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Hugh Calkins, M.D.

Hugh Grosvenor Calkins, M.D.

Headshot of Hugh Calkins
  • Catherine Ellen Poindexter Professor of Cardiology
  • Professor of Medicine
Male

Expertise

Ablation, Arrhythmia, Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Dysplasia, Atrial Fibrillation, Atrial Flutter, Bradycardia, Cardiac Electrophysiology, Cardiology, Cardiomyopathy, Cardiovascular Disease, Cardioversion, Catheter Ablation Therapy, Defibrillators, Device Therapy, Electrophysiology, Heart Block, Heart Disease, Heart Failure, Implantable Cardioverter-Defibrillator Therapy, Irregular Heartbeat, Long QT Syndrome, Pacemakers, Palpitations, Paroxysmal Supraventricular Tachycardia, Sudden Cardiac Death, Supraventricular Tachycardia, Syncope, Tachycardias, Tilt Table Test, Ventricular Arrhythmias, Ventricular Fibrillation, Ventricular Tachycardia, Wolff-Parkinson-White (WPW) Syndrome ...read more

Research Interests

Atrial Fibrillation; Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Dysplasia; Syncope; Sudden Cardiac Death; Atrial Fibrillation Ablation; Catheter Ablation; Device Therapy for Treatment of Ventricular Arrhythmias ...read more

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Insurance Information

Existing Patients

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Main Phone

443-997-0270

Outside of Maryland & Washington D.C.

410-464-6641
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International Patients

+1-410-502-7683
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Locations

The Johns Hopkins Hospital

Appointment Phone: 443-997-0270
600 N. Wolfe Street
Sheikh Zayed Tower 7125R
Baltimore, MD 21287 map
Phone: 410-955-3339 | Fax: 410-367-2148

Johns Hopkins Outpatient Center (now called Levi Watkins, Jr., M.D., Outpatient Center)

Appointment Phone: 443-997-0270
601 N. Caroline St.
Baltimore, MD 21287 map
Phone: 410-955-7405 | Fax: 410-367-2148

Background

Dr. Hugh Calkins is the Catherine Ellen Poindexter Professor of Cardiology and Director of the Electrophysiology Laboratory and Arrhythmia Service at the Johns Hopkins Hospital. He is an internationally recognized expert on catheter ablation, atrial fibrillation, syncope, arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia (ARVD) and arrhythmia management.

Dr. Calkins attended Williams College and Harvard Medical School before training in medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital. He received his cardiology training at Johns Hopkins. His first faculty position was at the University of Michigan, where he directed the Pacemaker Service, and he returned to Johns Hopkins as director of the Arrhythmia Service in 1992.

Dr. Calkins is an Associate Editor of the Journal of Cardiovascular Electrophysiology and is on the editorial board of many other cardiology journals. He is a former member of the American Board of Internal Medicine Electrophysiology Boards Test Writing Committee. Dr. Calkins is a fellow of the American College of Cardiology, the American Heart Association and the Heart Rhythm Society. He led a 44-member international task force whose 2012 Expert Consensus Statement gave recommendations for treatment and research of atrial fibrillation. Dr Calkins is a past president of the Heart Rhythm Society and was elected to be a member of the Miler Coulsen Academy of Clinical Excellence in 2014.

Dr. Calkins has published more than 500 articles and book chapters on a large variety of cardiac arrhythmias. His research has focused predominantly on catheter ablation, atrial fibrillation, syncope, and arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia. Dr. Calkins has also written extensively on most aspects of heart rhythm disorders and their treatment.

