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Focus on Daniel Rosenbluth, MD

Daniel Rosenbluth, MD, is a professor of pulmonary and critical care medicine. He is director of adult cystic fibrosis services and medical director of the Jacqueline Maritz Lung Center. His areas of specialization include pulmonary disease, cystic fibrosis and critical care medicine.

Dr. Rosenbluth sees patients at the Lung Center in the Center for Advanced Medicine, 4921 Parkview Place, 8th floor, Suite B.

PLEASE CALL 314-454-8917 FOR AN APPOINTMENT.

What happened in the course of schooling to influence you to choose pulmonary critical care as your specialty?

I liked the fast-paced and exciting aspects of pulmonary critical care along with the high level of acuity of the patients. It is also intellectually challenging.

As a sub-subspecialty, treating cystic fibrosis (CF) was an opportunity that fell into my lap. As the years go on, I’ve grown to enjoy treating patients with CF more and more -- it’s very different from critical care.

In critical care, you see patients for a relatively shorter period of time and there usually is no outpatient contact. This contrasts with CF patients who are a much younger population than the typical medicine patient. Because CF requires more chronic care, we develop lifelong relationships with patients and their families.

What is cystic fibrosis?

Cystic fibrosis is an inherited chronic condition that affects the cells that produce mucus, sweat and digestive juices. Normally, these secretions are thin and slippery, but in cystic fibrosis, a defective gene causes the secretions to become thick and sticky. Instead of acting as a lubricant, the secretions plug up tubes, ducts and passageways, especially in the pancreas and lungs. It’s a life-threatening disorder that causes severe lung damage and nutritional deficiencies.

What brought you to Washington University?

I came here for my fellowship. I’m from New York and never thought I would end up living in St. Louis. I guess my wife keeps me here – she’s a native St. Louisian. This is a comfortable place to live and a good place to raise a family.

Did you have a mentor during your fellowship that influenced your decision to stay here?

It wasn’t one specific person, but the entire group of people in pulmonary medicine was great both then and now. Plus, the whole academic environment of the university is very stimulating.

Which aspect of your practice is most interesting?

I enjoy it all, quite honestly -- from critical care to pulmonary medicine to CF. Some of the most interesting aspects in treating patients with CF are the recent advances in drug development. This is exciting because it will create a new paradigm for how we treat the disease. Such advances should be valuable in extending people’s quality of and length of life.

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

In the past, we would treat lung infections, inflammation and airway clearance -- now we’re looking at therapies for the disease at the molecular level. We’re not just treating the symptoms, we’re treating the underlying disease. Protein correction and protein activation will change the way therapy is approached through medications.

We’ve been lucky to be involved in a huge drug development and discovery program for CF. There are important Phase 2 and Phase 3 trials that are starting to bear fruit in terms of future therapy. The first of these drugs had a very successful Phase 3 trial, so the next step will be applying for FDA approval. When these drugs hit, they will really make an impact on life expectancy. That’s an exciting area for the caregivers and more importantly, the patients.

Is there a particular award or achievement that is most gratifying?

I was fellowship director here for nearly ten years. Something I’m very proud of is the plaque I was given that lists all the doctors who trained under me. They are all good people -- many of whom are on faculty here now.

What is the best advice you’ve ever received?

Don’t overvalue yourself. A lot of humility is good for everyone.

If you weren’t a doctor, what do you think you’d be doing?

I actually have a degree in engineering, while I liked engineering; I realized it wasn’t what I wanted to do with my life. That’s why I went to medical school. So if I wasn’t a doctor, I would probably do something in the sciences, but I’m not sure exactly what that would be.
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Copyright 2013 Washington University School of Medicine