Dr. Joseph Woo
, Heart Surgeon

"My San Francisco cardiologist told me of Dr. Woo "you probably can't do any better". Stanford had recently recruited Dr. Woo from PA and was hired as their chair of CT Surgery. I had a composite valve graft (CVG) and he was very certain that was the proper procedure, rather than waiting until the surgery to see if the root needed to be replaced (in addition to the ascending aorta; another surgeon had suggested he would inspect the root first, to possibly avoid having to dis/re-connect the coronary arteries). Dr. Woo's reputation and certainty are what sold me. The Stanford nurses and Chief Resident and Anesthesiologist and all the PAs were all excellent and enthusiastic too. Dr. Woo didn't get too excited by technical questions, but was friendly enough. He knew what needed to be done and how to do it. My recovery was right on schedule without complications, and my 5.5" scar (I thought it would be larger...amazing) is healing nicely. I think my cardiologist was right. "

Posted by Phil Capitolo, Aortic Valve, Valve Replacement, Median Sternotomy, Root Replacement, 09/14/2015

"Done at HUP in Philadelphia. Took only 2 hours and 17 minutes. Stayed in hospital 2 weeks instead of the normal 1 week because of slight draining during second week. 79 years old at the time. Dr. Woo is a bit aloof in the beginning but warms up if you kid with him. He has a great team and a year later I feel fine- no problems."

Posted by Irene Asley, Aortic Valve, Valve Replacement, 08/16/2011

"Dr. Woo is very confident in his abilities and borderlines on cocky.However, this attitude is what sealed the deal on choosing him as my surgeon. I had went into surgery expecting a mechanical AV Replacement. However, during my initial consultation with Dr. Woo, he said that if he can figure out what is causing blood turbulance and if he thinks a repair will fix my severe reguritation, then he is going to perform an AV repair instead. When I woke up my family told me he was able to repair my valve and a replacement wasn't necessary. Dr. Woo had told them that that there are only a handful of surgeons that could have performed the repair let alone considered it. On my way out of ICU (the very next afternoon), we ran into Dr. Woo and he said the repair fixed the regurgitation 100%. He was very happy to see me already moving up to the step-down ward. I had not expected to see Dr. Woo at all until my followup 6-8 weeks after surgery. However, he did stop by my room two times to see how I was doing. His NP staff was very knowledgeable, friendly and always made me feel comfortable before, during and after my hospital stay. "

Posted by Joe Sterner, Aortic Valve, Valve Repair, 05/08/2012

"Dr. Woo was able to accommodate us when we wanted to have the surgery quickly. He's very confident and somewhat cocky and therefore, he gave us the feeling that we were in good hands. While not warm and fuzzy, his expertise in his field was very comforting."

Posted by Ronald Kramer, Aortic Valve, Valve Replacement, Mini Sternotomy, 09/14/2011