Dan Gelfman, M.D.

Biography

Daniel Gelfman, M.D., is a clinical professor emeritus of medicine at the Marian University College of Osteopathic Medicine. Dr. Gelfman was awarded emeritus status in July of 2020. He remains active in teaching clinical medicine, pursuing scholarly activities at Marian University, and working part-time as a cardiologist at the Indianapolis VA Hospital. He also serves as a professor of clinical medicine at the Indiana University School of Medicine.

Dr. Gelfman completed his bachelor’s degree, followed by his medical degree in 1981, at the University of Wisconsin, Madison. He then completed his internal medicine residency and served as chief resident, followed by an invasive cardiology fellowship at the Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center in Richmond, Virginia, in 1987. He was in private cardiology practice for approximately three decades, during which he was involved in medical teaching at Georgetown University, Indiana University, and finally, starting in 2014, at Marian University. He transitioned at Marian University to full-time. He has emeritus privileges at St. Vincent Hospital in Indianapolis and has served as a volunteer physician for decades at various free medical clinics in the greater Indianapolis area. He remains a fellow of The American College of Cardiology, The American College of Physicians, and The American Society of Echocardiography.

Dr. Gelfman’s research interests currently include developing effective teaching methods and combining the humanities with medicine. According to Google Scholar, his works have been cited over 100 times. Recent work includes his article, “The David Sign," published in JAMA Cardiology, revealing previously unrecognized cardiovascular physiology findings depicted in Michelangelo’s sculptures. The article also emphasized the importance of teaching concepts, as described in the following quote, “Knowing the fundamentals, careful observation, and always asking why are key in understanding medicine and making accurate diagnoses. This was true in 1504 and is true today.” This publication was reported by multiple media outlets, including U.S. News and World Report, The Indianapolis Star and its USA Today affiliates, and The Daily Mail (U.K.), which has brought local, national, and international recognition to Marian University. He recently published a manuscript about new concepts concerning effective teaching methods of physical examination at the medical school level in The American Journal of Medicine. This was followed by an article describing the results of a program specific to the cardiac examination in The Medical Science Editor.

Research

• Gelfman DM. Diagnosis: Tricuspid Regurgitation. Next Steps. Am J Med. 2025 Feb 13. doi: 10.1016/j.amjmed.2025.02.006.

• Gelfman DM. Diagnosis: Pulmonary Hypertension. Next Steps. Am J Med. 2025 Jan 30. doi: 10.1016/j.amjmed.2025.01.028.

• Gelfman DM. Call for a New Medical Fellowship. Am J Med. 2025 Jan 19. doi: 10.1016/j.amjmed.2025.01.002.

• Gelfman DM. Evolution in the Definition of Stages in HFpEF and its After-Effect. Am J Med. (In Press) doi: 10.1016/j.amjmed.2024.11.008. 

• Gelfman DM. Chlorthalidone as Secondary Treatment in HFpEF? Am J Med. 2025 Mar;138(3):416-418. doi: 10.1016/j.amjmed.2024.09.027.

• Gelfman DM. How to Receive a Compliment and a Criticism in Medicine. Am J Med. (In Press) https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amjmed.2024.08.035

• Gelfman DM. Does This Image Reveal a Fourth Cranial Nerve Palsy? Isr Med Assoc J. 2024; 26 (10):663-664. https://www.ima.org.il/MedicineIMAJ/Article.aspx?aId=6543

• Gelfman DM. Do Patients Who Are Over 60, Obese, with Atrial Fibrillation, Also Have HFpEF? Am J Med. 2024 Dec;137(12):1159-1160. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amjmed.2024.07.033

• Gelfman DM. The David Sign, Revisited. Am J Med Open. 2023 Oct 30. doi: 10.1016/j.ajmo.2023.100061.

• Gelfman DM. Insight Regarding Solving the Current Physician Shortage. Am J Med. 2023; 136(11):1057-1058. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amjmed.2023.06.026.

• Gelfman DM. Side Effects of Amiodarone. JACC Clin Electrophysiol. 2022; 8(8):1048. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jacep.2022.05.019

• Gelfman DM. Angst Vividly Depicted in Sculpture. Isr Med Assoc J. 2022; 24(8):551-552. https://www.ima.org.il/medicineIMAJ/Article.aspx?aId=5138

• Gelfman DM. A detailed depiction of a “crime scene” circa 1455. Hektoen International, A Journal of Medical Humanities. Art Essays. (Winter 2022) https://hekint.org/2022/02/15/a-detailed-depiction-of-a-crime-scene-circa-1455/

• Gelfman DM. Appropriately Targeting Treatment of Atrial Fibrillation to Maximize Benefits in Older Adults. Am J Med. 2022; 135(1):3-4. doi.org/10.1016/j.amjmed.2021.06.046

