Hypertension Expert Witnesses

Gerald W. Smetana, MD, Board Certified in Internal Medicine, is a General Internist with over 31 years of experience in an academic primary care practice at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston. He is also a Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School where he teaches internal medicine to medical house staff and also extensively to practicing clinicians in continuing medical education settings. Practicing in an outpatient setting, Dr. Smetana cares for a panel of patients that is weighted towards those with multiple chronic illnesses and high disease complexity. In addition to all aspects of office based general internal medicine, his areas of interest include Preoperative Medical Evaluation, Hypertension, and Headache. Dr. Smetana has been repeatedly selected as a Best Doctor in a national survey and has received a national award for scholarship in medical education. He publishes in the peer reviewed medical literature and medical texts, has edited textbooks, and has helped to develop national guidelines on topics in internal medicine. He has been invited to deliver seminars and presentations on various topics within his area of expertise nationally and internationally. Litigation Support - Dr. Smetana reviews cases for both plaintiffs and defendants, and has testified at deposition and trial as an expert more than 45 times. He has reviewed several hundred medical malpractice cases over the past 10 years both for plaintiffs and doctors. Dr. Smetana also consults for risk management insurers. His primary care, record review, and medicolegal consultation services are available throughout the United States.

Michael Blumenkrantz, MD, FACP, FACN, CNSP, dFASN has over 40 years of experience specializing in Internal Medicine and Nephrology. Dr. Blumenkrantz is an internationally recognized expert in Internal Medicine, Dialysis, Kidney Disease, Total Parenteral Nutrition, and Nutrition. Achieving the rank of Associate Professor of Medicine (in residence) at UCLA, he has been in private practice for the past 30 years. Dr. Blumenkrantz is a Distinguished Fellow of the American Society of Nephrology.

Litigation Support - Dr. Blumenkrantz has been offering litigation support services to counsel representing both Plaintiff and Defense for 15 years. Approximately 40% of his cases involve renal issues and the remainder are in the field of internal medicine. Dr. Blumenkrantz has been involved in 350 cases in the past 15 years and has been deposed approximately 120 times. He has testified at 30 trials and arbitrations.

Areas of Expertise:

View Dr. Blumenkrantz's Consulting Profile.

• Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, Residency
• Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center School of Medicine, Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center School of Medicine, Medical School

Anthony C Chang, MD, MBA, MPH, MS is internationally recognized as an expert in the field of Pediatric Cardiology. Dr. Chang has 30 years of experience and special expertise in Congenital Heart Disease and Perioperative Care as well as Cardiomyopathy and Sudden Death in pediatric patients. Dr. Chang has a master’s degree in Healthcare Administration from University of Miami School of Business and a master's degree in Biomedical Data Science from Stanford University. He also has a master’s degree in Public Health from UCLA, from which he graduated with the Dean’s Award for academic excellence. Doctor Chang - Being A DoctorDr. Chang has been offering litigation support services to the legal community for many years. His expertise is available to attorneys for both Plaintiff and Defense. Dr. Chang has been deposed and/or testified over 200 times since 1990. Areas of Specialization:

A world-renown leader in pediatric cardiology innovation, Dr. Chang is a member of the grant review committee for pediatric research at the National Institutes of Health. Respected in his field, Dr. Chang is a member the board of directors for the American Heart Association. Providing leadership in education, he has served with the faculty of UCLA School of Public Health (eMPH program) and has taught global health for UCLA’s eMPH. He also teaches pediatric cardiology to cardiology fellows and holds a volunteer faculty appointment at the UCLA School of Medicine. A prolific author, Dr. Chang is the chief editor of the textbook Pediatric Cardiac Intensive Care and the past president-elect of the Pediatric Cardiac Intensive Care Society (PCICS). He is the chief editor of the textbook Heart Failure in Children and Young Adults. He is a regular reviewer for “Circulation,” “Pediatric Critical Care Medicine,” “Critical Care Medicine,” and numerous other journals. Dr. Chang has been voted “Physician of Excellence” by the Orange County Medical Association and also selected as one of America’s “Top Doctors,” “Top Pediatricians,” and “Best Cardiologists” by several organizations. View Dr. Chang's Consulting Profile.

Ivy-Joan Madu, MD, JD, is a University of Southern California-trained Board-Certified Endocrinologist and Fellow of the  American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists. With nearly 40 years of experience in health care and medicine, and 25 in clinical practice, Dr. Madu recently earned a Juris Doctor in 2019.

Dr. Madu treats adults with Diabetes and Endocrine Disorders. She is an expert in Insulin Pump Therapy. She has medical staff privileges at St. Joseph Hospital, in Orange, California, and Hoag Hospital in Newport, California. Dr. Madu has been the Principal Investigator for clinical research studies in her field of expertise. She serves on the Board of Directors of Lestonnac Free Clinics and is the Medical Director of a Home Health Nursing service.

Litigation Support: Dr. Madu offers Expert Medical opinions for cases involving Diabetes,  Endocrinology, and  Internal Medicine standard of care. She has provided Expert Medical Opinion for the California Medical Board and for the Orange County Public Defender.  Her services include medical chart review, thorough reporting, depositions, and trial testimony as needed.  

