Deborah L. Brooks, ANP

Dr. Sylvia Szentpetery recently joined the MUSC family as director of the Pediatric Cystic Fibrosis Center. She received her medical degree from Tulane University in New Orleans, Louisiana. She went on to complete her pediatric residency at the University of Virginia and her pulmonology fellowship at the Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh. She is skilled in flexible bronchoscopy as well as evaluation through pulmonary function testing, which both aid in the diagnosis of lung disease. At MUSC, Dr. Szentpetery sees patients with any and all respiratory problems, including cystic fibrosis, asthma, chronic cough, chronic lung disease of prematurity, and recurrent pneumonia. She is excited to join MUSC and is committed to helping the region's children and their families breathe and live better.

Cheryl Kerrigan is a pediatric nurse practitioner in the Pediatric Pulmonary Division at MUSC. She earned her master’s degree in nursing from the University of Virginia in 2002 and is certified as a pediatric nurse practitioner by the Pediatric Nursing Certification Board. Cheryl has worked in pediatric pulmonary at MUSC since 2003 and is also adjunct faculty in the College of Nursing. Cheryl takes care of children with a variety of pulmonary disorders, including asthma, recurrent pneumonia, bronchopulmonary dysplasia, and cystic fibrosis. She has a special clinical interest in newborn screening for cystic fibrosis and helping adolescents transition to adult care.

Dr. Rahul Argula was born in Hyderabad, India. He completed his medical schooling further south in the coastal town of Puducherry, at JIPMER (Jawaharlal Institute of Post Graduate Medical Education & Research). After graduating from medical school, he moved to Houston, Texas, to pursue a Master's degree in public health at the University of Texas school of Public Health, focusing on epidemiology and biostatistics. He then completed a residency in internal medicine at MUSC and following this, completed his fellowship training in pulmonary and critical care medicine, also at MUSC. In 2013, he joined the faculty at MUSC with an interest in pulmonary vascular disease. He is the director of the MUSC pulmonary vascular disease program, where patients with a multitude of pulmonary vascular diseases such as pulmonary hypertension, pulmonary vasculitides, pulmonary arterio-venous malformations, etc. are cared for. The MUSC pulmonary vascular disease program is the only one in the state of South Carolina that is designated as a comprehensive care center for patients with pulmonary hypertension by the PHA (Pulmonary Hypertension Association). Dr.Argula's research interests include pulmonary hypertension, pulmonary vascular disease in the setting of connective tissue disease, interstitial lung disease, end-stage renal disease and sarcoidosis. His clinical interests include pulmonary arterial hypertension(PAH), chronic thrombo-embolic pulmonary hypertension (CTEPH), pulmonary vascular disease in the setting of advanced liver disease, end stage renal disease, COPD, and interstitial lung disease. Dr.Argula is board certified in pulmonary diseases and critical care. He works together with multiple providers within the MUSC system to provide inter-disciplinary care for patients with pulmonary hypertension and other advanced lung diseases. During his inpatient service time, Dr.Argula provides care for patients admitted to the intensive care units at MUSC and also provides consultative services to hospitalized patients with pulmonary diseases.