About VDC: Leadership
Thomas L. Ortel, M.D., Ph.D.
Dr. Ortel is an Associate Professor of Medicine and Pathology at Duke University Medical Center. He is the Medical Director of the Hemostasis and Thrombosis Center at Duke, which is supported as one of the initial Thrombophilia Pilot Programs by the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention. He is also Medical Director of the Clinical Coagulation Laboratory and the Platelet Antibody Laboratory at Duke, as well as the Duke Anticoagulation Clinic.
His research program focuses on immune-mediated thrombotic disorders, specifically the antiphospholipid antibody syndrome and heparin-induced thrombocytopenia (HIT). He is the Principal Investigator for Transfusion Medicine/Hemostasis clinical research center at Duke, which will be initiating a prospective study of patients with HIT who do not have thrombosis at the time of initial presentation. He is also the Principal Investigator for the Rare Thrombotic Diseases Consortium, which is currently enrolling patients with antiphospholipid syndrome to investigate possible genetic risk factors for the disorder. Both of these research networks are supported by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI).
In May 2006, Dr. Ortel co-chaired the two-day Surgeon General’s Workshop on DVT with Dr. Sam Goldhaber. He also serves on the National Comprehensive Cancer Network’s panel on diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of venous thromboembolism in patients with cancer. He also serves on the Board of Directors for the American Thrombosis & Hemostasis Network and chairs the membership committee for the Venous Disease Coalition.
