Washington University Physicians - Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis
Physician Quick Search
By Name:
By Specialty:
Your Healthy Update

Like us on Facebook
Text Size: S M L
Search

Share:

Focus on Themistocles Dassopoulos, MD

Themistocles Dassopoulos, MD, an associate professor of medicine in the division of gastroenterology, specializes in inflammatory bowel disease. He sees patients at Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital, 10 Barnes West Drive, Suite 200, Medical Building Two.

TO MAKE AN APPOINTMENT, PLEASE PHONE 314 747-2066.

What happened in the course of schooling to make you choose your specialty?

While I can’t identity any specific events during my residency, I did find myself particularly enjoying gastroenterology. I liked the mix of patients and the variety of clinical problems. I also liked the balance of the specialty – between the thinking and interventional aspects.

What brought you to Washington University from Johns Hopkins?

I was at Johns Hopkins for seven years, but my wife is from St. Louis (her folks are from St. Genevieve, MO). I think it was a great move for my family and my career.

Washington University is one of the top medical schools in the country and Barnes-Jewish is one of the top hospitals in the country. I saw great potential for growth in the area of my specialty --inflammatory bowel disease. I was also attracted by the fact that the chief of the division, Dr. Nicholas Davidson, was my fellowship director when I was a fellow at the University of Chicago.

Dr. Dassopoulas and family

Which aspect of your practice do you find most interesting?

I enjoy seeing patients and communicating with them, their families and doctors. I also enjoy clinical research and collaborating with my colleagues in surgery, radiology, pathology. I like the balance between academic and clinical work.

What new developments in your field are you most excited about?

Because IBD varies from patient to patient -- I’m most excited about the identification of new genes that protect people from, or predispose them to IBD. There are also a number of potential markers that may help us to better understand the disease process in each individual patient. These new technologies may allow us to better estimate the patient’s prognosis and response to therapy. In the future, we should be able to better tailor therapy to each individual patient.

An area of my own research is new endoscopic technologies to evaluate the severity of IBD and to detect its complications --- such as cancer.

Hopefully in our lifetime we will see a cure for IBD. I think that would be the greatest success. Now we just manage it medically or surgically. Our goal is to cure IBD in people who have the disease and to prevent it in people who are at high risk.


What exactly is IBD?

IBD has both heredity and environmental components and it falls into two catagories: ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s disease.
 
Ulcerative colitis is inflammation of the large bowel, or colon, only. Crohn’s disease is a chronic inflammatory disease that affects the small bowel and/or the large bowel; and less frequently, the upper gastrointestinal tract and anus. Some patients additionally have symptoms outside the gastrointestinal tract: inflamed eyes, joint pain, liver problems, and skin rashes. Gut symptoms for both diseases include abdominal pain, diarrhea, rectal bleeding, and weight loss.

It seems that there might be a greater heredity component with Crohn’s disease vs. ulcerative colitis. But genes do not tell the whole story. Most of the susceptibility derives from environmental factors.
We know, for example, that smoking exacerbates Crohn’s disease – or brings on the first attack. We know that in some patients, aspirin or non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs can precipitate or aggravate inflammatory bowel disease.

We advocate a healthy diet and exercise because a healthy lifestyle contributes not only to an overall better health, but may also improve the prognosis of IBD.

There is some connection between IBD and intestinal infections people may have contracted. We think that some bacteria that populate our gut during our lifetime can increase the risk of IBD. Other bacteria are protective.

Where are you from?

I’m Greek. I was born in Greece and I came to the United States when I was 19 years old to go to college. I then went to medical school and continued all my training here.

All my family lives in Greece. We visit once or twice a year for vacations and family occasions.

Do you have an achievement that is most gratifying?

I was involved in a clinical trial that was funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) – it was an innovative way of treating Crohn’s disease with azathioprine.

I am collaborating with computer scientists on capsule endoscopy, a new imaging technique, to recognize and grade lesions of Crohn’s disease. This research has also been funded by the NIH.
I would consider these the professional highlights of my career.

Of course, the most important events in my life have been my marriage and the birth of my two daughters, Elli and Alexandra.

What do you do when you’re not working?

I like to spend time with my family. I play in an “over 40” soccer league. I also enjoy bike riding. I’m not good at anything that has to do with plumbing, electricity or fixing things around the house . . .

What is the best advice you’ve ever received?

My teachers, Stephen Hanauer and Theodore Bayless, have taught me by example to listen and to focus on the patient. It is important to think of the whole patient. Ted Bayless has nicely put it this way: “It’s not only what the patient eats, but also what eats the patient.”

Is there a lifestyle change that could most benefit our health?

I’d say for Crohn’s disease it would be to quit smoking. For someone with Crohn’s disease, the power of smoking cessation has the same effect as adding a potent immunosuppressant drug. Quitting smoking not only helps a person’s general health, but it’s a lifestyle change that can have an immediate, significant effect on their Crohn’s disease.

See All Featured Physicians
Washington University Physicians are the medical staff of  Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Children's Hospital - St. Louis Employment   About Us   Top Stories   For Your Protection      Site Map
Copyright 2013 Washington University School of Medicine
Copyright 2013 Washington University School of Medicine