Meet Our Faculty
Statewide Leaders
As the only medical sciences university in the state, and the only center in the State of Arkansas that offers adult liver or kidney transplantation, UAMS provides state-of-the-art equipment and cutting-edge technology for patients in need of transplants. UAMS has a history of Arkansas medical firsts. We performed the state’s first kidney transplant in 1964, and in 1991, UAMS performed the first kidney-pancreas transplant in the State. We added another “first” in 2005 when UAMS performed Arkansas’ first liver transplant, and we have been growing ever since. As of February 2026, UAMS is the only center in the State that is doing adult kidney, liver and pancreas transplantation.
UAMS has performed more than 3,000 kidney transplants since 1964. In FY2026 the program performed 153 kidney and 54 liver transplants.
The Liver and Renal transplant programs are busier than ever, with increased referrals, increased national patient listing for organs, and increased transplantation. While growing, the program has maintained national outcomes, successfully transplanted higher risk patients, with significantly lower wait list times than other centers in our region. Scientific Registry for Transplant Recipients.
Lyle Burdine, M.D., Ph.D., is the Surgical Director of the Solid Organ Transplant Program. He leads the transplant surgeons and physicians and directs the program’s immunosuppression research. He is joined by abdominal transplant surgeons Martha M. Estrada, M.D.; JR Montgomery, M.D. and Tsukasa Nakamura, M.D. Gary Barone, M.D., joined UAMS in 1991 after fellowship at Ohio State and has been on the transplant team since. The surgical team is joined in caring for the transplant patients by transplant fellowship-trained physician as well as transplant trained Advanced Practice Nurse Practitioners. Our Transplant Nephrologists are led by Sushma Bhusal, M.D.; and include Venkata Manchala, M.D., Adrianne Basa, M.D.; and Avantika Israni, M.D. The Hepatology team are led by Mary Katherine Rude, M.D., Matthew Deneke, M.D., Mauricio Garcia, MD, Ragesh Thandassery, M.D., and Chinmay Bera, M.D. To get more clinical information, please visit our Transplant Clinic site or enjoy these Organ Transplant Patient Stories.
