It’s late afternoon and Dr. Vladislav Zhitny is chatting on the telephone while sitting inside his New York City apartment. The 29-year-old is now a first-year anesthesiology resident at NYU Langone Health and is talking about adjusting to life in New York. “I’m obviously not living in a penthouse,” he says with a chuckle, estimating his apartment at roughly 300 square feet. “But my window view is that of the United Nations, so it is a reminder that there are big things to do in the world, and although I’m just a resident right now, there are big things to come!”
In fact, exciting things are already happening to Zhitny. Not the least of which is joining an exclusive group of young health care professionals known as “The 30 Under 30.” In other words, 30 research papers published before the age of 30, putting him in the top 10 percent of U.S. anesthesiologists for publication according to Doximity. This extremely bright, energetic resident everyone at UNLV knew as “Vlad,” followed up his record 18 papers published in medical school (according to the National Institutes of Health [NIH], the average for a medical student is six) with another 14 papers published during his first year of anesthesia residency at NYU – which is thought to be another record. At of this article's publication, ResearchGate has him at 32 peer-reviewed papers with 50 citations and over 8,000 reads on ResearchGate alone.
Interestingly, Zhitny only dove into research after the sudden death of his father, two weeks before the United States Medical Licensing Examination (USMLE) Step 1 exam necessitated him taking a year off from medical school.
These days, the 2022 Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine at UNLV graduate isn’t kidding when he says he is both the happiest and busiest he’s ever been. Despite starting his day at 4:30 a.m., there is excitement in his voice as he describes his new colleagues at NYU and his latest research project. “The culture here is phenomenal, just like at UNLV, everyone at NYU is almost on a first-name basis. At every opportunity, I am able to learn from some of the world’s most renowned anesthesiologists.”
Zhitny is also making valuable connections. “We just started working on a manuscript between NYU Langone and Harvard’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital,” Zhitny says. “This is a connection we made at the American Society of Regional and Pain Anesthesia (ASRA). I met a fellow from Harvard and we talked about how my team of medical students and physicians could partner with Brigham and Women’s. It’s undergoing peer review now. With these articles, you just never know what will happen, but we try to put out the highest ethical and quality research.”
Publishing research in peer-reviewed journals is a measure of success in medicine and Zhitny's rising star has not gone unnoticed. Two current Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine medical students, Eric Kawana (class of 2025) and Kenny Do (class of 2026), reached out to Vlad with a request. “Hey, can we partner up?”
“I told Eric and Kenny to think very carefully about this because if we start working on a project together, I am very strict and demand excellence, but I would teach them everything I know about research.” Since then, they have successfully had nine of their papers published in peer-review journals, including Pain Physician (radiation exposure among interventional pain management physicians) and Neurosurgical Anesthesiology (how to make fellowship websites more comprehensive for applicants). Zhitny is glad to help. “I couldn’t be happier to mentor two such talented medical students; they really impressed me. These two are going places. And I really hope we get to work together once we are all attendings at some point.”
Kawana and Do noticed Zhitny’s prolific work while he was a medical student at UNLV. “Vlad has been an exceptional mentor for both Kenny and me,” Kawana says. “He has taught us how to communicate effectively with the scientific community through our research, and during the process has guided us through manuscript writing, submission, and publication. He is also a mentor for us outside of research, as he frequently checks in to see if there is any guidance he can offer for our current clinical rotations or exams.”
This type of collaboration is music to the ears of Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine Dean Marc J. Kahn. “For Vlad, who’s got plenty on his plate at a place like NYU, to reach back and mentor Eric and Kenny … it’s so admirable and very much appreciated. I’m glad to see Vlad’s continued success,” Kahn says.
Educators will tell you that a hunger for research is part of any good doctor’s DNA. Do, the third member of this research trio, agrees. “Research is important in my career because it pushes me to find answers to questions that people have not answered. Whenever I am curious about the safety of a new procedure, efficacy of a new medical technology, or rarity of a disease, I think of ways on how I can contribute to the scientific field by finding answers to these questions.”
“They’re doing phenomenal things at UNLV right now,” Zhitny says. “I am actively working to make sure they beat my publishing record during medical school. I want them to do better than me, as any good mentor would. Kenny and Eric work hard, they work very hard and are two talented young men. You rarely come across people who genuinely care.”
Finally, Zhitny, the busiest he’s ever been, is not too busy to thank his research mentors in Las Vegas, people like Dr. Aditi Singh; Dale Netski; Kavita Batra; and his first research mentor, plastic surgeon Dr. Frank Stile, who gave Zhitny his start.
