Johannes Brachmann

Johannes Brachmann (born July 23, 1952 in Kiel ) is a German cardiologist who specializes in the treatment of cardiac arrhythmias - v. a. des atrial fibrillation - and has introduced numerous innovations in the diagnosis and treatment of these diseases in Germany. He also plays a leading role in cardiological research.

Life

Education and medical career

Johannes Brachmann, who was already interested in the natural sciences as a schoolboy, studied medicine at Heidelberg University from 1973 to 1979 . As part of his subsequent doctorate and internship (also in Heidelberg), he specialized in cardiovascular and lung diseases. In 1980 he received a research grant from the German Research Foundation for heart attack research and arrhythmias (cardiac arrhythmias). As part of his one-year research stay at the University of Oklahoma (USA), he first began to deal with catheter ablation for cardiac arrhythmias, an innovative procedure in which the heart muscle cells that trigger the arrhythmia are detected and destroyed using a catheter. From 1981 to 1988 Johannes Brachmann was a ward physician at the Ludolf Krehl Clinic in Heidelberg, where he deepened his knowledge in this area as head of the electrophysiological working group. From 1989 to 1998 he worked as a senior physician, later as a senior senior physician at this clinic; in 1991 he completed his habilitation and in 1996 was appointed professor at Heidelberg University Hospital. Since 1998 he has been chief physician of the 2nd Medical Clinic at the Coburg Clinic, which focuses on the treatment of cardiovascular and lung diseases.

Development of the cardiology department at the Coburg Clinic

At the Coburg Clinic , Professor Johannes Brachmann expanded the then insignificant department for cardiology (diagnosis and therapy of cardiovascular diseases ) into a state-of-the-art cardiological center that is state-of-the-art in medical and technological developments. Today the cardiology department of the Coburg Clinic is one of the largest in Bavaria and a leader in all of Germany. In addition to a cardiac catheter laboratory with 24-hour readiness and 4 measuring stations, the department also has a stroke unit (station specializing in the treatment of patients with acute stroke), which Johannes Brachmann was also instrumental in setting up.

Innovations in the diagnosis and therapy of atrial fibrillation

At an early stage, Professor Brachmann expanded the 2nd Medical Clinic at the Coburg Clinic into a center for the care of patients with cardiac arrhythmias who are diagnosed and treated here according to the latest scientific findings. The focus is on the diagnosis and therapy of atrial fibrillation, the most common cardiac arrhythmia, the treatment of which is still problematic, as antiarrhythmics (drugs that are supposed to restore the normal heart rhythm) can sometimes cause severe side effects and are not always effective. Because of the increased risk of stroke, patients whose atrial fibrillation cannot be permanently eliminated must take anticoagulants for life. For some years now, the catheter ablation procedure (see above) has been gaining in importance; More and more patients can thus be permanently relieved of their atrial fibrillation. However, this method of treatment, which is only just gaining ground, requires special expertise on the part of doctors and special equipment for diagnosis and therapy. Professor Brachmann established a center for the treatment of cardiac arrhythmias in the 2nd Medical Clinic of the Coburg Clinic using state-of-the-art imaging methods (3D mapping, rotational angiography, intracardiac ultrasound) that allow a very detailed representation of the atria. So there are in this clinic z. B. an MRI machine with a particularly high field strength (3  Tesla ), with which you can display the heart from the inside with almost photographic accuracy and assess tissue particularly well, which is not only for the most precise, individual diagnosis possible, but also for monitoring the success of the therapy important is. Professor Brachmann now successfully treats a large number of his atrial fibrillation patients with the catheter ablation procedure.

research

Furthermore, Johannes Brachmann is intensely committed to cardiological research, v. a. in the field of cardiac arrhythmias. In the diagnosis and treatment of atrial fibrillation through catheter ablation, he works closely with Dr. Nassir F. Marrouche, who directs the Atrial Fibrillation Center at the University of Utah, one of the premier centers for research and treatment of atrial fibrillation in the United States. At the 2nd Medical Clinic of the Coburg Clinic, under the direction of Johannes Brachmann, numerous clinical studies are being carried out which serve to advance research into cardiovascular diseases and to provide patients with the latest diagnostic and therapeutic methods. Several large international endpoint studies are being co-led by Professor Brachmann. Professor Brachmann is also active in advanced training: he regularly invites doctors to trainings in the field of electrophysiology and organizes the Update Atrial Fibrillation in Coburg every two years, an international symposium on atrial fibrillation attended by cardiologists from all over the world. Furthermore, Professor Brachmann is a member of various cardiological specialist societies, u. a. the Clinical Commission of the German Society for Cardiology and the Commission of the Heart Rhythm Society (the world's most important association of electrophysiologists). He has published over 400 scientific papers and abstracts. From April 2011 he will take over the chairmanship of the Working Group of Leading Cardiological Hospital Doctors (ALKK).

