Dr. Juan Carlos Romero-Abal

PROFESSIONAL PROFILE

Dr. Juan Carlos Romero-Abal is an internal medicine doctor specialized in cardiology, endocrinology, tropical and infectious diseases, and various fields of attention such as pneumology and rheumatology. Since the 1990’s he has managed clinical research projects and attended to thousands of patients with a wide range of ailments. For primary and family care, or regular attention to chronic illness, he has the experience, compassion, and skills to diagnose accurately and improve your quality of life, in Guatemala City and at Lake Atitlan. Dr. Romero speaks German at 50% and continues his studies, improving his fluency during 2026.

The Health District (Clinic Complex) is located on the 5^th floor of the Prospere Building, with a clinical laboratory and radiology center on the first floor, offices with multiple subspecialties, and is directly across from La Paz Hospital in case of an emergency. The rooftop restaurant, Cerveceria 14 offers spectacular westward views of the volcanos and airport.

Internal medicine is a specialty of four additional years beyond the general medicine degree, where doctors gain valuable theoretical knowledge and clinical experience required to evaluate and treat patients comprehensively. These specialists handle difficult-to-diagnose cases, manage Intensive Care Units, and treat all non-surgical specialties. Dr. Carlos Romero can make the diagnosis faster, more accurate, and more reliable, while also making the patient’s journey through their illness easier. With fewer appointments and consultations with other doctors, you can depend on one multi-faceted expert to supervise all elements of your medical condition.

Patients with a complex array of symptoms will find success with internal medicine specialists because these doctors have to rotate through and complete postgraduate courses in cardiology, infectious diseases, rheumatology, endocrinology, pulmonology, gastroenterology, neurology, and intensive care. Dr. Romero says, “This specialization course equips us to address a wide variety of different pathologies while always maintaining a holistic approach to patient care.

In modern medicine, there is a strong tendency toward subspecialties focused on a single organ or system, such that the cardiologist only sees the heart, the pulmonologist only the lungs, the dermatologist only the skin, and so on. While it is necessary to have physicians with advanced specialization in specific organs, this system has unfortunately led to patients being seen in a fragmented way by multiple specialists. Due to their specific focus, diseases affecting multiple organs simultaneously are often overlooked, delaying timely diagnoses and treatments. Internal medicine, when properly practiced, is precisely about that: seeing the patient as an interconnected whole rather than viewing one organ at a time.

Dr. Romero says, “Think of me as an architect of your overall health. If you have multiple health issues—diabetes, high blood pressure, unexplained pain, asthma, chronic fatigue—you don’t need to visit five different specialists. I am an expert in the connection between them. Why am I different? Because of my ability to see the big picture (holistic) instead of treating isolated organs. Whenever possible, I make a diagnosis based on a complete medical history and a detailed physical exam, without ordering additional tests. I firmly believe that we must return to the philosophy of treating patients, not just lab results.”

Dr. Romero draws on his research experience to give each patient the benefit of having a treatment plan that actually works. He says, “This 360° perspective uniquely positions me to understand the challenges and opportunities faced by clinical research centers in Guatemala.”

His research studies include:

• Chief researcher and medical advisor to manufacturers.
• Principal investigator for the Pharmacovigilance Committee of the Ministry of Health in Guatemala.
• Project manager for a contract research organization.
• Medical research advisor for multinational pharmaceuticals.

As an instructor to a new generation of doctors of internal medicine, Dr. Romero was the head of the infectious disease unit at Roosevelt Hospital for twelve years, where he worked together with medical students treating complex cases of infections, HIV, and tropical diseases.

Dr. Romero says, “Practicing medicine, conducting research, and teaching at the post-graduate level for so many years allows me to stay at the forefront of the specialty. Additional courses have significantly broadened my differential diagnosis skills, keeping me up to date on new diagnostic methods, new treatments, and the epidemiology of certain uncommon conditions in my country. You learn a lot by teaching.”

