Kokotsakis Ioannis

Mr. Ioannis Kokotsakis is a physician with extensive experience in clinical practice, research, and medical education. He began his career at Hygeia Hospital and subsequently served for many consecutive years at the Department of Cardiac Surgery of Evangelismos Hospital, where he also held the position of Department Director.

Throughout his career, he has performed hundreds of conventional cardiac surgery procedures annually, including coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG), surgery for valvular heart disease, surgical treatment of mechanical complications following myocardial infarction, and procedures for adult congenital heart disease. In parallel, he pioneered and further developed the field of aortic surgery, gaining extensive expertise and performing hundreds of procedures across the full spectrum of aortic pathology.

He has a strong background in scientific methodology and actively participates in multidisciplinary teams and scientific conferences.

He has also been involved in educational programmes and scientific activities, with particular emphasis on continuing medical education and the advancement of knowledge in the field of aortic surgery. His expertise has also been applied to complex aortic procedures performed, by invitation, at university hospitals, military hospitals, and other healthcare institutions.

Medical Degree (MD)
School of Medicine, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (1976 - 1982)

License to Practice Medicine
License No. 1693, issued on 18 January 1983

Resident in General Surgery
First Department of Surgery, National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, Laiko General Hospital, Athens (Director: Professor P. Balas, April 1986 - May 1991)

ECFMG Certification (1990)

Medical Specialty Certification
General Surgery (1991)

Clinical Fellow in Surgical Oncology
Department of Surgery, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA (Chairman: Professor C. Balch, July 1991 - June 1992)

FLEX (1992)

Clinical Fellow in Cardiovascular Surgery
Texas Heart Institute, Houston, Texas, USA (Chairman and Surgeon-in-Chief: Denton A. Cooley, July 1992 - June 1995)

Doctorate (PhD), School of Medicine
National and Kapodistrian University of Athens (1994)

State of Washington - Active Physician and Surgeon License (1995)

Second Medical Specialty Certification
Thoracic Surgery (1996)

Fellow of the European Board of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgeons (FETCS)
(November 2002)

General Medical Council (GMC) - Full Registration as a Medical Practitioner with Specialist Registration
General Surgery and Thoracic Surgery (April 2006)

• Associate Cardiovascular Surgeon, Spring Branch Medical Center, Houston, Texas, USA (Chairman and Surgeon-in-Chief: Demitrio G. Boulafendis), November 1995–September 1996
• Associate Cardiac Surgeon, Department of Cardiac Surgery, HYGEIA Hospital, Athens, Greece, October 1996–February 1999
• Cardiac Surgeon, Department of Thoracic, Cardiac and Vascular Surgery, Evangelismos General Hospital, Athens, Greece, since 1999, where he also served as Department Coordinator
• Honorary Contract with the Department of Cardiothoracic Surgery, St Mary's NHS Hospital Trust, serving as Senior Clinical Fellow in Cardiothoracic Surgery, December 2006

I. INTERNATIONAL

1. International Union of Angiology
2. U.T. MD Anderson Associates
3. Denton A. Cooley Cardiovascular Surgical Society
4. State of Washington – Active License as Physician and Surgeon
5. European Association for Cardio-Thoracic Surgery (EACTS)
6. The Society of Thoracic Surgeons (STS)
7. General Medical Council (GMC)

II. GREEK

8. Athens Medical Association
9. Hellenic Surgical Society
10. Hellenic Society of Thoracic, Cardiac and Vascular Surgeons
11. Hellenic Cardiological Society
12. Hellenic Society for the Study and Research of Heart Failure
13. Hellenic Society of Cardiothoracic and Vascular Anaesthesia
14. Scientific Association of Physicians of Evangelismos General Hospital

