Here are the surgeons leading the cardiology departments for U.S. News & World Report‘s top five hospitals for cardiology and heart and vascular surgery in 2025-26.
1. NYU Langone Health (New York City)
Glenn Fishman, MD, is the director of cardiology, NYU Langone Health in New York City. Dr. Fishman is a nationally recognized expert in cardiac electrophysiology and cardiovascular genetics. His National Institutes of Health-funded lab investigates the molecular mechanisms of arrhythmias and the development of the cardiac conduction system. He also serves as the William Goldring Professor of Medicine and holds joint appointments in neuroscience and molecular pharmacology.
2. Mount Sinai Hospital (New York City)
Valentin Fuster, MD, PhD, is the president of Mount Sinai Fuster Heart Hospital in New York City. Dr. Fuster also serves as physician-in-chief of Mount Sinai Hospital. A global leader in cardiovascular medicine, he is also general director of Centro Nacional de Investigaciones Cardiovasculares in Madrid and former president of both the American Heart Association and World Heart Federation. He has authored more than 1,000 scientific publications.
3. Cleveland Clinic
Samir Kapadia, MD, is the chair of cardiovascular Medicine at Cleveland Clinic. Dr. Kapadia is internationally recognized for his work in structural heart interventions. He has performed over 1,000 transcatheter aortic valve replacement procedures and published more than 1,000 peer-reviewed studies on coronary, peripheral and valvular interventions. His clinical focus includes complex coronary interventions, mitral repair and stroke prevention in TAVR patients.
4. Mayo Clinic (Rochester, Minn.)
Paul Friedman, MD, is the chair of cardiovascular medicine at Rochester, Minn.-based Mayo Clinic. Dr. Friedman is internationally recognized for his work in electrophysiology and digital innovation. A former director of the Cardiac Implantable Device Lab, he holds more than 40 patents and has published over 250 original research articles. His clinical expertise includes complex ablation, implantable devices and the use of AI in ECG diagnostics.
5. NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital-Columbia and Cornell (New York City)
Allan Schwartz, MD, is the chief of cardiology at NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Irving Medical Center in New York City. Dr. Schwartz has a clinical focus on valvular heart disease, and he was instrumental in launching the New York City-based Vivian and Seymour Milstein Family Heart Center and expanding Columbia’s cardiovascular service line. A longtime educator and researcher, he has helped build one of the nation’s leading cardiology training programs.
