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Robert Pass MD

Director, Pediatric Electrophysiology Director, Pediatric Interventional Cardiology
Children's Hospital at Montefiore (CHAM)
Appointment: Associate Professor of Pediatrics Albert Einstein College of Medicine

Medical School: Boston University
Residency: Pediatrics, New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center
Fellowship: Pediatric Cardiology, Children's Hospital Boston, Harvard University
Senior Clinical Fellowship: Pediatric Electrophysiology and Pediatric Interventional Cardiology, Children's Hospital Boston, Harvard University

Your child's pediatric cardiologist, Dr. Robert Pass, brings multiple skills to your child's cardiac care. As the New York tri-state area's most experienced pediatric electrophysiologist (EP) he uses sophisticated cardiac ablation techniques to treat your child's arrhythmia. Dr. Pass has performed over 1000 electrophysiology studies and over 500 arrhythmia ablation procedures. Prior to his recruitment to CHAM in 2008, he was the Director of Pediatric Electrophysiology at the Children's Hospital of New York Presbyterian and an Attending in the Pediatric Cardiac Catheterization Laboratory. Dr. Pass is also a highly skilled interventional cardiologist has performed over 4000 cardiac catheterization procedures in children and is an expert in non-surgical catheter-based repair of heart defects and the hybrid procedure

Hundreds of children with congenital heart disease have been spared unnecessary surgery-including open heart procedures-thanks to Dr. Pass' interventions. He has performed more than 400 delicate catheter-based procedures, placing devices to close holes in children's hearts and correct cardiac blood flow.

Dr. Pass pioneered EP therapy for treatment of children's arrhythmias. He has treated more than 1000 children using radiofrequency ablation-focused electromagnetic waves that precisely target and "zap" disruptive cardiac cells and leave healthy heart muscle untouched -including babies as young as six weeks old and weighing less than seven pounds.

The first pediatric EP in the region to regularly treat arrhythmic children with cryoablation-a technology that targets and "freezes away" diseased tissue-Dr. Pass has treated over 100 young patients with this highly effective, new approach.

Dr. Pass also provides care for children with implanted pacemakers and defibrillators. He currently treats the world's tiniest defibrillator patient. This baby was fitted with a dual chamber defibrillator at just four weeks of age, and his life has been saved "over 30 times in the last year and a half," says Dr. Pass.

Dr. Pass and his staff focus on helping families feel part of the treatment process. "We are very, very attached to our patients," says Dr. Pass. "We feel if someone is advocating for them-trying to see things from their perspective-they'll have a good experience."

