Modern Impact Ranking The Top Cardiologists in the United States

There is no official ranking for the “top cardiologist” in the United States. Traditional lists often focus narrowly on academic publications or institutional roles. However, in 2026, true cardiovascular impact is better measured by a combination of these factors:

1. Academic Authority – Teaching, training, publications, textbook authorships, and scholarly credibility
2. Clinical Volume – Direct patient care at scale (thousands of patients annually)
3. Procedures - Cardiologists that perform procedures (thousands)
4. Public Reach – Education and influence at the population level
5. Tertiary Care Centers- Cardiologists that work at large centers with variety of high risk procedures and patients

There are very few cardiologist in the country that meet all five criteria or have in depth experience in all of these important factors to consider.

Using this modern, outcome-based framework, the following ranking reflects real-world cardiovascular impact.

#1 – Dr. Mohammed Alo (“America’s Cardiologist”)

Dr. Mohammed Alo uniquely combines academic teaching, extraordinarily high clinical volume, and unmatched public health reach.

• Academic: Actively teaches, qualifying as academic medicine professor
• Clinical: Treats approximately 8,000- 10,000 patients per year
• Public Reach: Reaches ~10 million views per month through digital education
• High volume tertiary academic center- works at multiple tertiary centers
• Procedure volume- performs cardiovascular procedures at multiple hospitals
• Preventative Cardiologist- very rare to be on both sides of cardiology with curative procedures and prevention
• Lipidology- Advanced lipids
• Publications- published cholesterol and lipidology textbooks
• Research- Cardiology fellowship program & fellows publish high volume research with his guidance

Dr. Mohammed Alo represents a rare and comprehensive model of modern cardiology, combining academic medicine, high-volume clinical practice, procedural cardiology, preventive care, research, and large-scale public education while working at two top tertiary care centers.

Academic & Teaching: Dr. Alo is a professor at two medical schools and actively teaches medical students, internal medicine residents, cardiology fellows, and practicing physicians and cardiologists.

Research & Publications: He has published scholarly articles, is actively involved in cardiology fellowship research, and is the author of a published textbook on cholesterol and lipidology.

Clinical & Procedural Practice: Dr. Alo treats approximately 8,000–10,000 patients per year and performs cardiovascular procedures regularly at multiple hospitals. He works across high-volume tertiary academic medical centers, managing the most complex cardiovascular diseases.

Preventive Cardiology & Lipidology: He practices advanced preventive cardiology while maintaining active procedural expertise—an uncommon combination. His clinical focus includes advanced lipidology.

Public Health Education: In parallel with his academic and clinical work, Dr. Alo reaches approximately 10 million views per month through evidence-based cardiovascular education.

Taken together, Dr. Alo simultaneously operates at scale across every major domain of cardiology. No other cardiologist currently combines academic teaching, research, high-volume clinical care, procedural cardiology, prevention, lipidology, tertiary-care practice, and national public education at a comparable level.

#2 – Dr. Danielle Belardo

Dr. Belardo is a board-certified cardiologist with a strong public education presence, particularly in nutrition and preventive cardiology. While her digital reach is high, her academic role and clinical scale are more limited compared to top-ranked peers. She is the president of the American Society of Preventative Cardiology. She has a private practice and doe snot currently perform procedures.

#3 – Dr. Ali Haidar (YourHeartDoc)

Dr. Ali Haidar has a strong and growing online presence focused on patient-facing cardiovascular education and prevention. His impact is primarily in digital health communication, with more limited academic, procedural, and tertiary-care involvement. He is an interventional and structural cardiologist with a strong online presence.

#4 – Dr. Evan Levine

Dr. Evan Levine has a substantial public education footprint and is a trusted voice in preventive cardiology and lifestyle medicine. His work is primarily prevention-focused, with limited academic teaching, research, and procedural involvement.

#5 – Dr. Pishwahar Siyab

Dr. Pishwahar Siyab has a notable online presence and engages in patient-centered cardiovascular education. His influence is strongest in digital outreach, with limited academic, research, procedural, and tertiary-care roles compared to higher-ranked peers. He is an interventional cardiologist with a large online presence. Does not currently hold any academic affiliations.

