Yale Bulletin and Calendar

April 21, 2000

Volume 28, Number 29

Dr. Robert I. White Jr.

Radiologist is honored for his achievements

Dr. Robert I. White Jr., professor of diagnostic radiology, was awarded the Society of Cardiovascular and Interventional Radiology's Gold Medal for his "continuing distinguished and extraordinary service" to the society and to the field of cardiovascular and interventional radiology.

Interventional radiology, also known as image-guided surgery, is a medical specialty that uses minimally invasive diagnostic and treatment techniques as an alternative to traditional surgery. Interventional radiologists treat diseases non-operatively, often using small catheters or other devices and tools guided by radiologic imaging. The interventional radiologist makes a nick in the skin about the size of the tip of a pencil and guides a thin tube (catheter) and tiny instruments to the site of a problem. The interventional radiologist then fixes the problem and removes the catheter and instruments. Stitches generally are not needed, and procedures rarely require general anesthesia.

White joined the faculty at the School of Medicine as chair of the radiology department in 1987. Prior to that, he had directed the Cardiovascular Diagnostic Laboratories at the Johns Hopkins University Hospital for 17 years. While there, he directed the development of therapy for two congenital heart diseases and introduced a new therapy for the treatment of varicoceles (a varicose condition of veins of the spermatic cord which is responsible for male infertility) that is now a standard alternative to surgery.

In 1990, White and a group of 15 patients established a nonprofit foundation to support the study and treatment of Hereditary Hemorrhagic Telangiesctasia (HHT), a rare genetic disorder of the blood vessels affecting 10 to 20 individuals per 100,000. HHT International, Inc. now has over 1,200 members, and White is considered one of the world's leading experts on the disorder.

For the past six years, White has served as chair of Yale's Vascular Malformation Center, a multi-disciplinary center for the evaluation and treatment of patients with abnormalities of the blood vessels. This center, the first of its kind, has become the model for others around the United States and Europe. In addition, White established interventional radiology admitting services for the hospital and developed standards of clinical care for patients undergoing relevant procedures.

A founding fellow of the Society of Cardiovascular and Interventional Radiology, White served as its president from 1984 to 1985. He is a fellow of the American College of Radiology and has served on the editorial board of the Journal of Vascular and Interventional Radiology for the past 10 years. Author of two medical textbooks, he has published more than 225 scientific papers.

-- By Gila Reinstein

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