About me
Ajay Kadakkal, MD, is a board-certified advanced heart failure specialist at MedStar Washington Hospital Center’s Heart and Vascular Institute. He treats patients with advanced diastolic heart failure and congestive heart failure. He also treats patients who are in need of a heart transplant and require mechanical service support from devices like the left ventricular assist device (LVAD). In addition, Dr. Kadakkal takes a special interest in infiltrative and inflammatory heart conditions like cardiac amyloidosis and sarcoidosis, which are often underdiagnosed. He is dedicated to building MedStar Heart and Vascular Institute as a referral base and top local center for referrals for patients with these conditions.
Dr. Kadakkal is part of a strong clinical practice at Medstar that provides a variety of diagnostic tests, ranging from imaging to cardiac stress testing. As part of this practice, he contributes to a team that is at the forefront of LVAD device placement and management at one of the top LVAD implant centers in the country. Dr. Kadakkal is passionate about continuing to develop and improve the durability and size of LVADs. His goal is to contribute to clinical trials that will improve the design of LVADs to be fully implantable, smaller, and less intrusive to the patient’s quality of life.
He is part of a group research effort at MedStar Heart and Vascular Institute that involves a variety of clinical trials currently researching and providing new technology to patients who require mechanical circulatory support. His team is also currently building a database that observes patients with sarcoidosis and amyloidosis, looking at the difference in hemodynamic parameters among specific treatments for these conditions.
Dr. Kadakkal received his medical degree from the University of Virginia School of Medicine. He then joined University of Pittsburgh Medical Center for residency and fellowship training before completing a specialty fellowship at Stanford University Medical Center.
Philosophy of Care
“Today, cardiovascular care is heavily influenced by technology. For this reason, it’s important that I am able to offer my patients the most advanced technology available while adhering to evidence-based practices.
“I take the time to help each patient understand the process of his/her disease and clearly understand what treatment options are available to either improve his/her health or stay within the lines of what his/her goals of care are. I believe that a holistic approach to patient care provides the best results. The ability to provide compassionate care lies in the time I take to listen to my patients in order to provide them with the best quality of life and survival available to them by implementing what I feel is the newest and most advanced technology.
“I am available to share information with providers and coordinate care with them for any referral patients.”
Clinical areas of focus
- Advanced Heart Failure (ADHF)
- Cardiac Amyloid
- Cardiac Sarcoidosis
- Cardiomyopathy
- Circulatory Assist Devices
- Congestive Heart Failure (CHF)
- Dilated Cardiomyopathy
- Heart Transplant
- Home Inotropes
- Left Heart Failure
- Pulmonary Hypertension
- Ventricular Assist Device
Conditions and procedures
Conditions I treat
- Advanced Heart Failure (ADHF)
- Advanced Heart Failure (AHF)
- Alcoholic Cardiomyopathy
- Arrhythmogenic Right Ventricular Dysplasia
- Beriberi
- Cardiac Amyloid
- Cardiac Insufficiency
- Cardiac Sarcoidosis
- Cardiomyopathy
- Congestive Heart Failure (CHF)
- Cor Pulmonale
- Diabetic Cardiomyopathy
- Dilated Cardiomyopathy
- Genetic Cardiomyopathy
- Giant Cell Myocarditis
- Heart Transplant Rejection
- Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy
- Idiopathic Hypertrophic Subaortic Stenosis
- Infiltrative Disorders Of The Heart
- Left Heart Failure
- Myocarditis
- Pulmonary Edema
- Pulmonary Hypertension
- Restrictive Cardiomyopathy
- Rheumatic Heart Disease
- Rheumatic Heart Failure
- Right Heart Failure
- Right Ventricular Cardiomyopathy
- Tachycardia Induced Cardiomyopathy
- Takotsubo Cardiomyopathy
- Viral Cardiomyopathy
Procedures I perform
- Cardiomems
- Chronic Inotropic Therapy
- Circulatory Assist Devices
- Heart Biopsy
- Heart Transplant
- Home Inotropes
- Mechanical Circulatory Support
- Pretransplant Clearance
- Ventricular Assist Device
Practice locations
Distance from Change LocationEnter your Location
110 Irving Street Northwest MHVI-1st Floor North Addition Washington, DC, 20010
202-877-4698Fax 202-877-9393
Insurance
MedStar Health accepts most major health insurance plans. If you are uncertain as to whether your individual health insurance plan is accepted at MedStar Health, please call your insurance company.