1. The following publication was selected by Terumo Aortic (Vascutek) as a reference for the implantation technique of this specific graft: Thoracoabdominal Aneurysm Repair Using a Four-Branched Thoracoabdominal Graft: A Case Series
2. Kokotsakis J, Lazopoulos G, Ashrafian H, Misthos P, Athanasiou T, Lioulias A. Cases Journal. 2009 Jul 17;2:7144. doi: 10.4076/1757-1626-2-7144
3. Recognized by the US-based company Artivion as the only Greek surgeon and one of a select group of European surgeons for his expertise in the implantation of the E-vita device in aortic arch replacement procedures at Evangelismos Hospital. He received the “Outstanding E-vita Open Neo Implanter” distinction in Vienna, Austria, in May 2025
4. Invited to international scientific conferences as a Chair or Speaker

1. Debranching-first and proximal arch replacement for an innominate artery aneurysm: a case study.
   Lazopoulos G, Kalogerakos PD, Pavlopoulos D, Chaniotaki F, Dermitzaki D, Kokotsakis J. Perfusion. 2020 Jan;35(1):9-12. doi: 10.1177/0267659119856240. Epub 2019 Jun 15.
2. Failure of Endovascular Repair in the Ascending Aorta.
   Rorris FP, Tsipas P, Kratimenos T, Kokotsakis J. Ann Thorac Surg. 2020 Sep;110(3):e245. doi: 10.1016/j.athoracsur.2020.04.066. Epub 2020 Jun 4.
3. Frozen elephant trunk for blunt aortic arch injury.
   Rorris FP, Papakonstantinou K, Gissis I, Kokotsaki L, Velissarios K, Kokotsakis J. J Card Surg. 2022 Jul;37(7):2149-2151. doi: 10.1111/jocs.16534. Epub 2022 Apr 12.
4. E-Vita OPEN NEO Hybrid Stent Graft: A New Frontier for Total Arch Replacement.
   Rorris FP, Antonopoulos CN, Gissis I, Tsagakis K, Kokotsakis J. Ann Vasc Surg. 2022 Aug;84:211-217. doi: 10.1016/j.avsg.2022.01.034. Epub 2022 Mar 3.
5. Sizing the Frozen Elephant Trunk Based on Aortic Pathology and the Importance of Pre-Operative Imaging.
   Koulouroudias M, Velissarios K, Kokotsakis J, Magouliotis DE, Tsipas P, Arjomandi Rad A, Viviano A, Kourliouros A, Athanasiou T. J Clin Med. 2023 Oct 29;12(21):6836. doi: 10.3390/jcm12216836.
6. PET-scan in diagnosis of non-bacterial thrombotic endocarditis: a case report.
   Papakonstantinou K, Rorris FP, Stanitsa N, Kokotsakis J. Egypt Heart J. 2024 Feb 13;76(1):21. doi: 10.1186/s43044-024-00452-y.
7. Sustained Long-Term Results with Minimal Reintervention Rates in Patients with Frozen Elephant Trunk and Acute Aortic Syndromes.
   Rorris FP, Pitros CF, Antonopoulos CN, Papakonstantinou K, Kokotsaki L, Tsipas P, Gissis I, Kokotsakis J. Med Sci (Basel). 2025 May 1;13(2):52. doi: 10.3390/medsci13020052.
8. Should we ligate coronary conduits when flow measurements indicate competitive flow? a case report.
   Papakonstantinou K, Lerios P, Argiriou M, Patris V, Gissis I, Kokotsakis J, Dedeilias P, Tomos P. J Cardiothorac Surg. 2025 Dec 2;21(1):12. doi: 10.1186/s13019-025-03529-0.
9. Association of Obesity and Prolonged Hospital Stay With Surgical Site Infections After Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting in Intermediate- to High-Risk Patients: Insights From a Single-Center Study.
   Kyriazi P, Patelarou A, Katsoulas TA, Patelarou E, Alexopoulou-Prounia L, Kokotsakis J, Ilias S, Dokoutsidou E, Alamanou D, Giakoumidakis K. Cureus. 2025 Dec 11;17(12):e99013. doi: 10.7759/cureus.99013. eCollection 2025 Dec.

Telephone: 210 480 7401

Email: jkokotsakis@gmail.com