• Gelfman DM. We Need to Inform Covid-19 Vaccinating Clinics Concerning PEG Allergy. J Am Soc Echocardiography. 2021; 34(11):1229-1230. doi.org/10.1016/j.echo.2021.08.010

• Gelfman DM. The history of polio and cigarettes, and the need for a COVID-19 vaccine mandate. Hektoen International, A Journal of Medical Humanities. Infectious Diseases (Summer 2021). hekint.org/2021/08/27/the-history-of-polio-and-cigarettes-and-the-need-for-a-covid-19-vaccine-mandate/

• Gelfman DM. Reflections on Quinine and Its Importance in Dermatology Today. Clinics in Dermatology. 2021; 39(5):900-903. doi.org/10.1016/j.clindermatol.2021.08.017

• Gelfman DM. In General, We Are Defined More by Our Response to Defeat, Than the Defeat Itself. Am J Med. 2021; 134(7):831-832. doi.org/10.1016/j.amjmed.2021.03.021

• Gelfman DM. Remembering Sir Thomas Lewis’ contribution to understanding heart failure. Hektoen International, A Journal of Medical Humanities. Cardiology (Spring 2021). hekint.org/2021/06/14/remembering-sir-thomas-lewis-contribution-to-understanding-heart-failure/.

• Gelfman DM. The Valsalva Maneuver, Set in Stone. Am J Med. 2021; 134(6):823-824.  doi.org/10.1016/j.amjmed.2021.01.035

• Gelfman DM. Thank you for letting me be your physician. Patient Educ Couns. 2021; 104(12)2888-2889. doi.org/10.1016/j.pec.2021.02.015

• Gelfman DM. When Less is More, A Caring Physician’s Dilemma. Am J Med. 2021; 134(5):561-562. doi.org/10.1016/j.amjmed.2020.12.014

• Gelfman DM. Enlightenment from Sherlock Holmes on COVID-19 associated perilous boredom. Hektoen Int. 2021;13(2) (Spring 2021). hekint.org/2021/01/19/enlightenment-from-sherlock-holmes-on-covid-19-associated-perilous-boredom/.

• Gelfman DM. Will the Traditional Physical Examination Be Another Casualty of COVID-19? Am J Med. 2021;134(3):299-300. doi.org/10.1016/j.amjmed.2020.10.026

• Gelfman DM. Good (Medical) Judgment Comes from Experience, and Experience Comes from (Medical) Misfortune. Am J Med. 2020;113(12):1374-1375. doi.org/10.1016/j.amjmed.2020.06.041

• Gelfman DM, Wilson TE. The importance of the "David Sign". Hektoen International, A Journal of Medical Humanities. Cardiology (Summer 2020). hekint.org/2020/08/25/the-importance-of-the-the-david-sign/

• Gelfman DM. David, Brutus, and Caracalla—A Sculptural Chronology of Anatomical Observation—Reply. JAMA Cardiol. 2020;5(10):1200-1201. doi: 10.1001/jamacardio.2020.2876

• Gelfman DM, Zahl SB. A Decision-Directed Cardiac Exam in Medical School. Med Sci Educ. 2020; 30:1019–1024. doi: 10.1007/s40670-020-00982-5.

• Gelfman DM. Changing the Learning Objectives for Teaching Physical Examination at the Medical School Level. Am J Med. 2020; 133(3): e77-e78. doi: 10.1016/j.amjmed.2019.07.055.

• Gelfman DM. The David Sign. JAMA Cardiol. 2020; 5(2):124-125. doi: 10.1001/jamacardio.2019.4874.

• Gelfman DM. Osteopathic Manipulation in Treatment of Musculoskeletal Chest Pain. Am J Med. 2017; 130(6):618. doi.org/10.1016/j.amjmed.2016.11.046

• Clancy CM, Gelfman D, Poses RM. A strategy to improve the utilization of pneumococcal vaccine. J Gen Intern Med. 1992; 7(1):14-8. PubMed ID: 1548543.

• Gelfman DM, Ornato JP, Gonzalez ER. Dopamine-induced increase in atrioventricular conduction in atrial fibrillation-flutter. Clin Cardiol. 1987; 10(11):671-3. PubMed ID: 3677500.

• Gelfman DM, Witherspoon JM, Buchsbaum DG, Centor RM. Short-term results of an immunization compliance program. Va Med. 1986; 113(9):532-4. PubMed ID: 3776344.

• Gelfman DM, Eppel MN, Mandell MS Jr, Evans CG Jr. Enlarging the pool of flexible sigmoidoscopists. Va Med. 1985; 112(10):631-5. PubMed ID: 4060860.