Pooja Prasad, MD

Dr. Pooja Prasad is a cardiologist who specializes in caring for patients with advanced heart failure and for those recovering from a heart transplant or experiencing pulmonary hypertension (a serious blood vessel disorder of the lungs). She enjoys following her patients over time and maximizing their capacity for exercise and overall quality of life. She is committed to shared decision-making with patients and families and to serving as a patient advocate.

In her research, Prasad is interested in advancing the diagnosis and treatment of a condition called heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF), in which the left ventricle can't relax enough to fill properly, increasing pressure inside the heart. She is also interested in improving outcomes for patients who receive a heart transplant, specifically through noninvasive techniques to detect organ rejection in those who receive two organ transplants as well as through noninvasive techniques to diagnose cardiac allograft vasculopathy, where blood vessels supplying the heart become blocked over time.

Prasad earned her medical degree from the University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry, where she received an award from the Gold Foundation recognizing medical students who combine clinical excellence with integrity, compassion, altruism, respect, empathy and service. She completed a residency in internal medicine at the University of California, Davis, followed by a fellowship in cardiology at Oregon Health and Science University and a fellowship in advanced heart failure and transplant cardiology at UCSF.