INCIC ·
Ten years on: Javier López-Opitz looks back on his cardiac imaging training at Hospital Clínico San Carlos in Madrid
A decade has passed since Dr. Javier López-Opitz, an INCIC member, completed his training at the Cardiovascular Imaging Unit of Hospital Clínico San Carlos in Madrid, the foundation of his career in echocardiography, cardiac CT and cardiac MR.
On 31 March 2016, Dr. Javier López-Opitz, a cardiologist and member of INCIC, completed a year of training at the Cardiovascular Imaging Unit of Hospital Clínico San Carlos in Madrid, a high-complexity referral center in Spain, and set off back to Chile. Ten years later, he looks back on the period that, in his words, marked the start of his path in cardiac imaging.
Cardiologist, INCIC member
The training ran from 1 April 2015 to 31 March 2016. According to the certificate, signed by Dr. Leopoldo Pérez de Isla, head of section of the Cardiac Imaging Unit; Prof. Miguel Ángel García Fernández; and Prof. Carlos Macaya, head of the Cardiology Department, Dr. López-Opitz received specialized training in 2D and 3D transthoracic echocardiography, 2D and 3D transesophageal echocardiography, stress echocardiography, special techniques, cardiac CT and cardiac MR.
Echo first
Dr. López-Opitz describes that year as the stage in which he developed his skills across every echocardiography technique, in line with the Echo first approach: transthoracic, stress, transesophageal and interventional transesophageal echocardiography. It was also, as he puts it, the starting point of “the adventure of the rest of cardiac imaging”, cardiac CT and cardiac MR, which at the time could not be learned in Chile.
That training continued over the following years with further fellowship stays at Hospital de la Santa Creu i Sant Pau in Barcelona.
A foundation for comprehensive cardiac imaging
Dr. López-Opitz’s path reflects the training model that sets INCIC apart: cardiologists who first master echocardiography and then train in a dedicated way in cardiac MR and CT, to offer a comprehensive view of cardiovascular imaging for each patient. Five years after his return, Dr. López-Opitz was INCIC’s executive director when the Society for Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance featured the group in its 2021 newsletter.
Looking back on this decade, he thanked all the colleagues who took part in his training in Madrid.