Thomas Gildea, MD
Primary Location
Cleveland Clinic Main Campus
- Appointment:
- 216.444.6503
- Desk:
- 216.444.6490
- Fax:
- 216.636.9033
Treatment & Services
- Advanced Diagnostic Bronchoscopy
- Bronchoscopy
- Cancer Center
- Interventional Pulmonary Medicine
- Lung Volume Reduction Surgery
- Therapeutic Flexible Bronchoscopy
- Therapeutic Rigid Bronchoscopy
- Thoracentesis
- Treating Asthma with Bronchodilators
Specialty in Diseases & Conditions
- Alpha-1 Antitrypsin Deficiency
- Anoxia
- Central Airway Diseases
- Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD)
- Emphysema
- Endobronchial Manifestations of Systemic Diseases
- Lung Cancer
- Pulmonary Hypertension
- Tracheomalacia
Insurance
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View All PlansAbout Thomas Gildea, MD
Thomas Robert Gildea, MD, FCCP, FACP was appointed to Cleveland Clinic in 2003 to Department of Pulmonary Allergy and Critical Care Medicine & Transplant Center.
He has been board-certified in internal medicine, pulmonary disease and critical care medicine. As a Chief Resident in the Yale Primary Care Internal Medicine residency, he went to Russia in a faculty exchange program to lecture and demonstrate American medical team structure and the basics of clinical epidemiology.
He has advanced training in interventional and advanced diagnostic bronchoscopy, which was part of his fellowship training at Cleveland Clinic. His clinical interests span the realm of advanced lung diseases, including lung volume reduction, lung transplantation, pulmonary arterial hypertension and are most focused on advanced diagnostic and therapeutic bronchoscopy.
Dr. Gildea was the first physician in North America to perform electromagnetic navigation bronchoscopy. He was given an Innovator Award at Cleveland Clinic in 2006 with his team proposing a novel device for a bronchoscopy needle-delivered fiducial lung implant. He has been named one of the Best Doctors in America since 2007. He also received a physician development award by the Alpha-1 Foundation to study lung function changes after lung transplantation. In 2010 he completed a Master's degree at Case Western Reserve in Clinical Research. He was granted an NIH-NCAI grant for work on a custom 3D printing process for airway stents. He is the Section Head of Bronchology in the Respiratory Institute and leads a team of dedicated Interventional Pulmonologists.
An invited lecturer at national and international medical meetings, Dr. Gildea is recognized expert in the field on interventional pulmonary medicine. Dr. Gildea serves on scientific advisory boards from several medical companies involved with innovation for bronchoscopy techniques and devices and sits on several boards and committees of national specialty societies.
Education & Professional Highlights
Appointed
2003
Education & Fellowships
Graduate School - Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
Clinical Research
Cleveland,
OH
2010
Fellowship - Cleveland Clinic
Pulmonary / Critical Care Medi
Cleveland,
OH
2003
Residency - Yale-New Haven Hospital
Internal Medicine
New Haven,
CT
2000
Medical Education - MCP Hahnemann University School of Medicine
Philadelphia,
PA
1996
Undergraduate - University of Scranton
Biology
PA
1992
Additional Training
- Clinical Research Scholars Program, Case Western Reserve University, Masters in Clinical Research program
Professional Highlights
- Cleveland Clinic Innovator Award, 2006
Certifications
- Internal Medicine - Pulmonary Disease
Specialty Interests
Advanced diagnostic and therapeutic bronchoscopy, lung cancer
Awards & Honors
- D. Robert McCaffree, MD, Master FCCP Humanitarian Award
- Best Doctors in America, 2007-2016
- Physician Development Award, Alpha-1 Foundation, 2006-2008
- Finalist, 2004 CHEST Foundation Best Poster in Category Award
- Clinical Research Award Finalist, American College of Chest Physicians, Chest Foundation, 2002
Innovations & Patents
- First physician in North America to perform electromagnetic navigation bronchoscopy
- NIH-NCAI Custom Airway
- Provisional Patents filed for Stent Manipulation Device
Memberships
- American Thoracic Society
- Fellow, American College of Chest Physicians
- American Association for Bronchology
- World Association for Bronchology
- Fellow, American College of Physicians
Research & Publications
See publications for Thomas Gildea, MD.
(Disclaimer: This search is powered by PubMed, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine. PubMed is a third-party website with no affiliation with Cleveland Clinic.)
Industry Relationships
Cleveland Clinic physicians and scientists may collaborate with the pharmaceutical or medical device industries to help develop medical breakthroughs or provide medical expertise or education. Cleveland Clinic strives to make scientific advances that will benefit patient care and support outside relationships that promise public benefit. In order for the discoveries of Cleveland Clinic physicians' and scientists' laboratories and investigations to benefit the public, these discoveries must be commercialized in partnership with industry. As experts in their fields, Cleveland Clinic physicians and scientists are often sought after by industry to consult, provide expertise and education.
