About the contributor

• Jedediah A. Kaufman
• Dave R. Lal
• Brant K. Oelschlager

Jedediah A. Kaufman

Senior Fellow and Acting Instructor at the University of Washington Center for Videoendoscopic Surgery, Dr Kaufman completed medical school at the University of Minnesota, his General Surgery Residency at the University of Washington-Seattle, and his Laparoscopic fellowship in general surgery in June 2005. His research interests include esophageal, pancreatic and robotic surgery.

Dave R. Lal

Dave R. Lal received his medical degree from Creighton University in 1998. He completed his General Surgery residency at the University of Wisconsin in 2003 and then completed a fellowship in Pediatric Surgical Oncology at Memorial Sloan Kettering. In 2005 he completed an Advanced Minimally Invasive Gastrointestinal Surgery fellowship at the University of Washington. He is currently completing training in Pediatric Surgery at Children's Hospital of Wisconsin. Dr. Lal has written numerous book chapters and peer reviewed publications focusing on pediatric and adult surgical diseases. His primary interest lies in pediatric minimally invasive surgery and oncology.

Brant K. Oelschlager

Brant K. Oelschlager, Assistant Professor of Surgery at the University of Washington School of Medicine, received his M.D. from The University of North Carolina in 1995. He completed his General Surgery residency at the University of Washington in 2000 and a fellowship in Esophageal and Advanced Minimally Invasive Gastrointestinal Surgery at the University of Washington in 2001. He subsequently joined the Department of Surgery faculty in 2001. He is the Director of the Swallowing Center, a clinic, laboratory, and research section devoted to the research and clinical management of esophageal disorders. Additionally, he is the Director of the Center for Videoendoscopic Surgery (CVES). As director, he is in charge of a post-graduate fellowship in minimally invasive gastrointestinal surgery that provides training to two surgeons per year. CVES also facilitates the training of General Surgery residents and community surgeons in advances minimally invasive surgery. Recognized as a world leader in esophageal and minimally invasive gastrointestinal surgery, Dr Oelschlager is widely published (35 peer reviewed articles and 15 book chapter, along with numerous invited manuscripts). He is the principal investigator in numerous trials in the fields of minimally invasive surgery and esophageal physiology and surgery.