Dennis Kuchar
Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]
Dennis Lawrence Kuchar (b. June 7, 1956) is a cardiologist based in Sydney, Australia. He is one of the first cardiologists to have performed research on the signal averaged ECG. This groundbreaking research laid the groundwork for the current paradigm of ECG use for prediction of sudden death.
History
Kuchar grew up in Coogee, where he was the School Captain at Coogee Public School. He graduated with an MB BS (Honors) from Sydney University in 1978. In 1987, at the age of 29, he received his MD from Sydney University and FRACP from the Royal Australasian College of Physicians.
Kuchar is associated with St Vincent's Hospital, Victor Chang Cardiac Resarch Institute and St Vincent's Heart, specializing in cardiac arrhythmias, catheter ablation, pacemakers and implantable cardioverter-defibrillators.
Mentored by his close friend and colleague Victor Chang, Kuchar was involved in Australia's most famous heart transplant, that of Fiona Coote.
Kuchar made news in April 2007 when he noted that the new Lexus autolocking technology system could interfere with the settings of implantable defibrillators, with potentially fatal consequences.[1]
Professional appointments
Dr. Kuchar's appointments include:[2]
- 1979 Professorial Intern, Sydney Hospital
- 1980-1 Resident Medical Officer, Sydney Hospital
- 1982-3 Cardiology Registrar, St Vincent’s Hospital, Sydney
- 1984-6 Cardiology Fellow, St Vincent’s Hospital, Sydney
- 1986-8 Cardiology Fellow, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston
- 1988 Cardiology Fellow, St Vincent’s Hospital, Sydney
- 1989-93 Clinical Assistant (Cardiology), St Vincent’s Hospital, Sydney
- 1993- Staff Cardiologist, St Vincent’s Hospital, Sydney
- 1998 Director, Coronary Care Unit, St Vincent's Hospital, Sydney
Publications
Kuchar has over 50 professional publications to his credit.
Personal life
In addition to his work in cardiology, Kuchar is an accomplished painter whose artwork has been published and shown in a number of Sydney locations. He was the winner of the Oil Section of the Waverley Art Prize in July 2007.
Kuchar married Dianne Neuhauser of Melbourne in 1978. The two have a daughter, Cara, born August 2, 1982, and two sons, Ari Emil, born in 1984, and Natan Eli, born June 2, 1988.
On December 22, 2005 Cara Kuchar married Bondi dentist Dr. Haddon Suttner, a local family and cosmetic dentist.[3] Ari Kuchar is currently engaged to Chava Ben Avraham.
In 1997 Kuchar was included in the book Who's Who in the World.