Publications

• with BA Hoffmann, D. Andresen, L. Eckardt, E. Hoffmann, KH Kuck, B. Schumacher, SG Spitzer, P. Schirdewahn, J. Tebbenjohanns, M. Horack, J. Senges, TV Salukhe, T. Rostock and S. Willems: Ablation of Atrioventricular Nodal Reentrant Tachycardia in the Elderly: Results from the German Ablation Registry. In: Heart Rhythm. 2011 Feb 9. [Epub ahead of print] PMID 21315834 .
• with M. Daccarett, TJ Badger, N. Akoum, NS Burgon, C. Mahnkopf, G. Vergara, E. Kholmovski, CJ McGann, D. Parker, RS Macleod and NF Marrouche: Association of left atrial fibrosis detected by delayed-enhancement magnetic resonance imaging and the risk of stroke in patients with atrial fibrillation. In: J Am Coll Cardiol . 57 (7), 2011 Feb 15, pp. 831-838. PMID 21310320 .
• with AM Sinha, HC Diener, CA Morillo, T. Sanna, RA Bernstein, V. Di Lazzaro, R. Passman and F. Beckers: Cryptogenic Stroke and underlying Atrial Fibrillation (CRYSTAL AF): design and rationale. In: Am Heart J . 160 (1), 2010 Jul, pp. 36-41.e1. PMID 20598970 .
• with G. Steinbeck, D. Andresen, K. Seidl, E. Hoffmann, D. Wojciechowski, Z. Kornacewicz-Jach, B. Sredniawa, G. Lupkovics, F. Hofgärtner, A. Lubinski, M. Rosenqvist, A. Habets , K. Wegscheider and J. Senges; IRIS Investigators: Defibrillator implantation early after myocardial infarction. In: N Engl J Med. 361 (15), 2009 Oct 8, pp. 1427-1436. PMID 19812399 .
• with NF Marrouche; CASTLE-AF Steering Committee: Catheter ablation versus standard conventional treatment in patients with left ventricular dysfunction and atrial fibrillation (CASTLE-AF) - study design. In: Pacing Clin Electrophysiol. 32 (8), 2009 Aug, pp. 987-994. PMID 19659616 .
• with FJ Neumann, W. Desmet, E. Grube, P. Presbitero, P. Rubartelli, A. Mügge, F. Di Pede, D. Füllgraf, W. Aengevaeren, L. Spedicato and JJ Popma: Effectiveness and safety of sirolimus- eluting stents in the treatment of restenosis after coronary stent placement. In: Circulation . 111 (16), 2005 Apr 26, pp. 2107-2111. PMID 15851617 .
• The role of class III antiarrhythmic agents in maintaining sinus rhythm. In: Europace. 2000 Jul; 1 Suppl C, pp. C10-5. Review. PMID 11220519 .
• with J. Kiehn, C. Karle, D. Thomas, X. Yao and W. Kübler: HERG potassium channel activation is shifted by phorbol esters via protein kinase A-dependent pathways. In: J Biol Chem . 273 (39), 1998 Sep 25, pp. 25285-25291. PMID 9737994 .
• with R. Lange, FU Sack, B. Voss, R. De Simone, M. Thielmann, A. Nair, R. Haussmann, F. Fleischer and S. Hagl: Treatment of dilated cardiomyopathy with dynamic cardiomyoplasty: the Heidelberg experience. In: Ann Thorac Surg . 60 (5), 1995 Nov, pp. 1219-1225. PMID 8526603 .
• with T. Hilbel, M. Schweizer and W. Kübler: Cardiac late potentials for diagnosis in heart disease. In: Eur Heart J . 15 Suppl C, 1994 Aug, pp 49-51. Review. PMID 7995269 .

literature

• Marion Zerbst: Catheter ablation for atrial fibrillation - the therapy of the future? Sixth "Update on Atrial Fibrillation" in Coburg. In: Kardioforum. 1/2010, p. 48 f. (PDF)
• Marion Zerbst: A pioneer in electrophysiology: cardiology at the Coburg Clinic. In: Kardioforum. 2/2009, p. 44 ff. (PDF)

Web links

• kardiologie-coburg.de