Director of Infectious Diseases Research

Dr. Pankey earned his medical degree from Tulane and completed his internship and residency at the University of Minnesota where he also earned a Master’s degree in microbiology and immunology. He is board certified in Internal Medicine and Infectious Diseases and has been on staff at Ochsner since 1963, and Director of Infectious Diseases Research since 1999. He is a fellow of the Infectious Diseases Society of America and in 1996 received their Clinician of the Year award. In 2002 he was elected a Master of the American College of Physicians. Dr. Pankey is an internationally recognized and honored expert in the field of infectious diseases.

Selected publications

Giannella M, Pankey GA, Pascale R, Miller VM, Miller LE, Seitz T. Antimicrobial and Resource Utilization with T2 Magnetic Resonance for Rapid Diagnosis of Bloodstream Infections: Systematic Review with Meta-analysis of Controlled Studies. Expert Rev Med Devices. 2021 Apr 16. doi: 10.1080/17434440.2021.1919508. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 33863237.

Davis HR, Ashcraft DS, Pankey GA. In vitro interaction of fluconazole and trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole against Candida auris using ETEST and checkerboard methods. J Investig Med. 2021 Jan;69(1):96-99. doi: 10.1136/jim-2020-001552. Epub 2020 Nov 18. PMID: 33208385.

Jahan S, Davis H, Ashcraft DS, Pankey GA. Evaluation of the in vitro interaction of fosfomycin and meropenem against metallo-β-lactamase-producing Pseudomonas aeruginosa using Etest and time-kill assay. J Investig Med. 2021 Feb;69(2):371-376. doi: 10.1136/jim-2020-001573. Epub 2020 Oct 29. PMID: 33122248.

Voigt C, Silbert S, Widen RH, Marturano JE, Lowery TJ, Ashcraft D, Pankey GA. The T2Bacteria Assay Is a Sensitive and Rapid Detector of Bacteremia That Can Be Initiated in the Emergency Department and Has Potential to Favorably Influence Subsequent Therapy. J Emerg Med 2020 Jan 22. pii: S0736-4679(19)31087-X.

Davis H, Brown R, Ashcraft D, Pankey GA. In Vitro Synergy with Fosfomycin Plus Doxycycline Against Linezolid and Vancomycin-resistant Enterococcus faecium. J Glob Antimicrob Resist 2020. pii: S2213-7165(20)30015-1.

Thomas VM, Brown RM, Ashcraft DS, Pankey GA. 2019. Synergistic effect between nisin and polymyxin B against pandrug-resistant and extensively drug-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii. Int J Antimicrob Agents. 2019; 53:663-668.

Nguyen MH, Clancy CJ, Pasculle AW, Pappas PG, Alangaden G, Pankey GA, Schmitt BH, Rasool A, Weinstein MP, Widen R, Hernandez DR, Wolk DM, Walsh TJ, Perfect JR, Wilson MN, Mylonakis E. Performance of the T2Bacteria Panel for diagnosing bloodstream infections. A diagnostic accuracy study. Ann Intern Med. 2019; 170(12):845-852.

Hooper RW, Ashcraft DS, Pankey GA. In vitro synergy with fluconazole plus doxycycline or tigecycline against clinical Candida glabrata isolates. Med Mycol. 2019;57(1):122-126.

Simar S, Sibley D, Ashcraft D, Pankey G. Evaluation of the Rapid Polymyxin B Resistance Detection Using Enterobacter cloacae and Enterobacter aerogenes Isolates. J Clin Microbiol. 2017;55(10):3016-3020.

Adams EK, Ashcraft DS, Pankey GA. In vitro Synergistic Activity of Caspofungin Plus Polymyxin B Against Fluconazole-Resistant Candida glabrata. Am J Med Sci. 2016 Mar;351(3):265-70.

Deshpande LM, Ashcraft DS, Kahn HP, Pankey G, Jones RN, Farrell DJ, Mendes RE. Detection of a New cfr-Like Gene, cfr(B), in Enterococcus faecium Isolates Recovered from Human Specimens in the United States as Part of the SENTRY Antimicrobial Surveillance Program. Antimicrob Agents Chemother. 2015 Oct;59(10):6256-6261.

Pankey GA, Ashcraft D, Kahn H, Ismail A. Time-Kill Assay and Etest Evaluation for Synergy with Polymyxin B and Fluconazole against Candida glabrata. Antimicrob Agents Chemother. 2014 Oct; 58 (10):5795-5800.

Pankey GA, Sabath LD. Clinical Relevance of Bacteriostatic versus Bactericidal Mechanism of Action in the Treatment of Gram-Positive Bacterial Infections. Clin Infect Disease. 2014; 38:864-870.

Schieffelin JS, Garcia-Diaz JB, Loss GE Jr, Beckman EN, Keller RA, Staffeld-Coit C, Garces JC, Pankey GA. Phaeohyphomycosis fungal infections in solid organ transplant recipients: clinical presentation, pathology, and treatment. Transpl Infect Dis. 2014 Apr;16(2):270-8.

Pankey GA, Ashcraft DS, Dormelles A. Comparison of 3 Etest methods and time-kill assay for determination of antimicrobial synergy against carbapenemase-producing Klebsiella species. Diag Microbial Infect Dis. 2013 Nov; 77(3):220-226.

Chow AW, Benninger MS, Brook I, Brozek JL, Goldstein EJ, Hicks LA, Pankey GA, Seleznick M, Volturo G, Wald ER, File TM Jr; Infectious Diseases Society of America. IDSA clinical practice guideline for acute bacterial rhinosinusitis in children and adults. Clin Infect Dis. 2012 Apr;54(8):e72-e112.

Pankey GA, Ashcraft DA. Detection of Synergy Using the Combination of Polymyxin B with Either Meropenem or Rifampin Against Carbapenemase-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae. Diagnostic Microbiology and Infectious Disease. 2011; 70:561-564.

Pankey GA, Ashcraft DS. In vitro synergistic/additive activity of levofloxacin with meropenem against Stenotrophomonas maltophilia. Diagn Microbiol Infect Dis. 2010 Jul;67(3):297-300.