To assure professional and commercial integrity in such matters, Cleveland Clinic maintains a program that reviews these collaborations and, when appropriate, puts measures in place to minimize bias that may result from ties to industry. Cleveland Clinic publicly discloses the names of companies when (i) its physicians/scientists receive $5,000 or more per year (or, in rare cases, equity or stock options) for speaking and consulting, (ii) its physicians/scientists serve as a fiduciary, (iii) its physicians/scientists receive or have the right to receive royalties or (iv) its physicians/ scientists hold any equity interest for the physician's/scientist's role as inventor, discoverer, developer, founder or consultant.* In publicly disclosing this information, Cleveland Clinic tries to provide information as accurately as possible about its physicians' and scientists' connections with industry.
As of 1/29/2025, Dr. Gildea has reported the financial relationships with the companies listed below. In general, patients should feel free to contact their doctor about any of the relationships and how the relationships are overseen by Cleveland Clinic. To learn more about Cleveland Clinic's policies on collaborations with industry and innovation management, go to our Integrity in Innovation page.
Consulting and/or Speaking. Dr. Gildea receives fees of $5,000 or more per year (or, in rare cases, equity or stock options) as a paid consultant, speaker or as a member of an advisory committee for the following companies:
- Intuitive Surgical, Inc.
Royalty Payments. Dr. Gildea receives or has the right to receive royalty payments for inventions or discoveries commercialized through the companies shown below:
- VisionAir Solutions, LLC, formerly NewCOS, Inc.
Right to Future Distribution of Cleveland Clinic Financial Interest. Dr. Gildea may receive future financial benefits from the Cleveland Clinic for inventions or discoveries commercialized through the companies shown below:
- VisionAir Solutions, LLC, formerly NewCOS, Inc.
Equity Dr. Gildea owns stock or stock options in the following companies for activities as a founder, inventor, discover, developer:
- VisionAir Solutions, LLC, formerly NewCOS, Inc.
Fiduciary Role. Dr. Gildea serves in a fiduciary capacity, such as an elected officer, director or chief medical officer, for the following companies or other entities:
- VisionAir Solutions, LLC, formerly NewCOS, Inc.
Public Health Service-Reportable Financial Conflicts of Interest. Cleveland Clinic scientists and physicians engage in basic, translational and clinical research activities, working to solve health problems, enhance patient care and improve quality of life for patients. Interactions with industry are essential to bringing the researchers' discoveries to the public, but can present the potential for conflicts of interest related to their research activities. Click here to view a listing of instances where Cleveland Clinic has identified a Public Health Service (PHS)-Reportable Financial Conflict of Interest and has put measures in place to ensure that, to the extent possible, the design, conduct and reporting of the research is free from bias.
* Cleveland Clinic physicians and scientists subscribe to the guidance presented in the PhRMA Code on Interactions with Healthcare Professionals and the AdvaMed Code of Ethics on Interactions with Health Care Professionals. As such, gifts of substantial value are generally prohibited.
53 Patient Satisfaction Reviews
The Patient Satisfaction Rating is an average of all responses to the care provider related questions shown below from our nationally-recognized Press Ganey Patient Satisfaction Survey. Patients that are treated in outpatient or hospital environments may receive different surveys, and the volume of responses will vary by question.
Responses are measured on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the best score.
The comments are submitted by patients and reflect their views and opinions. The comments are not endorsed by and do not necessarily reflect the views of Cleveland Clinic.
| Overall | Star Ratings | |
|---|---|---|
| Explains | 4.9 | |
| Courtesy, Respect & Concern | 4.9 | |
| Patient Rating of Doctor | 4.9 |
8 Patient Comments
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Reviewed on Mar 4, 2025
Doctor provided referrals to appropriate specialists and made an effort to communicate with them
Reviewed on Mar 4, 2025
Dr Gidea is a very good doctor.He walks you through everything in great detail. I never felt rushed he asked me if I had questions and answered everything patiently.I am very glad he is my lung doctor.
Reviewed on Dec 17, 2024
I have never been so impressed with a doctor! He truly is as kind as he is gifted!!!!!
Reviewed on Nov 5, 2024
Dr Gildea and his group always take good care of me, always kind and courteous
Reviewed on Sep 24, 2024
Dr. Gildea took a good amount of time at my appt to listen and discuss my health concerns.
Reviewed on Sep 3, 2024
Dr Gildea is awesome
Reviewed on Aug 27, 2024
Dr Gildea is one of the best doctors at Cleveland Clinic
Reviewed on Jul 30, 2024
Hard to get answers back from Dr or Pa when messages sent.