David (dave) Koolbergen MD

Mr. Dr. DR (Dave) Koolbergen is a pediatric heart surgeon/surgeon for congenital heart defects in adults at CAHAL, where he works at the Hart Lung Center Leiden in the LUMC and the Hartcentrum Amsterdam UMC. Dr. DR Koolbergen completed his training as a cardiothoracic surgeon in Leiden in 2002 and then specialized as a surgeon for congenital heart defects under the supervision of Prof. Dr. MG Hazekamp. In January 2003 he obtained his doctorate with a thesis titled “The pathology of aortic and pulmonary homograft valves” in which he investigated why human donor heart valves are more prone to wear.

Within, but also in addition to pediatric heart surgery, Dr. Koolbergen has further specialized in heart valve repairs and valve-sparing surgery in adults and children. This includes the repair of bicuspid (two-slipped) aortic valves and congenital abnormalities of the mitral valve. In addition, he has extensive expertise in valve-sparing aortic root replacement and repair of the mitral valve in patients with Marfan's syndrome or other connective tissue diseases.