Leeds General Infirmary
Mr Sotiris Papaspyros
Consultant Cardiothoracic Surgeon · Cardiac Surgery Clinical Lead
Honorary Senior Lecturer, University of Leeds · MD, MRCS (Ed), FRCSEd (C-Th), PGCert Med Ed
About
Adult cardiac surgery, education and patient safety
I am a consultant cardiothoracic surgeon at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, based at Leeds General Infirmary, where I am Cardiac Surgery Clinical Lead. My practice covers coronary, valve and thoracic aortic surgery.
Alongside clinical work I am an Honorary Senior Lecturer at the University of Leeds. My academic interests are surgical simulation, the acquisition of technical skills, surgical ergonomics and team communication in the operating theatre.
I trained in Athens, Leeds and Scotland, completing the national cardiothoracic training programme with rotations in Aberdeen, Glasgow and Edinburgh, followed by a fellowship in aortic and thoracoscopic surgery at the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh.
From the archive
“Hello, my name is…”
In 2007 I was one of the junior doctors in cardiac surgery at Leeds General Infirmary. Among us was Kate Granger, who went on to become a consultant geriatrician.
In 2013, while she was being treated for cancer, Kate noticed how many of the staff caring for her never introduced themselves. With her husband, Chris Pointon, she started the #hellomynameis campaign, asking every healthcare worker to begin each encounter with a simple introduction.
Kate died in July 2016, aged 34. The campaign began here in Leeds and is now part of everyday practice across the NHS and around the world, a reminder that compassionate care starts with telling patients who we are.
Clinical practice
Operative practice
An NHS practice with a large urgent and emergency workload, including elective, urgent, emergency and salvage operations.
Coronary artery bypass grafting
Arterial and venous revascularisation, including complex and redo coronary surgery.
Aortic and mitral valve surgery
Valve replacement and combined valve and coronary procedures, including sutureless aortic valves, which I helped introduce at LGI in 2020.
Major aortic surgery
Aortic root and ascending aortic surgery, including emergency repair of acute aortic dissection.
Minimally invasive valve surgery
Aortic valve replacement through a right mini-thoracotomy, performed at LGI since 2025 with Mr Javangula, following a MICS preceptorship at the University Heart Center Dresden.
Patients are seen through the NHS at Leeds General Infirmary on referral. This website does not give individual medical advice. Guides for patients →
Teaching
Teaching and resources
I teach medical students at the University of Leeds, where I am Placement Lead for final-year students in Cardiology and Cardiac Surgery, and contribute to cardiothoracic surgical training through course faculty work, trainee supervision and FRCS (C-Th) exam preparation.
Courses and wet labs
Organised and taught
- Aortic valve simulation course for nurses and allied health professionals, 2026Yorkshire Heart Centre Wetlab, Leeds · organiser and faculty: suture materials, aortic valve anatomy and a hands-on simulation session
- Black Belt Academy for surgical skills, LeedsTeaching basic surgical skills with David O’Regan
- Intercollegiate Basic Surgical Skills (RCS), 2026Faculty, St James’s University Hospital, Leeds
- CCrISP: Care of the Critically Ill Surgical PatientFaculty, Leeds · 2020 and 2025
- PAR Excellence coronary anastomosis and PAR aortic valve and root coursesFaculty for more than ten years, wet-lab courses taught regionally and internationally
- CSU-ALS / CALS: Cardiac Surgical Unit Advanced Life SupportFaculty, Leeds General Infirmary · 2018 onwards
- Cardiac and thoracic simulation workshop, 2017Organised for the British Undergraduate Cardiothoracic Association
Courses attended
- Mastering Perceval Plus, York, 2026Focus session on sutureless aortic valves
- Mastering MICS preceptorship, Dresden, 2025Trans-axillary minimally invasive cardiac surgery, University Heart Center Dresden
- Global Masterclass, London, 2022Individualised aortic valve replacement in non-elderly adults, Royal College of Surgeons of England
- Heart Research UK Masterclass, Keele, 2019Surgery for acute aortic dissection (operator), Keele Anatomy and Surgical Training Centre
Surgical technique videos
A library of 18 operative videos covering cannulation, conduit harvest and every stage of coronary artery bypass grafting, plus simulation and skills training.
Browse all 26 videos Browse 48 slide decks Resources by topic
Educational content for healthcare professionals.
Talks
Presentations
Recorded conference presentations and a selection of peer-reviewed talks.
