Priscilla Joe, MD
Associate Director, Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and Director, ECMO program
Medical School: University of California, Irvine, California
Residency: Children’s Hospital & Research Center Oakland
Fellowship: Neonatology, University of California, San Francisco
Board Certification: Pediatrics, Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine
Language(s): English
News Room: Experts Guide
Priscilla Joe, MD, Neonatal Intensive Care
Summary
Priscilla Joe, MD, is the associate director of the intensive care nursery at Children’s Hospital Oakland. She specializes in treating critically ill babies and can discuss a wide range of conditions and treatments related to premature babies and infants with serious illnesses, injuries or birth defects. Dr. Joe is especially interested in improving care for infants with heart and lung failure.
She is also the director of our pediatric Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO) program, which uses advanced technology to support infants, children and teenagers whose hearts and/or lungs are weak or failing. Children’s Hospital Oakland has one of only four ECMO programs in Northern California. Dr. Joe also volunteers with two humanitarian groups, Project Vietnam and the East Meets West Foundation, which provide medical training, funding and medical equipment to third-world countries. She travels to Vietnam twice a year.
Expertise
- Premature and critically ill infants
- Birth defects
- Chronic lung disease in babies
- Severe respiratory failure
- ECMO therapy
Compelling Fact
Respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) is one of the most common lung disorders in premature babies. It affects about 10 of every 100 premature infants in the United States, or about 40,000 babies, each year. In fact, nearly all babies born before 28 weeks of pregnancy develop RDS. Annual RDS deaths decreased from 25,000 in the 1960’s to 831 in 2003, most likely due to advances in science and medicine.
Sources: National Heart Lung and Blood Institute, American Lung Association and the National Vital Statistics Reports
ECMO therapy
ECMO, which stands for Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation, uses technology similar to that found in heart-lung bypass machines. ECMO functions as a replacement for a critically ill child's heart and/or lungs. It is used to support a child who is awaiting surgery, or to give a child's vital organs time to recover from heart surgery or disease.
Professional and Personal background
You can reach this physician by contacting Media Relations.
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