Chalani Ellepola, DO

Education

About

I have been fortunate to work with and learn from countless passionate colleagues, many who share my mission and devotion: to improve duration and quality of life, school performance, social interactions and life-long success for infant, children and young adults with heart disease.

My clinical care, research and career goals have been to (1) improve the outcomes of follow-up care for infants and children with congenital and acquired pediatric heart disease and (2) utilize advanced non-invasive imaging modalities to investigate and develop strategies to improve outcomes and long term quality of life.

Clinical Interests:

My areas of interests are fetal echocardiography, as well as transthoracic and transesophageal echocardiography. I have additional expertise in cardiac magnetic resonance imaging of congenital and pediatric acquired heart disease as well.

Research Interests:

See above

Organizations

Selected Publications

Ellepola CD, Handler SS, Frommelt M, Saudek DE, Scott J, Hoffman G, Frommelt PC. Intranasal dexmedetomidine for transthoracic echocardiography in infants with shunt-dependent single ventricle heart disease. Cardiol Young. 2022 Aug 8:1-5. doi: 10.1017/S1047951122002074. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 35938539

Ghorbannia A, Ellepola CD, Woods RK, LaDisa JF. Validation of a Continuous-Flow Pressure Gradient for Coarctation Severity Assessment. Circulation 2021;144:A10882

Ellepola CD, Lin B, Goot BH, Johnson W, Woods RK. Limitations of Predicting Postoperative Left Atrioventricular Valve Regurgitation by Transesophageal Echocardiography. Circulation 2020;142:A15099.

Ellepola CD, Borsheim K, James J, Mitchell ME, Gudausky T, Frommelt PC. Giant Thrombotic Right Coronary Aneurysm in an Infant with Undiagnosed Incomplete Kawasaki Disease and Rapidly Progressive Cardiovascular Collapse. Cardiovascular Imaging Case Reports December 2019, Volume 3, Issue 6, 250-254.

Ellepola CD, Knight LM, Fischbach P, Deshpande SR. Genetic Testing in Pediatric Cardiomyopathy. Pediatric Cardiology 2018, 39, 491–500.

Beauchamp G, Ellepola CD, Beauchamp C. Evidence- Based Medicine: The Value of Vision Screening. American Orthoptic Journal 2010; 60:23-27.

View PubMed Publications

Awards

2011 – 2014 PCOM Foundation Scholarship, PCOM, Suwanee, GA

2012, 2013 Gold TOUCH Service Award, 100+ volunteer hours, Awarded by the Council of Osteopathic Student Government Presidents, PCOM, Suwanee, GA

05/2012 Sigma Sigma Phi, National Osteopathic Medicine Academic Honors Society, PCOM, Suwanee, GA, Awarded to Top 25% of graduating medical school class

07/2014 Lambda Omicron Gamma Scholarship, Awarded by PCOM in recognition for active involvement in the campus and community, Suwanee, GA

09/2016 1st place, Pediatric Resident Jeopardy at the Annual Fall Meeting of the Georgia Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics, Atlanta, GA

06/2019 1st place Winner of The Best of CASE: Twitter Case Competition at American Society of Echocardiography Scientific Sessions 2019 Annual Case Competition

09/2020 2nd place Award Winner for Fellow Oral Poster Presentation at the Midwest Pediatric Cardiology Society (MWPCS) Meeting, Virtual 2020 Meeting

04/2021 Finalist for Resident/Fellow Poster Day, Department of Pediatrics at Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI