4 answers
Katherine
Student
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Questions
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What’s the difference between being a Cardiologist and an surgeon?which one is harder??
I wanna know the difference between them. I wanna see what I would face if I choose to pursue either one of them
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4 answers
Tiffany Stephenson-Super
Senior Recruiter
25
Answers
Columbus, Ohio
Updated
Tiffany’s Answer
Those are two very different positions, yet they can overlap as well.
A cardiologist is a doctor focused on the heart. However, there are several different specialties within the realm of cardiology. You can be the type of cardiologist who test, monitors and prescribes medicines for heart patients. You can be an electrophysiology cardiologist, who specializes in the electrical system of the heart and often does surgery to implant electronic devices such as defibulators and pacemakers. You can also be an interventional cardiolgist who does procedures to correct heart problems and delay heart disease by conducting angioplasty, cleaning of the arteries and implanting stents to keep the arteries open. You can also be a cardiac surgeon for either adults or children! They do corrective sugeries directly on the heart to fix problems.
A surgeon is a very general term. There are too many types of surgeons to list here. However, it is important to note that surgeons typically specialize in one area - thoracic (the chest), pediatric (children), opthamologic (eyes), orthopedic (bones), onocologic (cancer), etc.
Both careers you asked about take a lot of schooling and additional internships and/or fellowships (working in your speciality under supervison for a few years). The hours are similar, but some specialties require more on-call (hospital environment or new to a practice).
Talk to a surgeon or cardiologist (go along with your family member if they visit one or call a local hospital and ask if they have a shadowing program)
A cardiologist is a doctor focused on the heart. However, there are several different specialties within the realm of cardiology. You can be the type of cardiologist who test, monitors and prescribes medicines for heart patients. You can be an electrophysiology cardiologist, who specializes in the electrical system of the heart and often does surgery to implant electronic devices such as defibulators and pacemakers. You can also be an interventional cardiolgist who does procedures to correct heart problems and delay heart disease by conducting angioplasty, cleaning of the arteries and implanting stents to keep the arteries open. You can also be a cardiac surgeon for either adults or children! They do corrective sugeries directly on the heart to fix problems.
A surgeon is a very general term. There are too many types of surgeons to list here. However, it is important to note that surgeons typically specialize in one area - thoracic (the chest), pediatric (children), opthamologic (eyes), orthopedic (bones), onocologic (cancer), etc.
Both careers you asked about take a lot of schooling and additional internships and/or fellowships (working in your speciality under supervison for a few years). The hours are similar, but some specialties require more on-call (hospital environment or new to a practice).
Tiffany recommends the following next steps:
Thank you for the advice, Tiffany.
Katherine
You are most welcome!
Tiffany Stephenson-Super
Waseem Jafri
Consultant ophthalmologist
36
Answers
Las Vegas, Nevada
Updated
Waseem’s Answer
Cardiologist treats heart problems, Surgeons treat disorders which need surgical treatment. It depends upon your interest and opportunity to work with what area you feel more comfortable.
Midwest Heart Surgeon
Cardiac surgeon
57
Answers
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Updated
Midwest’s Answer
Great question! One is a specific category (cardiologist) and one is broad (surgeon). There are of course many types of surgeons but I will answer from the perspective of what's the difference between being a cardiologist and a cardiac surgeon, since both work with the same organ system!
First, there are many types of cardiologists. General cardiologists often see patients in clinic and manage chronic medical problems pertaining to the heart. There are also specialized cardiologists for different diseases such as hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, pulmonary hypertension, connective tissue disorders, arrythmias, and many others. Cardiologists who diagnose and treat arrythmias are called electrophysiologists. Cardiology fellows may also choose to gain additional training and specialize in performing and interpreting echocardiograms. Interventional cardiologists do see patients in clinic but their primary practice involves performing interventions, which may include diagnostic catheterizations (e.g., coronary angiography), percutaneous coronary interventions such as stenting coronary arteries, and structural heart procedures, which are typically performed in conjunction with cardiac surgeons and include transcatheter aortic valve replacements (TAVR), mitraclip procedures, transcatheter mitral valve replacement (TMVR), and others. Structural heart interventional cardiologists require additional training after completing their interventional cardiology training.
Cardiac surgeons perform surgery on the heart and surrounding structures such as the aorta. Training to become a cardiac surgery can include on of two pathways:
1) Traditional pathway
-5 years general surgery residency (+0-2 years of research time)
-2-3 years cardiothoracic surgery residency/fellowship
-0-1 years specialty fellowship (aortic, heart failure, mitral, etc)
2) Integrated pathway
-6 years of integrated cardiothoracic surgery residency (+0-2 years of research time)
-0-1 years specialty fellowship (aortic, heart failure, mitral, etc)
Some cardiac surgeons and interventional cardiologists end up in a similar place working with very similar patients. However, they bring very different perspectives and their training in order to arrive at that place. In terms of time, training to becoming each is very similar at approximately 8-9 years in total after medical school. Since they are extremely different, it would be irresponsible to call one harder than the other, as both can be very challenging and will not be easy. What is "hard" or "easy" for someone will also vary by the individual and their skillset and values. Either way, pursuing these careers would promise to be extremely challenging and rewarding, if you decide this is best for you!
Please let me know if you have any additional questions
Arrange to shadow a cardiologist in an area of interest
Arrange to shadow a cardiac surgeon
First, there are many types of cardiologists. General cardiologists often see patients in clinic and manage chronic medical problems pertaining to the heart. There are also specialized cardiologists for different diseases such as hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, pulmonary hypertension, connective tissue disorders, arrythmias, and many others. Cardiologists who diagnose and treat arrythmias are called electrophysiologists. Cardiology fellows may also choose to gain additional training and specialize in performing and interpreting echocardiograms. Interventional cardiologists do see patients in clinic but their primary practice involves performing interventions, which may include diagnostic catheterizations (e.g., coronary angiography), percutaneous coronary interventions such as stenting coronary arteries, and structural heart procedures, which are typically performed in conjunction with cardiac surgeons and include transcatheter aortic valve replacements (TAVR), mitraclip procedures, transcatheter mitral valve replacement (TMVR), and others. Structural heart interventional cardiologists require additional training after completing their interventional cardiology training.
Cardiac surgeons perform surgery on the heart and surrounding structures such as the aorta. Training to become a cardiac surgery can include on of two pathways:
1) Traditional pathway
-5 years general surgery residency (+0-2 years of research time)
-2-3 years cardiothoracic surgery residency/fellowship
-0-1 years specialty fellowship (aortic, heart failure, mitral, etc)
2) Integrated pathway
-6 years of integrated cardiothoracic surgery residency (+0-2 years of research time)
-0-1 years specialty fellowship (aortic, heart failure, mitral, etc)
Some cardiac surgeons and interventional cardiologists end up in a similar place working with very similar patients. However, they bring very different perspectives and their training in order to arrive at that place. In terms of time, training to becoming each is very similar at approximately 8-9 years in total after medical school. Since they are extremely different, it would be irresponsible to call one harder than the other, as both can be very challenging and will not be easy. What is "hard" or "easy" for someone will also vary by the individual and their skillset and values. Either way, pursuing these careers would promise to be extremely challenging and rewarding, if you decide this is best for you!
Please let me know if you have any additional questions
Midwest recommends the following next steps:
Steve Kaufman
Recruiting
8
Answers
Parkland, Florida
Updated
Steve’s Answer
A Cardiologist is someone who studies or treats the Heart(heart Disease, Heart Abnormalities) where a surgeon is someone practices surgery