Physicians

Maryanne Samuel, D.O. is a primary care physician with Baptist Health Medical Group

Sergiu Darabant, M.D., is a medical cardiologist at Miami Cardiac & Vascular Institute. Dr. Darabant specializes in the prevention, diagnosis and treatment of coronary artery disease, valvular heart disease, arrhythmias and cardiomyopathies. He also has extensive experience in cardiovascular imaging, critical care cardiology and advanced heart failure therapies. He is fluent in English and Romanian.Dr. Darabant joins Miami Cardiac & Vascular Institute from the University of Louisville Hospital in Louisville, Kentucky. There, he served as chief fellow and was under the mentorship of Dr. Marcus Stoddard, the president of the National Board of Echocardiography. Under Dr. Soddard, he developed a special interest and training in transthoracic and transesophageal echocardiography imaging modalities. These techniques are used in evaluating cardiovascular disease and stroke patients. When used, the imaging is included as preprocedural evaluation of valvular heart disease, preparation for structural heart disease interventions and medical guidance to prevent recurring stroke. His research has been published in peer-reviewed journals, including the New England Journal of Medicine, the Journal of Heart Valve Disease, the Journal of Hospital Medicine and ACC FIT Online. Dr. Darabant also was elected as an American College of Cardiology Fellow in Training (FIT) Editorial Fellow.Dr. Darabant’s approach to care is to first listen to his patient’s concerns and then use every resource available to help them stay healthy and lead a balanced, joyful life while regaining their independence.When he is not treating patients, Dr. Darabant enjoys traveling with his wife and dog, outdoor activities, cooking, and studying to become fluent in Spanish.

Juan Lopez, M.D., is a board-certified medical cardiologist at Baptist Health Miami Cardiac & Vascular Institute, specializing in complex cardiovascular conditions, echocardiography and preventive cardiovascular health. He is fluent in English and Spanish.Prior to joining Miami Cardiac & Vascular Institute, Dr. Lopez completed his cardiology fellowship at University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Hospital. He earned his medical degree from the Florida Internal University Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine and completed his internal medicine residency at University of Miami/Jackson Memorial Hospital. He earned Intern of the Year in 2018 and the Derek J. Sayfie, M.D., Research Day Top Clinical Research award in 2019. Dr. Lopez coauthored a chapter in the 2023 book Mastering Structural Heart Disease and published research in journals such as Circulation Research and the American Journal of Cardiology.With a bachelor’s degree in biomedical engineering, Dr. Lopez has a deep understanding of the procedures and devices that he recommends to patients. He also understands that patient care means going beyond diagnosis and treatment as he helps patients and their families work through fears and anxieties to achieve healing.In his free time, Dr. Lopez enjoys spending time with his wife and three children, which includes lugging an overpacked cart often to the beach or making a pizza from scratch at home.