Gulf Coast Division GME Research Day 2026
The 6th Annual Gulf Coast Division Research Symposium was hosted on April 8th, 2026, at HCA Houston Healthcare Kingwood and on WebEx. It combines GME programs from cities in the Gulf Coast Region of Texas: Kingwood, Houston, Clear Lake, and Corpus Christi. The symposium is specialty agnostic, providing an opportunity for residents and fellows to network with others in healthcare outside of their area of expertise.
We extend our sincere appreciation to our distinguished keynote speaker, Dr. O. Daniel Odutola, for his insightful and engaging presentation on the responsible use of AI in research. His expertise and perspective were a highlight of the symposium.
In 2026, we received 102 poster submissions and of those, 9 projects made it to the oral stage. The results of the 2026 symposium are below.
Poster Awards
- 1st Place: Madison Taylor, MD — Allergic Contact Dermatitis to Medihoney Gel after Mastectomy: Role of Alkyl Glucoside Sensitization in Chronic Wounds
- 2nd Place: Puneeth Shridhar, MBBS — Pre-existing Bifascicular Block with Wide QRS and/or Prolonged PR in Patients undergoing TAVR: Case Series and Review
- 3rd Place: Christine Castillo, DO — Bridging the Gap: A Review of Gender Disparity in General Surgery
Oral Presentation Awards
- 1st Place: Suhas Tatapudi, DO — After Hours, Faster Reperfusion: A Multidisciplinary Quality Improvement Initiative to Reduce STEMI Door-to-Balloon Time
- 2nd Place: Yves Najm Mrad, MD — Automated AI Echocardiography: Agreement with Experts and Workflow Impact Across EF, GLS, and Volumes
- 3rd Place: Christine Castillo, DO — Bridging the Gap: A Review of Gender Disparity in General Surgery
Research Residents and Faculty of the Year
Clear Lake
- Resident: Yves Najm Mrad, MD
- Faculty: Maher Dahdel, MD
Kingwood
- Resident: Supritha Chintamaneni, MD
- Faculty: Sivatej Sarva, MD, PhD
Corpus Christi
- Resident: Ali Asghar, DO
- Faculty: Abhay Vakil, MD
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Tylenol or Toradol? IV acetaminophen vs. parenteral ketorolac for prehospital analgesia
Conrad Stallings, Kevin Crocker, Michael Wells, Nick Smith, and Casey Patrick
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Under-Representation of Women and Minorities in Structural Heart Trials and Practice: A Systematic Review
Yves Najm Mrad, Ahmad Al-Taweel, and Bahaeddin Shabaneh
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Unexpected Culprit Revealed After Mechanical Aspiration Thrombectomy: High Thrombus Burden Presenting With Junctional Rhythm Due To Occlusion Of Sinoatrial Node Artery, Originating From Left Circumflex Artery
Anush Agrawal, Dilesha D. Kumanayaka, and Anusha Putta
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Unloading the Left Ventricle on VA ECMO: Comparative Effectiveness of ECPELLA, IABP, and Venting
Yves Najm Mrad and Snehalkumar Patel
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Unwrapping the Candy Cane: An Underrecognized Cause of Postoperative Abdominal Pain
Priscilla Itua, Uzma Ali, Mohammad Mahdi, Osamah Salim, and Sarib Sultan
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Watery Diarrhea and Hypotension: A Missed Clue to Adrenal Crisis in a Patient with Addison's Disease
Wafa Mehboob, Umema Irfan, and Keyaben Patel
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When Arteries Twist and Kidneys Shrink: A Case of FMD with RUQ Pain
Brian Nguyen, Ephrem Demie, Jeffrey Lesser, and Rajeev Raghavan
