The pediatric gastroenterology division at Children's Medical Center Dallas, part of Children’s Health℠, is home to some of the top leaders in the field. Ranked a top-10 program by U.S. News & World Report, our team of experts continued to shape the future of pediatric GI care in 2021.

“In the midst of the pandemic, our program continued our commitment to lead on the international stage, conduct breakthrough research and train the next generation of leaders,” says Bradley Barth, M.D., Division Director of Pediatric Gastroenterology at Children’s Health and Professor at UT Southwestern. “I’m proud to share the key achievements that helped to drive innovation and the best possible patient outcomes in our field – in 2021 and beyond.”

Leadership on the International Stage 

Leading NASPGHAN

In 2021, our team made significant contributions to NASPGHAN through elected positions, committee involvement and presentations. Notable achievements include:

• Norberto Rodriguez-Baez, M.D., was elected as NASPGHAN’s Secretary-Treasurer. “I view this wonderful organization as a champion for all pediatric gastroenterologists,” Dr. Rodriguez-Baez says. “Through this position, I’m dedicated to helping lead NASPGHAN to fulfill its mission as a world leader, develop new programs and ensure that it maintains its solid financial stability.”
• Rinarani Sanghavi, M.D., was appointed as NASPGHAN’s Vice Chair and Incoming Chair of the Professional Development Committee in November 2021. “During my tenure, the focus for the committee will be on compensation equity, leadership development, wellness and diversity,” Dr. Sanghavi says. “This will help create diversity in the field, which in turn helps ensure that the needs of diverse patients are met.”
• Dr. Barth was a panelist on an international NASPGHAN webinar focused on innovative medical management and endoscopic therapy for pediatric upper GI bleeding. It was one of the highest-attended events in 2021.

National Leadership in Childhood Obesity

Division-wide, we’re committed to leading the way to treat and reduce childhood obesity. Sarah Barlow, M.D., leads our division in this effort. Her key achievements in 2021 include:

• Participating as an expert panelist for American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP): For the past two years, Dr. Barlow has been part of a committee to thoroughly update the AAP 2007 expert recommendations on childhood obesity. “We’re moving from expert recommendations to an evidence review to support a Clinical Practice Guideline. The goal is to change practice and improve prevention, assessment and treatment of childhood obesity,” she explains. The document, which will be released in 2022, will address measurement of severe obesity, screening and management of obesity-related comorbidities, the role of social determinants in development and management of obesity, and more.
• Elected to the AAP Section on Obesity for three years of service: “With the Obesity Clinical Practice Guidelines in development, the next three years in this position presents an exciting opportunity,” Dr. Barlow says. “I’ll work to encourage providers to address childhood obesity more effectively and to be part of an organization that advocates for improving capacity for care.” 
• Participating on a technical expert panel for the National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC): Dr. Barlow is helping the NACHC to develop a new pediatric weight composite measure that reflects a more patient- and family-centric approach. “We’re moving beyond a documentation of BMI status,” she explains. “Instead, the ideal measure will incorporate clinical care, social determinants of health, treatment plan, longitudinal care and patient-reported measures. At the same time, the measure also needs to be practical and reliable. It’s challenging, but creating this measure will provide a path toward improved care.”

Conducting Breakthrough Research

In 2021, our team published 32 peer-reviewed articles on advances in key pediatric GI areas, such as childhood obesity, inflammatory bowel disease and therapeutic endoscopy. Our research highlights include:

• Cystic Fibrosis: Meghana Sathe, M.D., is a Co-Principal Investigator for GALAXY, a multi-center study that evaluates the landscape of GI symptomatology in children with cystic fibrosis.
• Inflammatory Bowel Disease: Luis Sifuentes-Dominguez, M.D., collaborated on breakthrough research on proteins that develop in response to certain gut infections. In November 2021, the article reviewing this research was published in Science. In March 2021, Dr. Sifuentes-Dominguez also received a K08 Award from the National Institutes of Health. The four-year, $620,000 grant will support his ongoing efforts to investigate the novel role a subgroup of intestinal cells have on the development of IBD.
• Endoscopy: Our team continues to lead groundbreaking pediatric advanced endoscopy research. While continuing to house the International PEDI Database, David Troendle, M.D., and Dr. Barth also participated in multicenter research attempting to minimize unnecessary ERCP by evaluating predictors of choledocholithiasis in children.
• Polyposis: Isabel Rojas, M.D., and Claudia Phen, M.D., are involved in international, multicenter research through a joint collaboration with NASPGHAN and ESPGHAN to improve evaluation and management strategies for polyposis syndromes. Their collaborative efforts led to a publication on therapeutic effects of mTOR inhibition in juvenile polyposis of infancy.

Training the Next Generation of Gastroenterology Leaders

In 2021, our 18 gastroenterology clinical programs had more than 16,000 outpatient visits, 2,000 inpatient admissions and 3,000 procedures. As a nationally recognized, high-volume center with top outcome metrics, one of our priorities is to provide some of the world’s best training and education in pediatric gastroenterology. Our milestones include:

• Developing a top fellowship program: The Children’s Health gastroenterology fellowship program is sought after for its breadth of specialties and faculty expertise in destination programs, such as motility, endoscopy, food allergic disease and inflammatory bowel disease. The training program is led by nationally recognized educators, including Dr. Rodriguez-Baez and Dr. Sathe, who offer senior leadership, diverse experience and valuable mentorship opportunities.
• Adding expert physicians: In 2021, the program had three fellowship graduates, two of which have joined the faculty. Nonyelum Ebigbo, M.D., is now conducting microbiome research at UT Southwestern and Children’s Medical Center Dallas. Dr. Phen is now working as part of our polyposis program at Children’s Medical Center Dallas and our general GI program at Children’s Medical Center Plano.
• Providing advanced procedure training: In 2021, one of our third-year fellows began training in endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography, which he’ll complete in June 2022. This is the fourth fellow the program has trained in this advanced procedure for children, more than any other program in the U.S.

Connect with Our Team of Experts

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