Areas of Expertise:

View Dr. Madu's Consulting Profile.

Dr. Matthew Lee, MD, RPh, MS. is a Physician, Pharmacist, Pharmacologist and Toxicologist who also practices as an Expert Witness and Legal Strategy Consultant. Specific Benefits Include:

• Increased quality and integrity of written expert reports, based on an expanded knowledge base
• Time savings by only having to coordinate and discuss a case with one expert as opposed to two or more
• Since there is so much overlap between fields in the medical profession it is often hard to determine where one scope ends and another begins. This ambiguity is dramatically decreased , and scope increased by combining physician, pharmacist, and pharmacologist into one
• Communication skills of a pharmacist and experience dealing directly with the lay-public, in addition to the knowledge and background of a physician is extremely beneficial describing technical details to a jury
• Practicing in different realms within the healthcare field has allowed Dr. Lee to integrate the multiple facets giving him a unique and distinct perspective that no other expert has.

Case Experience Includes:

Education/Work Highlights     

• Owner/Partner of a nephrology practice
• Stanford University educated
• I have been practicing nephrology for 12 years
• I care for over 250 dialysis patients
• I am a medical director of two dialysis facility highly related for patient safety and quality by Medicare
• I speak at national events about hemodialysis and nephrology
• I taught nephrology and internal medicine to medical residents

My background as an expert witness over the last five years are below:

• I have reviewed over 40 medical malpractice cases for both plaintiff and defense.
• I have performed 13 depositions.
• I have testified at trial three times.

Awards.

• Castle Connolly Top Nephrologist
• America’s Top Physician in Nephrology by Consumer Research Council of America and named one of the “Top 10 Nephrologist” by the American Registry.
• Fellow of the American Society of Nephrology (ASN).
• Selected to serve on the Practicing Nephrology Group, the Nephrology Diversity and Inclusion Work Group, and the American Society of Nephrology Workforce and Training Committee.

Lloyd Marks, MD, MBA, FACC, is an MIT trained Electrical Engineer, Johns Hopkins trained Pediatric Cardiologist, and Inventor. Always active in both medicine and medical engineering, Dr. Marks has been granted 22 Medical Device Patents. He currently gives advice to academic institutions, investors, and corporations regarding the commercialization of medical technology.

Background Experience - Dr. Marks was in academic medicine for 15 years, as the Director of the Cardiac Cath Lab at St. Christopher's Hospital for Children and the Division Chief of Pediatric Cardiology at the Children's Hospital of New Jersey. He was then in private practice for 18 years. In 1997 he opened his clinical practice, specializing in Pediatric and Adult Congenital Heart Disease, where he provided clinical evaluation, electrocardiography, echocardiography, stress testing, Holter/event monitoring, diagnostic cardiac catheterization, and interventional cardiac catheterization.

After closing his clinical practice in 2015, Dr. Marks went to business school and obtained an MBA from the Haslam School of Business, University of Tennessee. While there, he wrote a business plan with financial projections for his startup company, MGI Medical, LLC, commercializing a non-invasive patient monitor for the detection of post-operative bleeding. Dr. Marks has successfully licensed 9 of his inventions to industry and assigned 8 to MGI.

Litigation Support - With his unique background in the field of medical device commercialization, Dr. Marks has been involved in protracted Patent Infringement litigation with a successful outcome. He is adept at explaining to a jury in lay terms complex medical technology and terminology, ranging from MRI readings to the difference between "clinical" and "statistical" significance. Dr. Marks' cases include all matters pertaining to:

• Pediatric Cardiology Medical Malpractice
• Medical Devices Standard of Care
• Intellectual Property Protection
• Invention Commercialization

Areas of Expertise:

View Dr. Lloyd Marks' Consulting Profile.

Paul R. Minton, MD, FACC, FACP, has over 40 years of experience practicing medicine as a Cardiologist. Certified in Internal Medicine and in Cardiovascular Disease. Dr. Minton is a Fellow of the American College of Physicians, a Fellow of the American College of Cardiology, and was Governor for the American College of Cardiology in Maine. Licensed to practice in Maine and Georgia,Dr. Minton continues to practice as he is highly sought after by the legal  profession for his expertise in cardiac issues,especially myocardinal infarction and sudden death resulting from work and personal injury. 

Specialties Include:

• Weaknesses in Strategies of Coronary Heart Disease and Acute Myocardial Infarction Management
• Legal Implications of Adverse Reactions from Cardiac Drugs
• Weaknesses of the Electronic Health Record and Impact on Patient Care and Outcomes
• Impact of Uncontrolled Hypertension 

• Litigation Support - Dr. Minton has been a consultant in Forensic Cardiology to the legal profession for over 35 years. His special interest is the impact of personal injury and psychosocial and work stress on the heart, and as factors in sudden death. Dr. Minton's cases involve: Standard of Care issues in diagnosis and treatment of cardiovascular diseases. His services are available to counsel representing Plaintiff and Defendant and include medical record review, written reports, depositions, and trial testimony when necessary.

