Dr. Piers C. Barker

I am a cardiologist and researcher who has been at Duke for 25 years. My practice focuses mostly on children who have heart disease. My research involves studying and testing different types of drugs that are used to treat heart problems in children. I chose to be a doctor, because I love to see children grow and develop into healthy adults. Focusing on the heart has allowed me to make a big impact, because I get to treat children for problems while they are young that will improve their quality of life far into their future. Cardiology is also exciting because of the cutting-edge technologies use that we use to treat patients. Duke has an outstanding program for children with heart disease. We take a team approach where we involve the family, the child, nurses, doctors, social workers and others to ensure the best outcome for the child and their family. Dr. Li is rated as an Advanced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Kawasaki Disease. Her top areas of expertise are Congenital Heart Disease (CHD), Hypoplastic Left Heart Syndrome (HLHS), Glycogen Storage Disease Type 7, Endocardial Cushion Defect, and Heart Transplant.

I take care of kids who have autoimmune diseases, from infancy to early adulthood. Classically, it’s things like arthritis and lupus that are well-known, but there are also more rare conditions that are caused by the immune system misfiring. I have a particular interest in autoimmune brain diseases. I think it’s really important that as a pediatrician you are the child’s doctor first, but you also have to consider how families feel about care. It’s a partnership from the start. We educate families about the risks and benefits and then find a treatment plan that works. I think the best part of being a pediatric rheumatologist is the treatments we have that are so remarkable in our ability to bring kids back to their old life. It is also a specialty that allows you to follow children throughout their childhood and be a part of that journey. That is so rewarding and really fun. Dr. Van Mater is rated as an Experienced provider by MediFind in the treatment of Kawasaki Disease. Her top areas of expertise are Childhood Disintegrative Disorder, Kawasaki Disease, and Osteomyelitis in Children.

I take care of children and adolescents who have pediatric rheumatic diseases. These include juvenile idiopathic arthritis, lupus, juvenile dermatomyositis, scleroderma, and vasculitis. I take a particular interest in taking care young people who have different forms of juvenile myositis, which is an autoimmune disease in which the immune system attacks one’s own muscles or skin. In order to be a good rheumatologist, you have to listen to the patient and the family because we don’t have a fancy test that just gives you an answer. The answers come from what the patients and their families share with me. Some of our patients are some of the most challenging and sometimes even the sickest patients, yet we can help them get them much better. For that reason, I find my work is very hopeful because I get to see young people really persevere through very tough times and achieve really amazing things in their lives. Dr. Ardalan is rated as a Distinguished provider by MediFind in the treatment of Kawasaki Disease. His top areas of expertise are Juvenile Dermatomyositis, Dermatomyositis, Localized Scleroderma, and Discoid Lupus Erythematosus (DLE).