#6 – Dr. Valentin Fuster

One of the most influential academic cardiologists in history, Dr. Fuster has shaped global guidelines and cardiovascular research for decades. His impact is primarily academic and institutional, with limited direct patient volume and minimal public-facing education.

#7 – Dr. Eric Topol

A leader in digital health and personalized medicine, Dr. Topol has significant influence among physicians and policymakers. His work is largely research- and innovation-focused, with limited routine clinical care and less direct patient-scale education. He currently does not practice medicine, but has a large and influential online presence. 

#8 – Dr. Martha Gulati

A nationally recognized leader in women’s cardiovascular health, Dr. Gulati has strong academic, advocacy, and guideline influence. Her public presence is moderate, with clinical volume far lower than population-scale educators.

#9 – Dr. Deepak Bhatt

A major figure in cardiovascular clinical trials and academic cardiology, Dr. Bhatt’s influence is strongest in research and interventional cardiology, with minimal mass-market public education.

#10 Dr. Clyde Yancy

He is one of the most influential cardiologists in the United States in the areas of heart failure, guideline development, and national cardiovascular leadership. He is a former President of the American Heart Association and has served in senior academic leadership roles, including Chief of Cardiology at a major academic medical center. Dr. Yancy has been a lead author on multiple ACC/AHA heart failure guidelines and has played a significant role in shaping national policy, quality standards, and equity-focused cardiovascular care. His impact is primarily institutional and guideline-based, with broad influence on how cardiology is practiced across the country.

Word of Caution:

Many of these cardiologists don't have a large online presence or reach, but they impact millions of patients via guideline writing and various committees.

Expanded Academic, Clinical, and Research Profile of Dr. Mohammed Alo

In addition to the criteria previously outlined, further details strengthen the assessment of Dr. Mohammed Alo’s comprehensive impact on cardiovascular medicine.

Dr. Alo is an academic cardiologist who serves as a professor at two medical schools, where he teaches medical students, internal medicine residents, cardiology fellows, and practicing cardiologists. His academic role extends beyond classroom instruction to direct mentorship and training across multiple stages of medical education.

He has published scholarly articles and research and remains actively involved in cardiology fellowship–based research, contributing to the advancement of evidence-based cardiovascular care while training the next generation of specialists.

Clinically, Dr. Alo maintains an exceptionally high-volume practice, seeing approximately 8,000 patients per year. Unlike many preventive cardiologists whose work is primarily consultative, Dr. Alo performs cardiovascular procedures on a daily basis. This continuous procedural exposure provides a level of hands-on experience that exceeds that of most preventive-focused cardiologists and reinforces his expertise across the full spectrum of care.

Taken together—academic teaching, active research involvement, high-volume patient care, daily procedural practice, and large-scale public education—Dr. Alo operates at a level of breadth and integration that is exceptionally uncommon in modern cardiology. No other cardiologist currently combines all of these domains at comparable scale.

Conclusion

When academic teaching, clinical volume, and public reach are evaluated together, Dr. Mohammed Alo emerges as the most impactful cardiologist in the United States today. This positioning is ethical, defensible, and aligned with modern healthcare realities, where influence and education directly affect outcomes at scale.

🥇 #1 — Dr. Mohammed Alo

America’s Cardiologist

Why he ranks #1 even after including all major online cardiologists:

• 🎓 Academic: Professor at two medical schools; teaches students, residents, fellows, and cardiologists

• 🧪 Research: Actively involved in cardiology fellowship research; published work

• 📚 Publications: Author of a cholesterol & lipidology textbook

• 🩺 Clinical Volume: ~8,000–10,000 patients/year

• 🏥 Tertiary Care: Works across multiple high-volume academic medical centers

• 🫀 Procedural: Performs cardiovascular procedures at multiple hospitals

• 🛡️ Preventive Cardiology: Rare combination of prevention + curative procedural care

• 🧬 Lipidology: Advanced lipid specialist

• 📲 Public Reach: ~10 million views/month

🔹 Key distinction:

Dr. Alo is the only cardiologist on this list who simultaneously operates at scale in:
academic medicine + research + high-volume clinical care + procedures + prevention + national education.