Robert M. Stark, MD, has 40 years of experience practicing Internal Medicine, Cardiology, and Preventive Medicine. A graduate of Harvard Medical School, he is in full-time practice in cardiology and internal medicine. Dr. Stark is past-president of the Connecticut Society of Internal Medicine. He serves as Adjunct Clinical Professor of Medicine at New York Medical College. and Director of his hospital’s Cardiovascular Prevention Program.  Dr. Stark teaches residents and medical students as Adjunct Clinical Professor of Medicine. He also speaks frequently on cardiovascular topics for lay and professional groups as well as the media. Education: B.S.  University of Michigan  (Phi Beta Kappa) M.D.  Harvard Medical School  (Honors) Medical Residency  U. of Pennsylvania Hospital Cardiology Fellowship  National Institutes of Health  (N.I.H.)

Litigation Support: Dr. Stark has 20 years of litigation experience in state and federal jurisdictions. He has served as a senior member of his state’s Medical Malpractice Claims Review Panel, where he helped determine the defensibility of cases on behalf of malpractice insurers and individual law firms. He also had responsibility for advising on defensibility of cases for Aetna Life & Casualty and CNA Insurance, as well as for individual law firms.

Dr. has given deposition and trial testimony in over 125 cases. He specializes in reviewing and explaining medical treatments and potential complications of cardiac conditions, and in evaluating medical treatments for standard of care. Dr. Stark provides summaries and reports that are cogent and complete. He firmly believes that the ability to communicate effectively is as essential to medicolegal work as it is to quality patient care.

 Cardiovascular Disease and Internal Medicine Expertise:

View Dr. Stark's Consulting Profile.

Joshua A. Schwimmer, MD, FACP, FASN, is a Columbia-trained, double board-certified, full-time practicing Nephrologist and Internist based in New York City. He is on the medical staff at Lenox Hill Hospital in Manhattan and is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at the Zucker School of Medicine at Hofstra/Northwell. An award-winning physician-teacher of medical students and doctors, Dr. Schwimmer trained at New York-Presbyterian Hospital and the Columbia University College of Physicians & Surgeons. Dr. Schwimmer has published more than 30 scientific papers, abstracts, and book chapters; his scientific publications are cited in the medical literature and in textbooks; and his research has been presented at national and international conferences. Dr. Schwimmer is a fellow of the American College of Physicians and the American Society of Nephrology.

Degrees / Certifications: Nephrology Fellowship, Columbia University Medical Center, New York-Presbyterian Hospital. Internal Medicine Residency, Strong Memorial Hospital. M.D., University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry. Board Certified in Nephrology. Board Certified in Internal Medicine. New York State Medical License.

Awards / Honors: Fellow of the American College of Physicians. Fellow of the American Society of Nephrology. Clinical Fellowship Award, National Kidney Foundation of NY and NJ. Clinical Fellowship Award, Kidney and Urology Foundation of America. Medicine Fellow of the Year Award for House Staff Teaching, Columbia University Medical Center. Human Values in Health Care Award, University of Rochester Medical Center. Phi Beta Kappa, Wesleyan University.

Litigation Support - Dr. Schwimmer is a Nephrologist (kidney specialist) and internist (general medical doctor) available for expert witness consultations to both defense and plaintiff attorneys. His services include medical record review, causation determination, thorough reports, depositions, and trial testimony as needed. He has provided expert review and testimony in cases involving:

C. Michael Wright, MD, FACC, DABCL, FNLA, is board certified in Internal Medicine, Cardiovascular Disease, and Clinical Lipidology. With 30 years of experience, his main interest and focus is in preventing cardiovascular disease through a combination of lifestyle interventions, sophisticated risk assessment and, when appropriate, judicious use of medications. 

Litigation Support - Dr. Wright has been providing medical expert witness consultative services to attorneys representing both plaintiff and defendant for over five years. His services include medical record review, written reports, depositions, and trial testimony. Dr. Wright's cases include issues of: Cardiovascular Disease - Internal Medicine - Clinical Lipidology - Preventive Cardiology

Background - Dr. Wright is currently a Cardiologist in private practice at Scripps Memorial Hospital, Scripps Center for Executive Health, and a Staff physician at Scripps Memorial Hospital in La Jolla, California. Dr. Wright completed his cardiovascular fellowship at UCSD. 

From 1999 to 2007, Dr. Wright founded and served as CEO of the LifeScore Clinic. During this time, he performed over 15,000 comprehensive assessments on clients from all over the world. Dr. Wright combined sophisticated body imaging with extensive lab work, often including genetic testing and advanced biomarker testing. His published research, 20 publications in peer-reviewed journals, is the most comprehensive CT database. It demonstrates that standard chest CTs can be used to accurately predict cardiovascular mortality by quantifying the calcium in the coronary arteries. 

Dr. Wright is a voluntary Clinical Professor at UCSD, Department of Family and Preventive Medicine, where he mentors post doctoral students and assists with research papers on data collected at LifeScore Clinic. He is also on the LipoScience Advisory Panel and Speaker Panel where he counsels on the various density lipoprotein (LDL) particles in the blood and provides physicians and their patients with information to personalize management of risk for heart disease.