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List of insurance plans we accept
- Blue Choice Advantage & Healthy Blue (HMO, POS)
- UnitedHealthcare and AARP Medicare Complete Plans/ UHC Group Medicare Advantage Plans HMO, POS, PPO
- United Healthcare Options (PPO) (includes Empire PPO, GEHA, Compass Rose)
- UnitedHealthcare Medicare Adv/Special Needs Plans
- UHC Community Plan of MD
- Private Health Care Systems (PHCS) (PPO)
- Medicare Fee for Service
- Kaiser Virginia Premier
- Kaiser PermanenteSelect-Added Choice
- Kaiser Permanente Signature-Added Choice
- Kaiser Permanente Signature
- Kaiser Permanente Select
- Kaiser Permanente Medicare Plus (Medicare Supplemental Plan)
- Kaiser Permanente Flexible Choice POS
- Kaiser MD Medicaid MCO
- CFBCBS Federal Employee Program (Std/Basic PPO/Blue Focus)
- CFBCBS EPO
- Aetna Innovations: HMO & EPO Plus
- Select HMO/HealthFund/Health Network
- Aetna HMO
- Open POS II
- Innovation Health: Open POS Plus
- Choice POS & Choice POS II
- Aetna Managed Choice Open Access (POS)
- Open EPO Plus
- Opoen HMO Option
- Open HMO
- Innovation Health: POS
- Aetna HMO-Open Access/Select OA/HealthFund/Health Network Option OA
- Innovation Health: Open Network Only Plus
- Aetna Elect Choice/ Open Access (POS)
- Innovation Health: POS Plus
- Aetna Managed Choice (POS)
- Innovation Health: PPO
- Aetna Open Choice (PPO)
- Innovation Health: Indemnity
- Aetna Traditional Choice (PPO)
- BlueChoice Open Access
- CFBCBS Blue Choice Opt Out Open Access
- HealthyBlue PPO
- CFBSBC Blue Preferred PPO
- Choice Fund PPO
- PPO and PPO Plus
- CIGNA EPO
- POS OA & OA Plus
- Network OA
- CIGNA HMO Open Access (OA)
- United Healthcare Choice
- Coventry Health Care National Network PPO
- Aetna Worker's Compensation Network
- Mamsi Life & Health (Indem./PPO)
- Optimum Choice Preferred (POS) & OCI Direct (HMO)
- M.D. IPA Preferred (POS)
- M.D. IPA (HMO)
- United Student Resources
- United Healthcare Choice Plus
- United Healthcare Select Plus (POS)
- United Healthcare Select HMO - EPO/NPP
- MedStar Select (MedStar Associates' Plan)
- MedStar Family Choice - Maryland Health Choice
- Tricare for Life (Medicare Supplemental Plan)
- Tricare Prime
- FIRST HEALTH
- First Health PPO
- Coventry of Delaware HMO/PPO
- Coventry Health Care of Virginia
- CIGNA Indemnity
- Great-West Healthcare POS/CIGNA
- CIGNA POS/Network POS
- CIGNA HMO & Network (HMO)
- CFBCBS (NCA) Indemnity
- CFBCBS Maryland Indemnity or PPO
- CFBCBS Maryland Point of Service Plan (MPOS)
- CFBCBS Blue Choice Opt Out Plus Open Access (POS)
- CFBCBS BlueChoice HMO
- Aetna Medicare Advantage HMO & PPO Plans
- Aetna Student Health Insurance
- Aetna Quality Point of Service (POS)
- Aetna Elect Choice/ EPO (Aetna Health Fund) Innovation Health: Network Only Plus
Education
Board Certification: American Board of Internal Medicine, Cardiovascular Disease
Board Certification: American Board of Internal Medicine, Internal Medicine
Board Certification: American Board of Internal Medicine, Advanced Heart Failure and Transplant Cardiology
Fellowship Program: Stanford University School of Medicine (2017)
Fellowship Program: University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (2016)
Residency Program: University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (2012)
Medical School: University of Virginia School of Medicine (2009)