All recorded talks → · Presentation slides →
Selected presentations
- EACTS 40th Annual Meeting, 2026Elective isolated surgical aortic valve replacement in septuagenarians: 25-year multicentre analysis challenging age-based bias in the TAVI era (co-author)
- SCTS Annual Meeting, 2018Surgical approach to patients turned down for TAVI, and outcomes with rapid-deployment aortic valves
- Faculty of Surgical Trainers Annual Conference, 2016Acquisition of cardiac anastomosis skills outside the operating room using low-fidelity simulation and deliberate practice
- SCTS Annual Meeting, 2014Radial artery versus saphenous vein grafts in septuagenarians; survival and predictors of mortality in type A aortic dissection
- SCTS Annual Meeting, 2011Long-term outcomes after coronary endarterectomy; video demonstration of LAD endarterectomy by hydrodissection
- SCTS Annual Meeting, 2010Briefing and debriefing in the cardiac operating room
- Catalan Society of Cardiac Surgery, 2009Surgical training in the 48-hour week using simulation
- Association of Surgeons in Training, 2008Effect of bedside entertainment services on post-operative physical activity · Best research presentation medal
Research
Publications
Research spans coronary revascularisation, surgical education and simulation, patient safety and translational cardiovascular science. A Leeds cohort study of long-term survival after LIMA versus saphenous vein grafting to the LAD (3,308 patients, 2016–2025) is in progress.
Current research
- NURTuRE-AKI: Cardiac Surgery (Adults)Leeds Principal Investigator · national study of acute kidney injury after heart surgery and the progression to chronic kidney disease
- EASY-AS trialCo-investigator · international randomised trial of early valve replacement in severe asymptomatic aortic stenosis
- Leeds Institute of Cardiovascular and Metabolic MedicineClinical collaborator on translational studies using human cardiac tissue, including cardiac progenitor cell and myocardial MRI research
Book chapters
- 2018Acquisition of surgical skills: from novice to master. A fresh perspectivePapaspyros S, Lodhia JV, O’Regan DJ. In: Recent Advances in Surgery 39. Jaypee Brothers.
- 2015Operative techniques: coronary artery bypass graft surgeryPapaspyros SC, Zamvar V. In: PanVascular Medicine, 2nd ed. Springer. pp 2351–2358.
Journal articles
- 2024Sunitinib malate induces cell death in adult human cardiac progenitor cellsWalmsley R, Steele DS, Papaspyros S, Smith AJ. Curr Res Toxicol 6:100167.
- 2023Type 2 diabetes and myocardial structure, function, energetics and blood flow before and after AVR in severe aortic stenosisJex N, Greenwood JP, Cubbon RM, et al. Circulation 148(15):1138–1153.
- 2022Imatinib mesylate induces necroptotic cell death and impairs autophagic flux in human cardiac progenitor cellsWalmsley R, et al. Int J Mol Sci 23(19):11812.
- 2018Diastolic learning: making the tacit, explicitPapaspyros S, O’Regan DJ. Ergon Int J 2(5).
- 2015Surgical training: learning to fly at ‘Top Gun’ levelPapaspyros SC, O’Regan DJ. Ann Thorac Surg 100(5):1974–1975.
- 2015Surgical ergonomics: analysis of technical skills, simulation models and assessment methodsPapaspyros SC, Kar A, O’Regan DJ. Int J Surg 18:83–87.
- 2012Long-term survival from 801 adjunctive coronary endarterectomies in diffuse coronary artery diseaseAriyaratnam P, Javangula K, Papaspyros S, McCrum-Gardner E, Nair RU. Eur J Cardiothorac Surg 42(6):e140–e145.
- 2010Briefing and debriefing in the cardiac operating room: impact on theatre team attitude and patient safetyPapaspyros SC, Javangula KC, Adluri RKP, O’Regan DJ. Interact Cardiovasc Thorac Surg 10(1):43–47.
- 2009Surgical training in the 48-h week: a novel simulation and educational tool. From amateur golfer to professional pilotPapaspyros SC, Javangula K, O’Regan DJ. Eur J Cardiothorac Surg 36(3):511–515.
- 2008Bedside entertainment services and post cardiac surgery physical activity: a prospective randomised clinical trialPapaspyros SC, Uppal S, O’Regan DJ. Eur J Cardiothorac Surg 34(5):1022–1026.
