Biographical summary
Victor E. Ortega, M.D., PhD, is a pulmonary disease specialist and a genetic epidemiologist with a specialty interest in respiratory airways diseases.
His clinical focus includes:
- Expertise in the characterization and individualized management of asthma, especially asthma that is severe or difficult to control.
- Expertise in the diagnosis and management of bronchiectasis caused by allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis, impaired immunity, and impaired airway ciliary clearance (primary ciliary dyskinesia).
- Expertise in the diagnosis and management of early-onset chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), emphysema, and bronchiectasis caused by alpha1-antitrypsin deficiency.
- Expertise in the diagnosis of undiagnosed or unresolved diseases of the respiratory airways, sometimes through the use of genotyping or gene sequencing technologies.
- Complex coordination of multi-disciplinary clinical and research teams for the diagnosis, individualized management, and study of unresolved, undiagnosed, and orphan lung airway diseases impacting the airways.
He leads genomic research studies across multiple different network funded by the National Institutes of Health National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute focused on how variation in an individual's genes can influence or alter the risk for more severe asthma, COPD, emphysema, and impaired response to commonly used drugs (a line of research called pharmacogenetics). His research champions ethnic and racial diversity to improve inclusion in genetic studies focused on understanding health disparities.
Conditions treated
Procedures performed
- Bronchoalveolar lavage
- Bronchoscopy
- Pulmonary function test
- Spirometry with bronchodilator
- Thoracentesis
Interests
- Asthma, especially asthma that is severe or difficult to control.
- Bronchiectasis caused by allergic bronchopulmonary aspergillosis, impaired immunity, and impaired airway ciliary clearance (primary ciliary dyskinesia).
- Early-onset chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), emphysema, and bronchiectasis caused by alpha1-antitrypsin deficiency.
- Unresolved, undiagnosed, and orphan lung airway diseases impacting the airways.
Mayo Clinic locations
Education
- 2016
PhD - Molecular Medicine and Translational Science ProgramWake Forest University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences
- 2010
Fellowship - Pulmonary Diseases and Critical Care MedicineWake Forest Baptist Medical Center
- 2005
Residency - Internal MedicineDepartment of Internal Medicine, Cleveland Clinic Foundation
- 2003
Internship - Internal MedicineDepartment of Internal Medicine, Cleveland Clinic Foundation
- 2002
MD - MedicinePonce School of Medicine
- 1998
BS - ChemistryTulane University
Activities and honors
Certifications
- 2010
Critical Care MedicineAmerican Board of Internal Medicine
- 2009
Pulmonary DiseaseAmerican Board of Internal Medicine
- 2005
Internal MedicineAmerican Board of Internal Medicine
Awards and honors
- 2021
Who's WhoAmerican Thoracic Society
- 2020
Honoree, Top Papers Published in 2019Department of Internal Medicine, Wake Forest School of Medicine
- 2019
Recipient, Mid-Career Investigator in Clinical/Population Science AwardWake Forest School of Medicine
- 2017
Medical Honoree - One of the Leaders in the Future of CF in North CarolinaAnnual Master Chef's Event, North Carolina Regional Cystic Fibrosis Foundation
- 2014
National Care Center Quality Award for the Adult Cystic Fibrosis Care CenterCystic Fibrosis Foundation
- 2010
Scholar, Translational Research AcademyTranslational Science Institute, Wake Forest School of Medicine
- 2010
First Prize, Basic Science Poster Presentation4th Annual Resident and Fellow Research Day, Department of Internal Medicine, Wake Forest School of Medicine
- 2009
First Prize, Basic Science Poster Presentation3rd Annual Resident and Fellow Research Day, Department of Internal Medicine, Wake Forest School of Medicine
- 2009
Second Prize6th Annual Respiratory Disease Young Investigators' Forum
- 2008
First Prize, Basic Science Poster Presentation2nd Annual Resident and Fellow Research Day, Department of Internal Medicine, Wake Forest School of Medicine
- 2007
Minority Trainee Travel Award RecipientAmerican Thoracic Society
- 2007
First Prize, Basic Science Poster PresentationFirst Annual Resident and Fellow Research Day, Department of Internal Medicine, Wake Forest School of Medicine
- 1998
Cum Laude HonorsTulane University
Professional memberships
- 2023
Invited ReviewerPublic Private Partnership (PPP) Grant Application, Lung Foundation Netherlands and the Dutch Life Sciences & Health Sector
- 2022 - present
MemberDigital Content Committee, American Thoracic Society
- 2021
Invited ReviewerDutch Research Council Vici Program Grant Application, The Netherlands Organization for Health Research and Development
- 2021 - present
President-Appointed MemberHealth Equity and Diversity Committee, American Thoracic Society
- 2021 - present
MemberAssembly on Allergy, Immunology, and Inflammation Program Committee, American Thoracic Society
- 2021 - present
Participant and Speaker on Genetics, Ancestry, and Distinction from RaceAmerican Thoracic Society Workshop on Race/Ethnicity in Pulmonary Function Testing, American Thoracic Society
- 2020 - 2021
ChairSection on Genetics and Genomics, American Thoracic Society
- 2020 - present
MemberIndependent Data Monitoring Committee (Acknowledged in Weinrich DM, et al. N Engl J Med 2020 [PMID: 33332778]), Regeneron
- 2019 - 2020
Co-ChairSection on Genetics and Genomics, American Thoracic Society
- 2019 - present
Co-ConvenerTrans-Omics for Precision Medicine (TOPMed) Asthma Working Group, NHLBI, National Institutes of Health
- 2018 - 2021
MemberCenter for Precision Medicine, Wake Forest School of Medicine
- 2018
SpeakerStudying Pharmacogenomics in Lung Disease and Critical Illness, International Conference Post-Graduate Course, American Thoracic Society
- 2018 - present
FellowAmerican Thoracic Society
- 2017 - 2019
Task Force ParticipantATS/ERS International Guidelines on Definition, Evaluation and Treatment of Severe Asthma, American Thoracic Society and European Respiratory Society
- 2017 - 2019
Co-ChairClinical Year in Review Program Committee, American Thoracic Society
- 2017 - 2018
MemberNominating Committee, Section on Genetics and Genomics, American Thoracic Society
- 2017
Co-Chair"Omics" of Environmental Lung Disease Mini-Symposium, International Conference, American Thoracic Society
- 2015
Young Investigator ParticipantThird Consensus Conference on the Physician Investigator Workforce, Alliance for Academic Internal Medicine
- 2015
Participant and Speaker on PharmacogeneticsWorkshop on Addressing Respiratory Health Equality in the United States, American Thoracic Society and NIH National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
- 2010 - present
MemberAsthmaNet Steering Committee, NHLBI, National Institutes of Health
- 2010 - present
MemberSevere Asthma Research Program (SARP3) Steering Committee, NHLBI, National Institutes of Health
- 2010 - present
MemberSubpopulations and Intermediate Outcomes in COPD Study (SPIROMICS) Steering Committee, NHLBI, National Institutes of Health
- 2009 - 2013
MemberAssembly on Respiratory Structure and Function Program Committee, American Thoracic Society
Publications
Research activities