Our Work

The Stanford Project

A Stanford collaboration to launch ultra-low cost corrective heart surgery for Tetralogy of Fallot, one of the most complicated forms of congenital heart disease.

Tetralogy of Fallot

What is it?

Tetralogy of Fallot is a complex congenital heart defect characterized by four structural abnormalities within the heart. These include a ventricular septal defect (VSD), an overriding aorta, pulmonary stenosis, and right ventricular hypertrophy. The condition leads to oxygen-poor blood being pumped to the body, causing cyanosis (bluish skin color) in affected individuals. Tetralogy accounts for 7-10% of all congenital cardiac defects, and untreated, children with this condition have a 25% mortality rate.

Treatment typically involves surgical intervention. Surgeons repair the VSD and relieve pulmonary stenosis through open-heart surgery. In severe cases, a staged surgical approach might be necessary, often starting with a temporary shunt to improve blood flow to the lungs, followed by complete repair at a later stage.

What we have done

By optimizing each stage of the patient’s journey, from diagnosis to post-operative care, with the goal of improving efficiency and cost-effectiveness, we innovated to reduce the costs. From implementing streamlined pre-operative assessments, using advanced imaging techniques for precise surgical planning, optimizing resource allocation in the operating room, and implementing team-based care efforts to expedite recovery we were able to minimize clinical costs, shorten hospital stays, and reduce overall treatment costs while maintaining high-quality patient care.

From our work, we reduced the cost of Tetralogy of Fallot surgery to <$2000 per patient, all of which is covered by private philanthropy.

Our Team

Founder: Wasan Kumar

Business Lead: Shailendra Shrivasta

Hospital Administrative Lead: Sowmya Jandhalaya, Manju Jaggadish

Philanthropic Support: Ravikaran Sripada, Sundar Kamath

Physician Lead: Dr. Snehal Kulkarni, MBBS

Analyst Team: Vikram Jindal, Sherry Gupta, Aravind Thiagarajan

Clinical Advisor: Dr. Kanwaljeet Anand MD

Healthcare Implementation Advisor: Sara Singer MBA, PhD