Faculty/Student Awards
SBU Med Student Selected By American Association For Thoracic Surgery for Intern Scholarship to Gain Exposure to the Field

Stony Brook University medical student Aryeh Keehn, left, was selected by the American Association for Thoracic Surgery (AATS) to receive the 2008 Summer Intern Scholarship in Cardiothoracic Surgery. He will work under the direction of Todd K. Rosengart, M.D., right, Professor and Chief, Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery, at Stony Brook University Medical Center. The program introduces the field of cardiothoracic surgery to first and second year medical students.

STONY BROOK, N.Y., April 9, 2008 – Stony Brook University first-year medical student Aryeh Keehn was selected by the American Association for Thoracic Surgery (AATS) to receive the 2008 Summer Intern Scholarship in Cardiothoracic Surgery. The program introduces the field of cardiothoracic surgery to first and second year medical students. Aryeh will work under the direction of Todd K. Rosengart, M.D., Professor and Chief, Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery, at Stony Brook University Medical Center during the scholarship period.

Mentored by Dr. Rosengart, Aryeh will work on a research project based on understanding the inflammatory response to open-heart surgery. The study will compare the body's inflammatory response mechanisms in patients undergoing open-heart surgery via a standard “open chest’ approach versus a minimally invasive approach, wherein the heart is approached via small incisions between the ribs. It is thought that the mini approach is associated with less bleeding and faster recovery. Aryeh will help gather and analyze clinical and lab data for the study. He will also assist Dr Rosengart’s team in putting together the research results into a scientific presentation and/or manuscript.

“The AATS summer internship will be an outstanding clinical and research experience for Aryeh, who is a bright, inquisitive and enthusiastic learner,” says Dr. Rosengart. “In addition to working directly with our team on a research project, he will have an opportunity to join me to observe in clinic and the operating room.”

“I am excited and enthusiastic to engage in the research and all of the learning experiences that will come my way during the program,” adds Aryeh. “I consider it a privilege to be exposed to the knowledge and skills of specialists in a major cardiothoracic surgery department.”

A native of Boston, Massachusetts, Aryeh graduated from Yeshiva University in New York with Bachelor of Arts degrees in History and Talmudic Studies in 2005. He volunteered in the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York from 2003 to 2006. Aryeh also worked as an assistant researcher in the Department of Orthopedics at Harvard Medical School and the Hospital for Special Surgery before enrolling at Stony Brook University School of Medicine in August 2007.

With the 2008 selection of a student from Stony Brook University School of Medicine for the AATS summer intern scholarship, Stony Brook University Medical Center joins a list of institutions such as Johns Hopkins, Harvard Medical School, Columbia University, and Stanford University, that have produced AATS summer intern scholarship recipients. This year the AATS selected 50 medical students from 36 institutions nationwide for the summer intern scholarship. Each student will spend eight weeks in a cardiothoracic surgery department and receive a grant of $5,000 for living expenses.

Established in 1971, the Stony Brook University School of Medicine includes 25 academic departments centered on education, training, and advancing scientific research. The primary mission of the School is to educate caring and skilled physicians well-prepared to enter graduate and specialty training programs.

© Copyright 2008 by Stony Brook University