Omar Ibrahim, M.D.
Associate Professor of Medicine | University of Connecticut
Farmington, CT, UNITED STATES
Dr. Ibrahim's clinical interests include lung cancer, pleural disease, and complex airway disease.
Biography
Dr. Ibrahim is an assistant professor of medicine and the director of interventional pulmonary at UConn Health. He performs minimally invasive pulmonary procedures and is responsible for training pulmonary fellows in these procedures. Dr. Ibrahim earned his medical degree at Ross University School of Medicine, Dominica, and completed his internal medicine residency at SUNY Downstate Medical Center, where he was also the chief medical resident. He completed his pulmonary critical care fellowship at Thomas Jefferson University in Pennsylvania. After Dr. Ibrahim's general pulmonary training, he was one of three applicants chosen to complete an additional year of training in interventional pulmonary at Harvard Medical School, with clinical responsibilities at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and Massachusetts General Hospital.
Areas of Expertise (4)
Lung Disease
Interventional Pulmonary
Pulmonary Training
Lung Cancer
Education (1)
Ross University: M.D., Medicine
Accomplishments (1)
Pulmonary/Critical Care Fellowship Program: Excellence in Teaching Award (professional)
Presented by the University of Connecticut
Links (1)
Media
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Media Appearances (4)
New procedures to treat COPD at UConn Health
NBC Connecticut tv
2023-11-21
Dr. Omar Ibrahim talks about a new procedure for COPD using small valves called Zephyr Valves.
CT Ranks First In Lung Cancer Survival But Report Shows Outreach To Underserved Communities Necessary
NBC Connecticut tv
2021-11-17
UConn took one step Tuesday to close health equity gaps. “We’re providing fares for buses, or providing Uber rides, those kinds of things to make sure they can go get the screening that they need,” Dr. Omar Ibrahim, UConn Health Thoracic Oncology Director, said. “Bloomfield has predominantly African American community, and we want to make sure that access is provided to everybody. In underserved populations, screening tends to be an afterthought, and we wanted to make sure at UConn Health we put that forward and that’s our first step.”
UConn researchers tackle which chemo treatment is best for cancer patients
WTNH tv
2019-07-23
“The sooner we can start treating, lung cancer in particular, but all cancers in general, a patient’s prognosis improves,” says Dr. Ibrahim, emphasizing what’s being done here could be a game changer. He explains, “Now we’re not guessing or assuming the medication will work. Now we’ll know the medication will work.”
An Advance Robotic Tool is Enabling Earlier Detection of Lung Cancer
Connecticut Magazine print
2019-05-22
UConn Health is among the first hospitals in the nation to use new, more precise robotic technology that enables early detection of lung cancer, including in hard-to-reach areas. “The time involved with diagnosis is incredibly shorter, and that ability to detect cancers at an early stage means that we’ll be able to deliver better surgical management and care for the patient,” says Dr. Omar Ibrahim, UConn Health’s director of thoracic oncology and interventional pulmonology. “This is a tremendous advancement in terms of accuracy, early detection and diagnosis, but I also think this is just the tip of the iceberg as the use of this technology continues to evolve.”
Articles (4)
Safety of Laser and Thermal Therapy During Rigid Bronchoscopy Using Manual Hand Jet Ventilation
Surgical Technology International2021 Introduction: Thermal ablative therapies (laser, radiofrequency ablation, electrocautery, argon plasma coagulation) are often used during rigid bronchoscopy for the treatment of central airway obstructions (CAO). An airway fire is a feared complication that can occur during endobronchial thermal ablation. Materials and methods: This was a single-center, retrospective, observational study. A total of 175 patients were reviewed undergoing rigid bronchoscopy in the operating room and bronchoscopy suite requiring manual hand jet ventilation and thermal therapy between September 2014 and September 2018. The study objective was to determine the safety of manual hand jet ventilation during endobronchial thermal therapies with rigid bronchoscopy.
Treatment of Recurrent Respiratory Papillomatosis: Case Series and Review of Technique
Surgical Technology International2021 Introduction: Thermal ablative therapies (laser, radiofrequency ablation, electrocautery, argon plasma coagulation) are often used during rigid bronchoscopy for the treatment of central airway obstructions (CAO). An airway fire is a feared complication that can occur during endobronchial thermal ablation. Materials and methods: This was a single-center, retrospective, observational study. A total of 175 patients were reviewed undergoing rigid bronchoscopy in the operating room and bronchoscopy suite requiring manual hand jet ventilation and thermal therapy between September 2014 and September 2018. The study objective was to determine the safety of manual hand jet ventilation during endobronchial thermal therapies with rigid bronchoscopy.
Regenerative Metaplastic Clones in COPD Lung Drive Inflammation and Fibrosis
Cell2020 Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is a progressive condition of chronic bronchitis, small airway obstruction, and emphysema that represents a leading cause of death worldwide. While inflammation, fibrosis, mucus hypersecretion, and metaplastic epithelial lesions are hallmarks of this disease, their origins and dependent relationships remain unclear. Here we apply single-cell cloning technologies to lung tissue of patients with and without COPD. Unlike control lungs, which were dominated by normal distal airway progenitor cells, COPD lungs were inundated by three variant progenitors epigenetically committed to distinct metaplastic lesions. When transplanted to immunodeficient mice, these variant clones induced pathology akin to the mucous and squamous metaplasia, neutrophilic inflammation, and fibrosis seen in COPD. Remarkably, similar variants pre-exist as minor constituents of control and fetal lung and conceivably act in normal processes of immune surveillance. However, these same variants likely catalyze the pathologic and progressive features of COPD when expanded to high numbers.
Electrosurgical and Laser Therapy Tools for the Treatment of Malignant Central Airway Obstructions
Chest2020 Central airway obstruction (CAO) is associated with significant morbidity and increased mortality. Bronchoscopic electrosurgical and laser ablative tools have proven to be safe and effective instruments for the treatment of malignant CAO. Although therapeutic modalities such as electrocautery, argon plasma coagulation, and laser have been used for decades, additional tools including radiofrequency ablation catheters continue to be developed for the treatment of CAO. These modalities are considered safe in the hands of experienced operators, although serious complications can occur. This review describes various electrosurgical and laser therapy tools used for the treatment of malignant CAO along with the specific advantages and disadvantages of each device.
