Department of Pulmonary and Sleep Medicine

The department of pulmonary and sleep medicine offers specialized care in pulmonology, critical care, sleep medicine and environmental health, focusing on respiratory and sleep-related conditions.

About

Program Overview

Our section is composed of a diverse group of physicians who bring devotion and experience to the art of medicine. We thrive on continuous growth and strive to provide our patients with up-to-date and innovative medical care. We are an academic department with profound interest in teaching and research.

Virginia Tech Carilion Partnership

Carilion's faculty has a strong commitment to medical education under the auspices of the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine. We run the only ACGME-accredited Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine fellowship in southwest Virginia. A dedicated Pulmonary Fellows' clinic provides services to a complex variety of patients under close supervision from our faculty, bringing patients a model of care that is highly academic, up to date and innovative.

Mission, Goals and Strengths

Our overall mission is to use all available resources to promote health care improvement. To do this, we incorporate new medical developments to our daily practices and believe strongly in making our patients active participants in their care. Hence, we have developed programs where patients learn more about their disease and how to cope better with it. One such example is our asthma program. In the end, we simply want to ensure the best possible outcome for all of our patients.

Message from Leadership

In order to achieve excellence, our team believes in a multidisciplinary approach to health care delivery. To meet our goals, we coordinate care with all other specialties in the Department of Medicine, and also work closely with thoracic surgery, radiology, radiation oncology and otorhinolaryngology. Additionally, due to the impact of thoracic diseases in patients and their families, we also coordinate care with social workers and other allied health professionals. This allows us to provide more comprehensive and compassionate care.

Our faculty has experts in many areas, such as: asthma, COPD, pulmonary hypertension, lung cancer, interstitial lung disease, occupational lung disorders, difficult airway management, bedside ultrasonography and sleep disorders. In addition, our interventional pulmonology program allows patients access to procedures such as flexible and rigid bronchoscopy, image-guided bronchoscopy, laser therapy, airway stenting, cryotherapy, percutaneous tracheostomy and medical thoracoscopy.

Edmundo R. Rubio, M.D.

Edmundo R. Rubio, M.D.

Section Chief

Pulmonary, Critical Care, Sleep and Environmental Medicine

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Department specs

Conditions Treated

  • Asthma
  • COPD/emphysema
  • Pulmonary hypertension
  • Interstitial lung disease
  • Sleep disorders
  • Lung Cancer
  • Difficult airway management
  • Environmental pulmonary disease
  • Pleural disorders

Specialties within Department

  • Pulmonary Medicine
  • Interventional Pulmonology
  • Critical Care Medicine
  • Sleep Medicine

Our Technology

We have an aggressive Interventional Pulmonology/Critical Care program that performs procedures such as flexible and rigid bronchoscopy, image-guided bronchoscopy, laser therapy, cryotherapy, percutaneous tracheostomy and medical thoracoscopy, to name a few.

Research

We welcome participation by interested individuals in our studies, or those who would like to make contributions to support our research efforts.

Some of our current research projects include:

  • Phototherapy for the Prevention of ICU-Associated Delirium
  • Quantifying Leukocyte Phenotypes During Sepsis in Microfluidic Devices
  • Evaluation of the Effect of Bronchodilators on Lung Volume and Diffusion Capacity
  • Methylene Blue in Septic Shock
  • Pulmonary Hypertension due to COPD (PERFECT Study)
  • Predictors of Nocturnal Hypoxemia in COPD
  • Predictors of Nocturnal Hypoxemia in Non-COPD, Non-OSA CSA
  • Short- and Long-Term Outcomes of Patients With Massive or Submassive Pulmonary Embolism Treated With Catheter-Based Thrombolysis (CBT) With or Without IVC Filters Followed by New Oral Anticoagulants: A Single-Center Hospital Experience

 

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Education

Overview

Carilion's faculty has a strong commitment to medical education under the auspices of the Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine. We run the only ACGME-accredited Pulmonary and Critical Care fellowship in Southwest Virginia. A dedicated pulmonary fellows’ clinic also provides services to a complex variety of patients under close supervision by our faculty. Our program offers a comprehensive curriculum that prepares fellows for general or subspecialty practice. You can find more information about our fellowship program by visiting the Graduate Medical Education page.