Infectious Diseases

Since its inception in 1969, The Division of Infectious Diseases at Montefiore Medical Center has evolved into one of the most extensive and prominent nationwide and is home to the sixth largest fellowship program in the country. With a staff of more than 70 board-certified physicians and non-physician scientists, we are able to treat any kind of infectious disease, ranging from HIV to parasitic infections to Lyme disease. Moreover, we also tend to complex cases and have access to any treatment, including the latest available antibiotics.

Unparalleled Expertise and State-of-the-Art Technology

Our team is comprised of physicians, social workers, nurses, dieticians, nurse practitioners, clinicians, scientists, fellows, and physician assistants with expertise in epidemiology, social medicine, microbiology, immunology, parasitology, HIV/AIDS, human papilloma virus (HPV), tuberculosis, antimicrobials, and infections in organ recipients. We primarily treat adult through geriatric patients; however, we do see various children, as we have an excellent relationship with the Division of Pediatric Infectious Diseases at the Children's Hospital at Montefiore.

Not only do we have access to Montefiore's Department of Radiology and their most advanced imaging and diagnostic technology, but we also conduct the majority of our diagnostic testing in-house in collaboration with the Department of Pathology, distinguishing our division from most other hospitals that send tests elsewhere. By avoiding the time lapse of delivering tests to another diagnostic facility, our patients realize tremendous benefits, as we can review their pathologic slides, microbiologic specimens, and other diagnostic tests together with our pathologists and microbiologists in an expeditious manner. This process translates to the ability to draw on a broader range of expert opinions and make faster decisions on crucial matters, compared to most other facilities.

Programs and Clinical Services

The Division of Infectious Diseases provides the highest quality comprehensive care to both inpatients and outpatients with all types of infectious diseases, ranging from strongly suspected diagnoses to confirmed cases of rare complexities. Each year our award-winning physicians treat approximately 4,000 patients in our inpatient and outpatient units. We have more than 1,000 inpatient beds, and in our outpatient units we evaluate and treat patients both on a recurrent and one-time basis. Some of the more familiar diseases we specialize in include the following:

• Respiratory infections including pneumonia, bronchitis, and acute and chronic sinusitis
• Complicated skin infections including diabetic foot infections
• Follow-up for any kind of infection that required hospitalization (including severe pneumonia and other respiratory infections)
• HIV and AIDS
• Osteomyelitis
• Tuberculosis

Strides in Research

Part of the Division of Infectious Diseases' mission is to pursue better treatments and prevention of infectious diseases through extensive studies and investigative work. Not only have our physicians contributed to thousands of medical publications and textbooks, but many of our researchers are also recipients of grants from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to better understand concepts such as antimicrobial drug mechanisms and microbial pathogenesis for diseases (e.g. HPV, HIV, various fungal diseases, and tuberculosis). We also have one of the largest teams of researchers and specialists conducting translational, laboratory, and clinical research relating to various areas of interest, including:

• Complications of HIV infection, resistance to treatment, and long-term side effects
• Development of non-antibiotic treatments of infectious diseases
• Development of rapid diagnostic tests for tuberculosis
• Development of antibodies against staphylococcal infections
• Epidemiology of HPV (how it is transmitted and who is at risk)
• Mechanisms of fungal infections
• Mechanisms of resistance to antibiotics

Many of these clinical and laboratory projects are collaborative efforts with other departments at Montefiore Medical Center to maximize our resources with the goal of developing more preventive measures and effective treatments for certain diseases. Additionally, our fellowship curriculum at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine provides an active foundation for participation in a myriad of research endeavors.

Take the Infectious Diseases Fellowship Program Virtual Tour See why so many applicants choose Montefiore-Einstein Launch Tour