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Titles

  • Catherine Ellen Poindexter Professor of Cardiology
  • Director, Cardiac Arrhythmia Service
  • Director, Johns Hopkins ARVD Program
  • Director, Johns Hopkins Atrial Fibrillation Center
  • Director, Electrophysiology Laboratory
  • Director, Tilt Table Diagnostic Laboratory
  • Professor of Medicine
  • Professor of Pediatrics

Departments / Divisions

Centers & Institutes

Education

Degrees

  • MD; Harvard Medical School (1983)

Residencies

  • Medicine; Massachusetts General Hospital (1986)

Fellowships

  • Cardiology; Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine (1989)

Board Certifications

  • American Board of Internal Medicine (Cardiovascular Disease) (1989)
  • American Board of Internal Medicine (Clinical Cardiac Electrophysiology) (1992)
  • American Board of Internal Medicine (Internal Medicine) (1986)

Research & Publications

Clinical Trial Keywords

tachycardia; catheter ablation; atrial fibrillation

Selected Publications

Dr. Calkins has published more than 350 manuscripts and book chapters on a large variety of cardiac arrhythmias.
His research has focused predominantly on catheter ablation, syncope, and arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia. Dr Calkins has also written extensively on most aspects of heart rhythm disorders and their treatment.

Selected Publications

Calkins H, Maughan WL, Weisman HF, Sugiura S, Sagawa K, Levine JH. Effects of acute volume load on refractoriness and arrhythmia development in isolated chronically infarcted canine hearts. Circulation.1989; 79:687 697.

Calkins H, Maughan WL, Kass D, Sagawa K, and Levine JH. Electrophysiologic of volume load in isolated canine hearts. Am J Physiol.1989; 256: H1697 H1706.

Calkins H, Sousa J, El Atassi R, Rosenheck S, de Buitleir M, Kou W, Kadish A, Langberg J, Morady F. Diagnosis and cure of the Wolff Parkinson White syndrome or paroxysmal supraventricular tachycardias during a single electrophysiologic test. N Engl J Med 1991; 324:1612 8.

Calkins H, Langberg J, Sousa J, El Atassi R, Leon A, Kou W, Kalbfleisch S. Radiofrequency catheter ablation of accessory atrioventricular connections in 250 patients: abbreviated therapeutic approach to the Wolff Parkinson White syndrome. Circulation 1992; 85:1337 1346.

Calkins H, Yong P, Miller JM, Olshansky B, Carlson M, Saul JP, Huang SK, LB Liem, Klein LS, Moser SA, Bloch DA, Gillette P, Prystowsky E and the Atakr Investigators; Catheter Ablation of Accessory Pathways, Atrioventricular nodal Reentrant Tachycardia, and the Atrioventricular Junction: Final Results of a Prospective Clinical Trial. Circulation 1999; 99: 262-270.

Rowe PC, Calkins H, DeBusk K, Mckenzie R, Anand R, Sharma G, Cuccherini BA, Soto N, Hohman P, Snader S, Lucas K, Wolff M, Straus SE. Fludrocortisone Acetate to treat Neurally mediated Hypotension in Chronic Fatigue Syndrome; A Randomized Controlled Trial. JAMA 2001; 285: 52-59.

Kato R, Lickfett L, Meininger G, Dickfeld T, Wu, R, Juang G, Angkeow P, Bluemke D, Berger R, Halperin H, Calkins H. Pulmonary Vein Anatomy in Patients Undergoing Catheter Ablation of Paroxysmal Atrial Fibrillation: Lessons Learned Using Magnetic Resonance Imaging. Circulation 2003;107:2004-10.

Dalal D, Nasir K, Bomma C, Prakasa K, Tandri H, Piccini J, Roguin A, Tichnell C, James C, Russell SD, Judge DP, Abraham T, Spevak PJ, Bluemke DA, Calkins H. Arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia: a United States experience. Circulation. 2005;112(25):3823-32.

Dong J, Calkins H, Solomon SB, Lai S, Dalal D, Lardo A, Brem E, Preiss A, Berger RD, Halperin H, Dickfeld T. Integrated electroanatomic mapping with three-dimensional computed tomographic images for real-time guided ablations. Circulation 2006;113:186-194.

Dalal D, James C, Devanagondi R, Tichnell C, Tucker A, Prakasa K, Spevek PJ, Bluemke DA, Abraham T, Russell SD, Calkins H. Penetrance of mutations in plakophilin-2 among families with arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia/cardiomyopathy. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2006;48(7):1416-24.

