Dr. Julius Punnen is a Senior Consultant Cardiac Surgeon and the Director of Advanced Cardiopulmonary Therapeutics at Narayana Institute of Cardiac Sciences, Bangalore. With over three decades of experience, he is widely recognized for his expertise in heart and lung transplantation, mechanical circulatory support, ECMO, pulmonary endarterectomy, aortic surgery, and complex adult & paediatric cardiac surgery.

He completed his MCh in Cardiovascular & Thoracic Surgery from Kasturba Medical College, Manipal, and holds additional executive qualifications from IIM Calcutta and IIM Lucknow. Dr. Punnen has played a pivotal role in establishing multiple thoracic transplant and MCS programs across the Narayana Health network and performed Karnataka’s first combined heart–lung transplant.

Dr. Punnen has served in senior leadership positions including Medical Director, Chief Cardiac Surgeon, and Director of Heart Valve Bank in leading cardiac centres. His clinical work is complemented by numerous publications, invited lectures at major international conferences, and contributions to cardiac surgery, CTEPH management, and transplant science.

He is a former President of the Society for Heart Failure and Transplantation (SfHFT) and currently serves as an Executive Committee Member of SfHFT.