Contact Dr. Pass 


Selected Publications

  1. Pass RH, Trivedi KR, Hsu DT. A new technique for endomyocardial biopsy in infants and small children. Catheterization and Cardiovascular Interventions Volume 51; August 2000.
  2. Pass RH, Liberman L, Al-Fayyadh M, Flynn P, Hordof AJ. Continuous intravenous diltiazem infusion for short-term ventricular rate control in children. American Journal of Cardiology Vol. 86; September 1, 2000; pp. 559-562.
  3. Pass RH,  Solowiejczyk D, , Quaegebeur J, Liberman L, Altmann K, Gersony W,  Hordof AJ. Bulboventricular foramen resection: hemodynamic and electrophysiologic results. Ann Thorac Surg 2001;71:1251-1254.
    Liberman L, Hordof AJ, Hsu DT, Pass RH. Ultrasound-Assisted Cannulation of the Right Internal Jugular Vein During Electrophysiologic Studies  in Children. The Journal of Interventional Electrophysiology 2001;  5:  177-179.
  4. Pass RH, Hellenbrand WE. Catheter  intervention for critical aortic stenosis in the neonate. Catheterization and Cardiovascular Interventions  Volume 55; January, 2002; 88-92.
  5. Pass RH, Hsu DT, Garabedian CP, Schiller MS, Jayakumar KA, Hellenbrand WE. Endovascular stent implantation in the pulmonary arteries of infants and children without the use of a long vascular sheath. Catheterization and Cardiovascular Interventions Volume 55; April, 2002; 505-509.
  6. Pass RH, Williams MR, Quaegebeur JM, Liberman L, Hordof AJ. Intraoperative radiofrequency linear catheter ablation of accessory pathways in Ebstein's anomaly American Journal of Cardiology Volume 90; October 1, 2002; 817-819.
  7. Jayakumar A, Hsu DT, Hellenbrand WE, Pass RH. Endovascular stent placement for venous obstruction after cardiac transplantation in children and young adults. Catheterization and Cardiovascular Interventions Volume 56; July 2002; 383-386.
  8. Liberman, L, Hordof AJ, Fishberger SB, Pass RH.  The role of isoproterenol testing following radiofrequency catheter ablation of accessory pathways in children. PACE Vol. 26; February 2003, Part 1; 559-561.
  9. Spotnitz, H. M., Spotnitz, M. D., Weinberg A. D., Pass RH, Hordof, A. J., Gersony, W. M. Decreased endocardial lead survival in infants. Clin Card Pac and Elect 2003; 915-919.
  10. Pass RH, Hijazi Z, Hsu DT, Lewis V, Hellenbrand WE. Multicenter USA Amplatzer Patent Ductus Arteriosus occlusion device trial: Initial and one year results. JACC Volume 44 (3); August  4 2004; pp. 513-519.
  11. Pass RH. Amplatzer Duct Occluder device: a new technology for the closure of the moderate-to-large-sized patent ductus arteriosus. Expert Rev. Med. Devices 2006 May;  3 (3); 291-296.
  12. Liberman L, Hordof AJ, Altmann K, Pass RH. Low Energy Biphasic Waveform Cardioversion of Atrial Arrhythmias in Pediatric Patients and Young Adults. PACE Vol. 29; December, 2006; pp. 1383-1386.
  13. Liberman L, Hordof AJ, Pass RH. Rapid Atrial Pacing: A Useful Technique During Slow Pathway Ablation. PACE Vol. 30; February, 2007; pp. 1-4.
  14. Silver E, Pass RH, Kaufman S, Hordof AJ, Liberman  L. Complete heart block due to Lyme carditis in two pediatric patients and a review of the literature. Congenit Heart Dis. 2007 Sep;2(5):338-41.
  15. Bankston JR, Yue M, Chung W, Spyres M, Pass RH, Silver E, Sampson KJ, Kass RS. A novel and lethal de novo LQT-3 mutation in a newborn with distinct molecular pharmacology and therapeutic response. PLoS ONE. 2007 Dec 5;2(12):e1258.
  16. Liberman L, Pass RH, Hordof AJ, Spotnitz HM. Late onset of heart block after open heart surgery for congenital heart disease. Pediatr Cardiol. 2008 Jan;29(1):56-9.
  17. Silver ES, Pass RH, Hordof AJ, Liberman L. Paroxysmal AV block in children with normal cardiac anatomy as a cause of syncope. Pacing Clin Electrophysiol. 2008 Mar;31(3):322-6.
  18. Ceresnak SR, Quaegebeur JM, Pass RH, Hordof AJ, Liberman L. The palliative arterial switch operation for single ventricles: are these patients suitable Fontan candidates. Ann Thorac Surg 2008; 86:583-7.
  19. Silver ES, Starc TJ, Pass RH, Liberman L. Variable morphology wide complex rhythm: what is the etiology? Ann Noninvasive Electrocardiol. 2008 Jan;13(1):92-4.
  20. Liberman L, Pass RH, Starc TJ. Optimal surface electrocardiogram lead for identification of the mechanism of supraventricular tachycardia in children. Pediatr Emerg Care. 2008 Jan;24(1):28-30.
  21. Pass RH, Liberman L. The implantable loop recorder in children: searching for indications. Heart 2008; 94:832-833.
  22. Torres AJ, Gray R, Pass RH. Transcatheter occlusion of antegrade pulmonary flow in children after cavopulmonary anastomosis. Catheterization and Cardiovascular Interventions 2008 December: 72:988-993.
  23. Liberman L, Pass RH, Al-Fayyadh M, Hordof A. Radiofrequency ablation of an accessory pathway in a surgically created atrioventricular Fontan anastomosis: Case report and Review of Previous Published Cases. PACE, Vol. 23,  May, 2000.
  24. Liberman L, Hordof AJ, Al-Fayyadh M, Salafia CM, Pass RH.  Torsades de pointes in a child with acute rheumatic fever. Journal of Pediatrics, Volume 138, February, 2001.
  25. Kanter JP, Hellenbrand WE, Pass RH. Transcatheter closure of a very large PDA in a pregnant woman at 22 weeks gestation. Catheter Cardiovasc Interv. 2004 Jan;61(1):140-3.
  26. Liberman L, Pass RH,  Kaufman S, Hordof AJ, Printz BF, Prakash A.  Left coronary artery arising from the noncoronary sinus: a rare congenital coronary arnomaly. Pediatr Cardiol. 2005 Sep-Oct;26(5):672-4.
  27. Liberman L, Hordof AJ, Hsu DT, Pass RH Failure of automatic capture verification in an epicardial pacemaker system J Interven Card Electrophy 2005 13; 235-237.
  28. Torres AJ, Hellenbrand WE, Pass RH. "Taking in the waist": Adjusting the size of a stented fontan fenestration. J  Interv. Cardiol 2005 Apr; 18 (2); 119-124.
  29. Kalpatthi R, Devas G, Pass R, Sharma J. Related Articles, Heart block in infant with atypical myocarditis: a case report and review of literature. Int J Cardiol. 2004 Jul;96(1):113-5.
  30. Johnson P, Fitz-James I, Pass RH, DeCeres A. Major Aorto-pulmonary  collateral arteries (MAPCAS)- Bronchial fistula presenting as tracheotomy bleed. Int J Pediatr Otorhinolaryngol. 2005 Nov 14
  31. Pass RH, Gersony W.  "Syncope and Sudden Death" Chapter in The AHA Clinical Cardiac Consult , pp. 254-255; Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, NY, 2001.
  32. Pass RH, Walsh EP. Basic Intracardiac Electrophysiologic Testing in Pediatric Patients - Chapter 4 in Cardiac Arrhythmias in Children and Young Adults with Congenital Heart Disease  (textbook published by Lippincott Williams and Wilkins, 2001), pp. 57-94.
  33. Pass RH, Gersony W. "Syncope and Sudden Death" Chapter in The AHA Clinical Cardiac Consult 2007; Lippincott Williams & Wilkins; NY, 2007.