Dr. Hartmuth Bittner is an internationally trained cardiothoracic surgeon and the president and founder of the Gulf Coast Cardiothoracic Surgery Institute in Tampa, Florida. With more than 30 years of medical experience, he treats complex and advanced heart and lung conditions through procedures that include coronary artery bypass surgery, aortic aneurysm repair, valve repair and replacement, and heart and lung transplantation. His expertise also encompasses minimally invasive and catheter-based interventions involving the aortic and mitral valves, including care for high-risk patients.
Alongside his clinical practice, Dr. Bittner serves as an associate professor of surgery in the Division of Cardiothoracic Surgery at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center. His previous academic appointments include full professor and endowed chair of clinical and experimental thoracic organ transplantation at the University of Leipzig, assistant professor of cardiovascular and thoracic surgery at the University of Minnesota, and research fellow in transplantation surgery at Duke University. He completed general surgery residency and cardiothoracic fellowship training while continuing his work in academic medicine and clinical care.
Dr. Bittner earned his medical education at the University of Heidelberg and completed doctoral research at the University of Leipzig, where he studied the effects of brain death on donor thoracic organs. He has contributed to hundreds of abstracts and numerous medical publications, presented at professional conferences worldwide, and remains active in organizations including the International Society for Minimally Invasive Cardiac Surgery and the German Society of Cardiovascular and Thoracic Surgery.
