UCLA Vatche & Tamar Manoukian Division of Digestive Diseases
Once again, UCLA GI & GI surgery has been recognized as being among the best in the nation, ranking #4 by U.S. News & World Report in its annual Best Hospitals survey. This also makes us the top-ranked GI & GI surgery hospital for a public university in the country.
Established in 1953, the Vatche & Tamar Manoukian Division of Digestive Diseases has been a world leader in the diagnosis, treatment, and research aimed at combating debilitating and deadly disorders affecting the gastrointestinal tract. Its outstanding clinical, research, and training programs engage in creative and innovative approaches to today's gastrointestinal (GI) disorders. Rooted in quality patient care with an academic mindset, our philosophy is strengthened by the technological advances and unsurpassed resources available to us as part of the broader UCLA Health System, including the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center and UCLA Santa Monica Medical Center.
UCLA receives $25M from Shirley and Walter Wang to establish new integrative digestive health center
The new center will use the gastrointestinal system as the key to treating many conditions in the human body that can cause symptoms like chronic body pain, insomnia and mood disorders. Patients will have access to a multidisciplinary team that provides the full continuum of care, from gastroenterology and integrative health to psychology and nutrition.
For patients and visitors
In addition to being at the forefront of research and training, our physicians offer the highest-quality patient care. They see patients at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center in Westwood, UCLA Santa Monica Medical Center, and at UCLA community clinics across Southern California.
Fellowship Program
The UCLA GI Fellowship Program produces experts in every facet of clinical gastroenterology, hepatology, and related research. It is among the largest program of its kind in the nation, with 22 fellows receiving training at any time.
Research
Research has been a mainstay of our division since it was established in 1953, and we have grown to become a world leader in contributing new digestive diseases-related knowledge through scientific studies. Our faculty publish extensively and play prominent roles in national meetings, advancing the state of the science and ushering in cutting-edge treatments that improve and save lives.
Meet our expert team
The Vatche & Tamar Manoukian Division of Digestive Diseases is home to more than 88 full-time faculty members, each with a specific area of expertise in basic science and/or clinical research and treatment.
Our locations
We have clinic locations in Beverly Hills, Downtown LA, Encino, North Hollywood, Porter Ranch, Santa Clarita, Santa Monica, Simi Valley, Thousand Oaks, Torrance, West Hills and Westwood.
Make a gift
Thanks in part to the generosity of many individuals we continue to be a national and world leader in patient care, treatment, training, and research.
Latest news
Beyond the Scope highlights the exciting work taking place in our division
This issue highlights the new Comprehensive Liver Research Center, the California Institute for Immunology and Immunotherapy, research investigating how interactions in the gut maintain health, resource-rich environment at UCLA fosters success for research fellows transitioning to faculty, and our new clinical faculty.
The Familial Mediterranean Fever clinic is the only one of its kind in the Western hemisphere
Familial Mediterranean Fever (FMF) is a rare genetic disorder that causes painful inflammation. It's most prevalent, due to the high carrier rate, in people of Armenian descent. This specialized clinic is led by Dr. Terri Getzug and Dr. Wayne Grody.
$9.5M grant to study relationship between polyphenol intake, Alzheimer’s prevention, and the brain-gut-microbiome system
Polyphenols — a key component of Mediterranean diets and found in berries, grapes, green tea, and cocoa — may delay cognitive decline.
UCLA researchers tackle challenges in Barrett’s esophagus, aiming to prevent esophageal cancer
Drs. V. Raman Muthusamy and Jennifer Kolb are conducting research addressing issues that include which patients to screen, how to identify the condition in a more timely manner, and how to better predict which patients found to have BE will progress to esophageal cancer and thus should be treated immediately with endoscopic eradication techniques.
A less invasive procedure to lose weight
Our bariatric endoscopists perform prodcedures that produce smaller stomach, smaller appetite, with no scars and shorter recovery.
UCLA Health is the only institution awarded two NIH SCORE grants
Science is still ignoring women's health, but UCLA Health researchers are fixing that. “Men and women could have different disease pathogenesis, different risk levels and different responses to treatments,” said Lin Chang, MD, co-principal investigator. “You really have to consider sex as a biological variable.”
$1.5M in seed funds to launch 'Total MASLD' research
The mission of the Comprehensive Liver Research Center is to understand every aspect of metabolic dysfunction-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) as it relates to the diverse population of Los Angeles County.
New UCLA multidisciplinary clinic assists patients with IBD, and their providers, through pregnancy
The clinic, which is co-led by an IBD physician who specializes in women’s health and an OBGYN who specializes in maternal-fetal medicine and high-risk pregnancies, collaborates with patients and their health care providers through preconception planning, pregnancy, and the postpartum period to address fears, dispel misconceptions, and maximize outcomes.