Mark Holterman, MD

Mark J. Holterman, MD, PhD, FAAP, FACS, joined the medical staff at Rush University Medical Center in 2000. He is currently an attending physician in the departments of surgery and pediatrics and heads the Section of Pediatric Surgery at Rush Children’s Hospital.

Dr. Holterman received his medical and graduate degrees from the University of Virginia, School of Medicine, where he also completed his residency in general surgery. He then completed his pediatric surgery fellowship at the Seattle Children’s Hospital and served as an instructor in surgery for the University of Washington.

He received his board certification in general surgery in 1994 and his certification in pediatric surgery in 1998. Dr.Holterman performed postdoctoral clinical research at the Clinical Research Institute of Montreal. He is a fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics and of the American College of Surgeons. He is a member of the American Pediatric Surgical Association.

Dr Holterman has a special interest in biliary atresia, thoracic surgery, short bowel syndrome, congenital defects of the gastrointestinal tract, chest wall abnormalities and abdominal wall defects. Dr. Holterman is skilled in a number of specialty procedures, including the correction of chest wall deformities such as pectus excavatum, pectus carinatum and Poland syndrome. Minimally invasive surgery has become a large part of Dr Holterman’s practice; this includes thoracoscopic surgery for lung and esophagus problems and laparoscopic surgery for problems involving organs in the abdominal cavity. Dr Holterman is also a leader in pediatric weight-loss surgery.

Dr. Holterman is active in the research and the development of new approaches to challenging pediatric surgical problems and new medical devices. He has published numerous articles and continues to give presentation in new approaches to embryology education. His research interests include antigen specific control of the immune system, drug discovery to improve wound healing, umbilical cord stem cells and islet cell transplantation.

Dr. Holterman’s patients relate to him on a very personal level and often treat him as a member of their family. His dedication to children extends beyond the hospital walls to the villages of the Dominican Republic, where he performs surgery on children who cannot afford medical services.