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About Victor Pretorius, MBChB

Victor (Gert) Pretorius, MBChB, is a board-certified cardiothoracic surgeon who specializes in lead management. Pacemakers and implantable cardioverter-defibrillators (ICDs) deliver energy to the heart through thin, flexible wires called leads. When these leads are not working properly - because of infection, damage, or surrounding scar tissue - they need to be removed.

Dr. Pretorius performs a minimally invasive procedure called laser lead extraction to cut through scar tissue surrounding the lead, allowing it to be easily removed. Dr. Pretorius is surgical director of UC San Diego Health's heart transplant program, which provides comprehensive and compassionate care from a multidisciplinary team of experts in the fields of advanced heart failure, cardiac surgery and cardiac transplantation.

As a professor in the Department of Surgery at UC San Diego School of Medicine, Dr. Pretorius publishes papers about the procedure and presents his findings at conferences around the world.

He completed a fellowship in pulmonary thromboendarterectomy at UC San Diego School of Medicine and a residency in cardiac surgery at University of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada. He earned his medical degree (MBChB) from the University of Pretoria School of Medicine in his native South Africa. Dr. Pretorius is a Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of Canada (FRCSC). FRCSC is equivalent to board certification in the U.S. Prior to his residency training.

Dr. Pretorius was a general practitioner for five years in South Africa before immigrating to Canada. His broad experience helps him appreciate the needs of his patients on a holistic basis.

UC San Diego Health Links

For more information, see Heart Care.

Medical DegreeUniversity of Pretoria School of Medicine, Pretoria, South AfricaFellowshipUC San Diego, School of Medicine, San Diego, CAResidencyUniversity of Alberta, Edmonton, Canada
GenderMale
LanguagesAfrikaans
Date Joined Staff2010-11-17
Conditions and Treatments
  • Minimally Invasive Cardiac Surgery
  • Heart and Lung Transplantation
  • Aortic Surgery
  • Off-Pump Coronary Artery Bypass Grafting
  • Maze Procedure and Laser Lead Extraction
  • Pacemaker and ICD Lead Extraction
  • Ventricular Assist Device (VAD) Implantation
  • Cardiomyopathy
  • Heart Attack (Acute Myocardial Infarction)
  • Heart Failure
  • Heart Muscle Disease
  • Heart Valve Disease
  • Heart Valve Repair
  • Heart Valve Replacement
  • Heart Valve Surgery
  • Laser Lead Extraction
  • Lead Extraction
  • Myocardial Infarction
  • Pulmonary Thromboendarterectomy (PTE)
  • Adult Congenital Heart Disease
  • Heart Valve Program
  • Hypertrophic Cardiomyopathy
  • Chronic thromboembolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH)
Cardiology
PULMONOLOGY_(LUNG)
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Videos

Meet Dr. Victor Pretorius, Heart Transplant Surgical Director

Meet Dr. Victor Pretorius, Heart Transplant Surgical Director

Open Payments Program Notification

For informational purposes only, a link to the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Open Payments web page is provided here. The federal Physician Payments Sunshine Act requires that detailed information about payment and other payments of value worth over ten dollars ($10) from manufacturers of drugs, medical devices, and biologics to physicians and teaching hospitals be made available to the public.

View Open Payments Data for Dr. Pretorius