Show all articles, case reports and abstracts
- 2026Aortic single point of referral processPena K, Haqzad Y, Abdelrahman A, et al. SCTS Annual Meeting 2025 abstract. J Cardiothorac Surg 21(Suppl 1):A23.
- 2024LVOT/annulus measurement by echocardiogram and TAVI CT in predicting prosthesis size in SAVRHaqzad Y, Sherif M, Rehman H, et al. SCTS Annual Meeting 2024 abstract. J Cardiothorac Surg 19(2):A274.
- 2022An unusual cause of a haemothorax following pacemaker implantation: a case reportSaunderson CED, Hogarth AJ, Papaspyros S, Tingerides C, Tayebjee MH. Eur Heart J Case Rep 6(5):ytac185.
- 2020Uncommon entrapment of Swan-Ganz catheter in the main pulmonary trunk in valvular heart surgeryArif S, Hussain A, Barua A, Galabov T, Papaspyros S. Open J Surg 3(2):25–27.
- 2019Pseudoaneurysm of sinus of Valsalva following AVR in infective endocarditis: a delayed presentationArif S, Barua A, Papaspyros S, O’Regan D. Am J Surg Clin Case Rep 1(3).
- 2017Disseminated thrombi in a patient with suspected patent foramen ovale post left lower lobectomySingh SSA, Papaspyros S, Morcos K, Asif M. Clin Surg 2:1405.
- 2016Synchronous but unrelated left atrial myxoma and colorectal adenocarcinomaKar A, Sudarsanam A, Papaspyros S, Prasad S. Clin Surg 1:1075.
- 2015Surgical ergonomics: analysis of technical skills, simulation models and assessment methods (abstract)Papaspyros SC, Kar A, O’Regan DJ. J Cardiothorac Surg 10(Suppl 1):A201.
- 2014Surgical management of malignant pleural mesothelioma: impact on survival and quality of lifePapaspyros SC, Papaspyros S. ISRN Surg 2014:817203.
- 2012Bypass grafting of aberrant circumflex artery with anomalous origin and coursePatronis M, Papaspyros SC, Shaikrezai K, Prasad S, Agrawal D. Open J Thorac Surg 2(4):121–125.
- 2011A journey through heart surgery, seen through the eyes of a medical studentWilliams R, Papaspyros SC. Br J Card Nurs 6(12):604–610.
- 2011Median sternotomy scars: formation and impact on patient quality of lifePapaspyros SC, Patel R, Polyzois K, Javangula K, Jeffrey R. Br J Card Nurs 6(11):531–540.
- 2010Presentation and management of keloid scarring following median sternotomyPatel R, Papaspyros SC, Javangula KC, Nair RU. J Cardiothorac Surg 5:122.
- 2009Predictors of early discharge following CABG; post-operative stay as a predictor of hospital mortality (abstracts)Javangula K, Papaspyros SC, Adluri K, O’Regan DJ. Interact Cardiovasc Thorac Surg 8(Suppl 1).
- 2008Gastrointestinal stromal tumour masquerading as a lung neoplasmPapaspyros SC, Papagiannopoulos K. J Cardiothorac Surg 3:31.
All indexed papers on PubMed →
Distinctions
- 2026EASY-AS Golden Heart Award to the Leeds team, for commitment to the trial since 2021
- 2021/22Green Card commendation, Leeds School of Medicine, for going above and beyond for medical students
- 2020Recognition of Excellence, Leeds Teaching Hospitals, for support to Cardiac ICU staff and compassion towards patients
- 2016Educational research grant, Faculty of Surgical Trainers, Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh
- 2008Association of Surgeons in Training medal for best research presentation, Birmingham
Medicolegal
Expert witness
Cardiothoracic expert witness since 2023 in clinical negligence and personal injury, providing opinions on breach of duty, causation, and condition and prognosis. Available for claimant and defendant instructions.
Areas include chest trauma (including rib and sternal fractures and penetrating injury), coronary and valve disease, cardiomyopathy, aortic disease, lung disease and complications of cardiothoracic procedures. Experience includes reports for inquests, tribunals and the police, and attendance at Coroner’s Court. Bond Solon trained.
Contact
Get in touch
NHS referrals
Referrals are made through your GP or cardiologist to Leeds General Infirmary.
NHS profile →Teaching and research
For education, research and professional enquiries.
sotiris.papaspyros@nhs.netPlease do not send confidential clinical information by email. For urgent medical concerns contact NHS 111 or, in an emergency, call 999.