Lina F Chalak, MD
- Division Chief of Neonatology, Professor Scholar at UT Southwestern Medical Center, Division Director at Children's Health
- Languages spoken: English
- Locations (1)
Biography
Lina Chalak, M.D., is a board-certified neonatologist at Children's Health℠ and Professor of Pediatrics and Psychiatry at UT Southwestern. She is the Division Chief of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine at Children’s Health and is also Director of the Neurological Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (Neuro-NICU) Program – the first-of-its-kind in Texas. Dr. Chalak specializes in the care of infants with neurological conditions, such as seizures or brain injuries.
Dr. Chalak earned her medical degree at American University – Beirut. She completed her residency training in pediatrics at Children's Medical Center Dallas and her fellowship training in neonatology at UT Southwestern.
“I love taking care of newborns, providing brain targeted multidisciplinary care,” says Dr. Chalak. “I also love teaching and mentoring. Every baby deserves a bright future and full potential. What a joy to be part of making that happen.”
Dr. Chalak is the Co-Director of the Fetal and Neonatal Neurology Fellowship Training Program at Children’s Health. She leads a team of scientists, including physiologists, biomedical engineers and MRI specialists working to uncover best practices in detecting and treating brain injury in infants. Dr. Chalak has over 100 peer-reviewed publications to her name and has received funding from the National Institutes of Health for her work.
In her free time, Dr. Chalak loves to travel, listen to operas and symphonies and she is a real foodie.
“I love taking care of newborns, providing brain targeted multidisciplinary care.”
Dr. Lina ChalakEducation and Training
- Medical School
- American University of Beirut (1995)
- Internship
- Children's Medical Center Dallas (2003), Pediatrics
- American University of Beirut (1996), Pediatrics
- Residency
- Children's Medical Center Dallas (2004), Pediatrics
- American University of Beirut (1998), Pediatrics
- Fellowship
- UT Southwestern Medical Center (HR) (2001), Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine
- Board Certification
- American Board of Pediatrics/Neonatal-Perinatal
Conditions Treated
- Abdominal masses
- Achondroplasia (dwarfism)
- Ambiguous genitalia
- Anencephaly
- Anorectal malformation (imperforate anus or ARM)
- Arteriovenous malformations (AVMs)
- Biliary atresia
- Bladder exstrophy
- Bladder outlet obstruction
- Bowel atresia
- Brachydactyly (symbrachydactyly)
- Chronic lung disease (CLD)
- Cloacal exstrophy
- Colon atresia
- Congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH)
- Congenital heart disease
- Congenital infections
- Congenital lung lesions
- Congenital pulmonary airway malformation (CPAM)
- Craniosynostosis
- Cystic fibrosis (CF)
- Cytomegalovirus (CMV)
- Down syndrome
- Duodenal atresia
- Edema
- Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS or elastic skin)
- Encephalocele
- Encephalopathy (encephalitis)
- Enteroviruses
- Esophageal atresia (EA)
- Feeding disorder (PFD)
- First unprovoked seizure
- Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)
- Gastroschisis
- Goldenhar syndrome (oculo-auriculo-vertebral dysplasia or OAV)
- Head and neck lumps
- Hemophilia
- High blood pressure (hypertension)
- Hirschsprung's disease
- Hydrocephalus
- Hydronephrosis
- Hydrops
- Hyperbilirubinemia (jaundice)
- Hypotonia (floppy muscle syndrome)
- Hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy (intrapartum asphyxia - HIE)
- Intestinal disorders
- Intraventricular hemorrhage and stroke
- Isolated craniosynostosis
- Jejunal and ileal atresia
- Laryngomalacia
- Lordosis (sway back)
- Low birth weight
- Low blood pressure (hypotension)
- Meconium aspiration
- Mediastinal mass
- Metabolic diseases
- Muscular dystrophy (MD)
- Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC)
- Newborn tumors
- Noonan syndrome (NS)
- Omphalocele
- Open neural tube defects (ONTDs)
- Osteogenesis imperfecta (OI)
- Patent ductus arteriosus (PDA)
- Persistent pulmonary hypertension
- Pierre Robin syndrome (PRS)
- Pleural effusion
- Poland syndrome (Poland sequence)
- Prematurity
- Prenatal drug and alcohol exposure
- Pulmonary sequestration
- Pyloric stenosis
- Renal malformation
- Respiratory distress syndrome (RDS)
- Retinopathy of prematurity (ROP)
- Rubella (German measles)
- Sepsis and meningitis
- Short bowel syndrome (SBS)
- Skeletal dysplasias and abnormalities
- Spina bifida
- Syndromic craniosynostosis
- Syphilis
- Tay-Sachs disease
- Toxoplasmosis
- Tracheoesophageal fistula (TEF)
- VATER syndrome (VACTERL association)