart Transplantation Annals of Thoracic Surgery, 68(2):527-30 August 1999
Chahine AA, Tam VKH, Ricketts RR Use of Aortic Homograft in the Reconstruction of Complex Tracheobronchial Tree Injuries" Journal of Pediatric Surgery, 34(5): 891-894 May 1999.
Tam VKH, Miller BE, Murphy K. Modified Fontan Without Use of Cardiopulmonary Bypass Annals of Thoracic Surgery. 68(5):1698-704 November 1999
Campbell RM, Raviele AA, Hulse EJ, Auld DO, McRae GJ, Tam VKH, Kanter KR. Experience with a Low Profile Bipolar, Active Fixation Pacing Lead in Pediatric Patients Pacing Clinical Electrophysiology Journal, 22(8):1152-7 August 1999
Miller BE, Tosone SR, Tam VKH, Kanter KR, Guzzetta NA, Bailey JM, Levy JH. Hematologic and Economic Impact of Aprotinin in Reoperative Pediatric Cardiac Operations Annals of Thoracic Surgery 66(2):535-40 August 1998
Tam VKH, Emge FC, Miller B, Bailey J, Cuadrado AR. Postoperative Management & Hemodynamics of Infants after First Stage Norwood Operations. Proceedings of the Second World Congress of Pediatric Cardiology and Cardiac Surgery, Honolulu, Hawaii May 11-15, 1997
Miller BE, Mochizuki T, Levy JH, Bailey JM, Tosone SR, Tam VKH, Kanter KR Predicting and Treating Coagulopathies after Cardiopulmonary Bypass in Children Anesthesia & Analgesia. 85(6):1196-202, December 1997
Bailey JM, Miller BE, Kanter KR, Tosone SR, Tam VKH. A Comparison of the Hemodynamic Effects of Amirinone and Sodium Nitroprusside in Infants after Cardiac Surgery Anesthesia & Analgesia 84 (2):294-8, February 1997
Sharma S, Goudy S., Walker P, Panchal S, Ensley A, Kanter K, Tam VKH, Fyfe D, Yoganathan A. In Vitro Flow Experiments for Determination of Optimal Geometry of Total Cavopulmonary Connection for Surgical Repair of Children with Functional Single Ventricle Journal of the American College of Cardiology. 27(5): 1264-9, April 1996
Tam VKH, Cameron DE. Cerebral Blood Flow Following Hypothermic Circulatory Arrest Cardiology in the Young 1993; 3: 281-286
Cameron DE, Tam VKH, Cheng W, Braxton M. Studies in the Physiology of Cardiopulmonary Bypass Using a Swine Model, in Swine as Models in Biomedical Research ed swindle, et al, Iowa State University, Press 1992.
Tam VKH, Takahaski H, Finney S, Traytsman R, Cameron DE. Global and Regional Cerebral Reperfusion after Deep Hypothermic Circulatory Arrest Surgical Forum 1991; ILII: 268-269.
Tam VKH, Casale AS, Buchman TG. Management of Penetrating Thoracic Trauma In Management of Cardiothoracic Trauma, ed. Turney et al, Williams and Wilkins 1990.
Tam VKH, Takahashi H, Cheng W, Traytsmay RJ, Cameron DE. Autoregulation of Total and Regional Cerebral Blood Flow During Deep Hypothermic Cardiopulmonary Bypass Surgical Forum 1989; XL: 264-265.
Tam VKH, Buchman TG. Penetrating Juxtadiaphragmatic Injury Trauma, 1989; 6:41-47.

Education

Medical School:
University of Massachusetts Medical School, Worcester, MA,Johns Hopkins University, School of Medicine - Cardiac Surgery
Residency:
Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore, MD
Board Certifications:
American Board of Surgery
American Board of Surgical Critical Care
American Board of Thoracic Surgery

Affiliations

Cook Children's Physician Network

Recognitions

STSA Congenital Heart Surgery Presidents Award (2013)
Golden Apple Award - Egleston Children's Hospital (1998)
Honorary Member - Association of Pediatric Surgery (1997)
Honorary Senate Resolution - State Senate of Georgia USA(1997)
Subspecialty Resident Teaching Award - Department of Surgery - Johns Hopkins Hospital (1991)
Honorary Registrar - Nuffield Department of Surgery (1985)

Vincent Tam, MD

Medical Director, Cardiothoracic Surgery

Vincent Tam, MD

Medical Director, Cardiothoracic Surgery

About

Meet Dr. Vincent K.H. Tam

Services

Services

Publications

Publications

Education

Education

Affiliations

Affiliations

Recognitions

Recognitions

Social

Find us on social