Rajiv Ashok Kabadi, MD

Rajiv A. Kabadi, MD, MS, is the Director of Cardiac Rhythm Management Devices at the MedStar Heart & Vascular Institute. He is fellowship-trained in cardiac electrophysiology and cardiovascular disease, and serves patients throughout the northern Virginia, Washington DC, and Baltimore regions. Dr. Kabadi specializes in diagnosing and treating patients with abnormal heartbeats, known as arrhythmias.

Dr. Kabadi's clinical expertise encompasses the entire gamut of clinical electrophysiology, which includes all varieties of slow and fast heart rhythm disturbances. His special interests include physiologic pacing of the cardiac conduction system and complex ablation of supraventricular and ventricular arrhythmias. Dr. Kabadi's approach with patients is individualized and holistic, and he emphasizes clear communication, using plain English to describe the diagnosis and treatment plan. When working with referring physicians, Dr. Kabadi recognizes the importance of close communication …and collaboration.

In order to provide exceptional care for his patients, Dr. Kabadi is firmly committed to a life-long pursuit of learning and advancing the rapidly evolving field of cardiac electrophysiology through research. His academic interests include mapping and ablation of complex arrhythmias, atrial fibrillation, novel cardiac pacing techniques, and ablation using hybrid approaches for supraventricular and ventricular tachycardias. Dr. Kabadi's research works have appeared in highly respected journals such as Heart Rhythm, the Journal of Cardiovascular Electrophysiology, and PACE. He holds active memberships with the American College of Physicians, the Heart Rhythm Society, and the American College of Cardiology.

As an undergraduate student, Dr. Kabadi studied biomedical engineering and graduated cum laude from Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, NJ. Realizing that he wanted to use the technology he was designing to help people, he went on to earn his medical degree from New York Medical College in Valhalla, NY. At this prestigious private institution, he was inducted into the Alpha Omega Medical Honor Society for his outstanding academic performance.

After graduation, he completed his internal medicine residency training at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia, PA, where he spearheaded multiple investigator-initiated clinical studies and independently completed advanced graduate coursework in human clinical investigations. From there, he pursued advanced fellowship training in cardiovascular disease at the Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond, VA. During this time, he conducted research into the role of frequent premature ventricular contractions in the development of cardiomyopathy and was recognized with the Outstanding Fellow Scholar Award presented by the Department of Medicine. Prior to joining the faculty at the MedStar Heart and Vascular Institute, Dr. Kabadi was a fellow in clinical cardiac electrophysiology at MedStar Georgetown University Hospital/MedStar Washington Hospital Center.

Dr. Kabadi enjoys spending time with his family, traveling the world, exercising and weight-lifting, and exploring the many international cuisines in the Washington DC metropolitan area.

Philosophy of care

Our patients place an incalculable level of trust in their healthcare providers, and the only strategy I have to be worthy of such tremendous responsibility is to treat each one the way I would my own family members. My goal at the end of each and every encounter is for my patients and their loved ones to walk away with a clear understanding of their personalized treatment plans. I hope that they leave my office feeling empowered over their medical care, minimizing any loss of agency they may experience at the hands of their disease. I know that each patient is unique, and I want to listen to their stories to ensure that I create an effective treat