As chief of pediatric and adult congenital cardiac surgery at NYU Langone Health, Ralph S. Mosca, MD, oversees 250 complex cases annually and has performed more than 6,000 open heart surgeries.

“As a surgeon, two of my best rewards are the relief I see on parents’ faces and the family photos they send me after recovery,” he says.

Dr. Mosca, co-director of the Pediatric Congenital Heart Program at Hassenfeld Children’s Hospital at NYU Langone, operated on identical twins Daniel and Joshua Shapiro in 2012 and 2013, respectively. Both were born with a rare heart defect in which a section of the aorta is so narrow that it could eventually lead to heart failure. During a follow-up visit in 2015, Dr. Mosca posed with the boys for a keepsake photo.

Today, the 14-year-old boys are thriving, without any limitations. David and Teresa Shapiro, the boys’ parents, say they are grateful to the entire medical team at Hassenfeld Children’s Hospital, including cardiologist Alan M. Langsner, MD, and interventional cardiologist Michael Argilla, MD.

To make an appointment, visit the Pediatric Congenital Heart Program.

“Their caring skills are inseparable from their healing skills,” says Teresa. “Any doctor who can hold my children’s hearts in his hands and make me feel good about it is truly extraordinary.”