Dalal D, Jain R, Tandri H, Dong J, Eid SM, Prakasa K, Tichenll C, James C, Abraham T, Russell SD, Sinha S, Judge DP, Bluemke DA, Marine JE, Calkins H. Long-term efficacy of catheter ablation of ventricular tachycardia in patients with arrhythmogenic right ventricular dysplasia/cardiomyopathy. J Am Coll Cardiol 2007;50(5):432-40.

Scherr D, Dalal D, Cheema A, Cheng A, Henrikson CA, Spragg D, marine JE, Berger RD, Calkins H, Dong J. Automated detection and characterization of complex fractionated atrial electrograms in human left atrium during atrial fibrillation. Heart Rhythm 2007;4(8):1013-20.

Cheema A, Dong J, Dalal D, Marine JE, Henrikson CA, Spragg D, Cheng A, Nazarian S, Bilchick KC, Almasry I, Sinha S, Scherr D, Halperin H, Berger R, Calkins H. Circumferential ablation with pulmonary vein isolation in permanent atrial fibrillation. Am J Cardiol 2007;99(10):1425-8.

Hof I, Arbab-Zadeh A, Scherr D, Chilukuri K, Dalal D, Abraham T, Lima J, Calkins H. Correlation of left atrial diameter by echocardiography and left atrial volume by computed tomography. J Cardiovasc Electrophysiol. 2009;20(2):159-63.

Hof I, Chilukuri K, Arbab-Zadeh A, Scherr D, Dalal D, Nazarian S, Henrikson C, Spragg D, Berger R, Marine J, Calkins H. Does Left Atrial Volume and Pulmonary Venous Anatomy Predict the Outcome of Catheter Ablation of Atrial Fibrillation? J Cardiovasc Electrophysiol. 2009;20(9):1005-10.

Activities & Honors

Honors

  • Elected to Phi Beta Kappa, Williams College, 1978
  • Graduated: Magna cum laude with highest honors in chemistry, Williams College, 1979
  • First Place, Young Investigator Competition, North American Pacing and Electrophysiology , 1988
  • Helen B. Taussig Award, American Heart Association-Maryland Affiliate, Inc., 1999
  • Visiting Professor, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, 2000
  • IBCs 21st Century Award for Achievement, 2002
  • Best Doctors, 2002
  • America's Top Physicians, 2001
  • Best Doctors in America, 2002
  • America's Top Physicians, 2003
  • Leading Scientists in the World, 2004
  • Best Doctors in America , 2005
  • Clinical Research Award for Highest Scored Abstract, HRS, 2006
  • Elected Member, American Clinical and Climatological Society, 2006 - 2007
  • Elected Member, Association of University Cardiologists, 2007
  • Recognized as a Top Cardiologist by Baltimore Magazine, 2007
  • Inaugural Recipient of the Nicholas J. Fortuin Professor of Cardiology, 2008
  • Recognized by Best Doctors in America, 2009
  • Recognized as Top Cardiologist by Baltimore Magazine, 2011
  • Inducted into the Miller-Coulson Academy of Clinical Excellence, 2014
  • Named one of the most "Highly Cited" researchers, Thomson Reuters, 2014

Memberships

  • American College of Cardiology
  • American Heart Association
  • Association of University Cardiologists
  • Heart Rhythm Association

Professional Activities

  • Director, Pacemaker Service, University of Michigan, 1989 - 1992
  • Director, Arrhythmia Service, Johns Hopkins Hospital, 1992
  • Director, EP Laboratory, Johns Hopkins Hospital, 1992
  • Director, Tilt Diagnostic Lab, Johns Hopkins Hospital, 1995
  • President, Heart Rhythm Society, 2013 - 2014

Videos & Media

Play Video:

Atrial Fibrillation (AFib) | Q&A

Recent News Articles and Media Coverage

Management of Atrial Fibrillation: State of the Art in 2016 (Seminar)
 
Rethink How You Check Your Heart Rhythm, Everyday Health (07/06/2016)

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