The Cystic Fibrosis Center at The Children’s Hospital at Monmouth Medical Center is one of only three comprehensive cystic fibrosis centers in the state of New Jersey and among 115 centers that have been accredited by the national Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. Our Center provides a fully array of services for children, including transitional care and adult care to the ever growing number of patients who survive into adulthood.
Patients are referred to us by hospitals and physicians from Monmouth and Ocean counties and across the state. Our designation as an accredited care center means that we provide high quality, specialized and multidisciplinary care that directly contributes to the improved length and quality of life for patients with cystic fibrosis. We offer comprehensive diagnosis, treatment, care and counseling for those with cystic fibrosis as well as community education and medical research.
Learn more by selecting an item below:
Our Team
Research
Parent Advisory Group
Our Team
Patients who are treated at our Center receive care from an experienced, highly specialized team that includes two specially trained pulmonologists, a pediatric infectious disease specialist, a nurse practitioner, nurse coordinator, social worker, physical therapist, dietitian and a dedicated respiratory therapist.
We are a hospital-based Center, which means that we have a multi-disciplinary team that evaluates and cares for our patients, including physicians from areas such as gastroenterology, endocrinology, otolaryngology (ENT), surgery, emergency medicine and radiology. We also work closely with the State of New Jersey’s Newborn Screening Program for Cystic Fibrosis. Infants with positive newborn screen tests are referred to our Center for confirmatory testing for Cystic Fibrosis.
Learn more about our medical team:
Robert Zanni, MD, FAAP
Director, Cystic Fibrosis Center
Section Chief, Pediatric Pulmonary Medicine
Renuka Verma, MD
Section Chief, Pediatric Infectious Disease
Program Director, Pediatric Residency
Associate Program Director, Monmouth Medical Center Cystic Fibrosis Center
Eduardo Sembrano, MD
Pediatric Pulmonologist
Chandler Patton, MD
Adult Pulmonologist
Program Director, Adult Cystic Fibrosis
Robert Zanni, MD, FAAP
Section Chief, Pediatric Pulmonary Medicine
Director, Cystic Fibrosis Center
Director of Pediatric Pulmonology at Monmouth since 1984, Dr. Zanni has been listed among the Best Doctors in America, included on NJ Monthly’s list of Top Docs and listed as a Top Pediatrician by the Consumer Research Council of America.
Dr. Zanni received his undergraduate degree at Villanova University and his medical degree from Autonomous University and completed the Fifth Pathway Program at College of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey. Pediatric Residency training was at Monmouth Medical Center, Long Branch,NJ and subspecialty training in Pediatric Pulmonology was at Hahnemann University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Dr. Zanni is a Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics and is a member of the NJ Chapter of the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation and the New Jersey Thoracic Society and has held numerous positions with these organizations. He has received awards from organizations such as the American Lung Association, New Jersey Respiratory Care Society and Cystic Fibrosis Foundation.
An active author and researcher, Dr. Zanni has contributed to several medical study papers and texts and has led research efforts on a variety of topics.
Renuka Verma, MD
Section Chief, Pediatric Infectious Disease
Program Director, Pediatric Residency
Associate Program Director, Monmouth Medical Center Cystic Fibrosis Center
Dr. Verma, a board certified Pediatric Infectious Disease physician, is a graduate of S. P. Medical College in India. She did her fellowship in Pediatric Infectious Disease at University Hospital at SUNY, Stony Brook, NY and completed her residency training here at Monmouth Medical Center. Dr. Verma has had special training in radiodiagnosis and she is the co-author of several clinical studies that have been published in prestigious medical journals. She is a member of the Infectious Disease Society of New Jersey, Infectious Disease Society of America (IDSA), American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and Pediatric Infectious Disease Society (PIDS). Dr. Verma has had a major role in medical education; she was the director of the student education program and is currently in charge of the Pediatric Residency program at Monmonth Medical Center. Further, she is a Clinical Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, Drexel University College of Medicine.
Eduardo Sembrano, Jr., MD, FAAP
Pediatric Pulmonologist
Dr. Sembrano received his medical degree from the College of Medicine University of the Philippines and completed his Pediatric residency at Elmhurst Hospital Center under Mount Sinai Services and his Pediatric Pulmonology Fellowship at Mount Sinai Medical Center.
A Fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics and member of the American Thoracic Society, Dr. Sembrano has particular interest in the areas of pediatric asthma, chronic cough, chronic lung disease of infancy, fiberoptic bronchoscopy, pediatric pulmonary TB and recurrent stridor.
Chandler Patton, MD
Adult Pulmonologist
Dr. Patton is board certified in internal medicine, pulmonology medicine and critical care medicine. He received his undergraduate degree from Widener University and his medical degree from Hahnemann University in Pennsylvania. He completed his residency at Monmouth Medical Center and fellowship in pulmonary medicine at Hahnemann University Hospital.
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Research
Clinical research is a critical part of helping cystic fibrosis patients live longer and realize a better quality of life. In addition to developing and testing new drugs, some clinical research focuses on improving the use of current drugs or evaluating the effects of those commonly prescribed for long-term use for other diseases.
The clinical research undertaken by our Cystic Fibrosis Center includes ongoing, multi-center studies that hope to discover treatments that address the root cause of cystic fibrosis.
The director of our program, Dr. Robert Zanni, is one of the founding members and leaders of the Mid-Atlantic Cystic Fibrosis Consortium, which brings together medical professionals from cystic fibrosis centers in New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Delaware for the purposes of advancing education for caregivers and working together on clinical research.
Parent Advisory Group
Parents play a critical role in providing emotional support and disease management to a child who is living with cystic fibrosis. We realize the importance of parental input and feedback so we have created a Parent Advisory Group which is very involved in the continued growth and evolution of our program and provide input on subjects such as how to improve care and education for patients and their families.
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