Michael Awad, MD, PhD
Director, Robotic Surgery, BJC HealthCare
Director, Washington University Institute for Surgical Education (WISE)
Specialty Areas
- Foregut Surgery
- Surgery for the Esophagus and Stomach
- Laparoscopic Surgery
- Robotic Surgery
- Endoscopic Surgery
- Natural Orifice Surgery
- Incision-less Surgery
Common Procedures
- Robotic surgery
- Laparoscopic surgery
- Endoscopic surgery
- Revisional foregut surgery
- Paraesophageal hernia repairs
- Hiatal hernia repairs
- Heller myotomy
- Fundoplications
- LINX device/magnetic augmentation
- POEM procedure
- Enterra gastric stimulator/pacemaker
- G-POEM or POP procedure
- Pyloroplasty
- Celiac artery stenosis / median arcuate ligament syndrome (MALS) release
- Duodenojejunostomy (for SMA syndrome)
- GIST excision
- Zenker’s diverticulotomy, endoscopic
- Epiphrenic diverticulectomy
Common Diagnoses Treated
- Paraesophageal hernias
- Hiatal hernias
- Reflux/GERD
- Achalasia
- Esophageal diverticula (e.g., Zenker’s diverticula, epiphrenic diverticula)
- Gastroparesis
- Gastric GIST (gastrointestinal stromal tumor)
- Diaphragmatic hernias (Morgagni, Bochdalek, traumatic)
- Celiac artery stenosis / median arcuate ligament syndrome (MALS)
- SMA syndrome
- Peptic ulcer (gastric/duodenal)
- Gall bladders (acute/chronic cholecystitis, biliary colic, choledocholithiasis, biliary dyskinesia)
- Spleen/splenectomy
- Inguinal hernia
- Umbilical/epigastric hernia
- Ventral/incisional hernias that can be approached laparoscopically (generally 10cm or less, or size of one’s fist)
- Lipoma excision
