Vladir Maranhao, MD, affectionately known as “Dr. Mara” performed Deborah’s first percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) or balloon angioplasty. Dr. Mara also performed Deborah’s first cardiac catheterization in 1959 and spent 28 years at Deborah Heart and Lung Center as a cardiologist, chairman of the department of cardiovascular diseases and later vice president of medical affairs.