OVERVIEW OF SERVICES

Cardiology Exams:

• In Dr. Romero’s clinic, he can perform and interpret an electrocardiogram, Holter monitor, blood pressure monitor, or conduct an ultrasound. The exams are all available in his own office, as an added value to his specialty care.
• The clinic’s technology was recently upgraded to smaller, portable devices adapted to transmit the collected data to a computer, thus optimizing their availability and taking up less space. They are all new and state-of-the-art.
• Ambulatory blood pressure monitoring is a highly valuable prognostic technique that reduces the risk of overdiagnosis and overtreatment. Record symptoms from your cell phone to send to the doctor.
• The Holter monitor is a device that continuously records heart rhythms for 24 to 48 hours. It is used to diagnose heart rhythm problems, such as arrhythmias, atrial fibrillation, or tachycardia.
• During 24-hour heart monitoring at home, you can open this page online to communicate your symptoms and changes immediately, with the doctor in real time through this page.
• https://romeroabal.wixsite.com/internal-med/d

Infectious Disease and Vaccines: 

With years of additional training, Dr. Romero is prepared to treat complex cases of HIV infection, as well as opportunistic diseases such as disseminated tuberculosis, deep mycoses, atypical pneumonia, hepatitis B, hepatitis C, syphilis, etc.

As a specialist in tropical medicine, he can diagnose locally rare diseases imported from other parts of the world, as well as appropriately manage the frequent cases of traveler’s diarrhea. He has been able to provide counseling regarding prophylactic vaccinations for travelers to other parts of the world.

Ask Dr. Romero about the vaccines you will need to avoid transmission of diseases during your travels. Vaccines must be administered in sequence during the three weeks prior to travel and must be requested in advance from providers.

• In many places, yellow fever vaccine is mandatory.
• Usually, typhoid, Hep A & B, meningitis, cholera and malaria tablets are recommended.
• Good idea to get a booster of MMR (measles, mumps, rubella).

Preoperative Evaluation:

The goal is simple but crucial: To ensure that you are in the best possible condition to undergo the surgery and anesthesia, minimizing risks and ensuring a faster and more successful recovery.

Before undergoing surgery, a preoperative evaluation and letter of approval is normally required for patients over 60. Dr. Romero must investigate your general health status and identify any medical conditions you may have, such as diabetes, hypertension, and heart or respiratory problems that could affect the procedure. This allows your medical team to optimize the management of these conditions before surgery. Doctors prevent complications and reduce risk by identifying changes that do not show up as symptoms. Having this information in advance enables your team to plan the safest strategy for you, choosing the type of anesthesia and specific care you might need.

Every person is unique. Your medical history, drug allergies, habits, and family background are valuable information that allows them to tailor the surgical plan to your specific needs. You will have peace of mind and confidence knowing that everything has been thoroughly checked.

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Fatty liver disease and hepatitis

• Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD) is the excessive accumulation of fat in the liver and can progress to Non-Alcoholic Steatohepatitis (NASH), which is also associated with significant liver damage and subsequent progression to cirrhosis.
• NAFLD and NASH are painless. Usually, the patient becomes aware of their presence when it is already too late, and they are suffering from cirrhosis. It is not a rare condition
• The global prevalence of NAFLD is estimated at 25%, and among patients with NAFLD, between 10% and 59% progress to NASH.It is very important to take this pathology into account in the risk groups mentioned above. The study can easily be initiated with blood tests and a liver ultrasound.

Dr. Romero explains: My promise is to go beyond the obvious symptoms. I specialize in unraveling complex or “mysterious” diagnoses that others have overlooked. All of this is based on the most rigorous evidence-based medicine. Forget 15-minute appointments. I will take the time necessary to understand the sequence of events in your health that brought you to my office.

You can depend on Dr. Romero to be not only clinically skilled and accurate, but compassionate and respectful: We must return to the principles of warmth, trust, mutual sincerity, meticulous attention to detail, close communication, willingness, and availability. Outsourcing does not generate quality. Since many of his patients come in frustrated after having been misdiagnosed or dismissed by other doctors, Dr. Romero promises to:

• Listen actively and genuinely. You can validate your story without interruption. The events of the disease progression and how they affect you are important clues to finding a resolution.
• Be honest and transparent in communication without omissions and without making impossible promises.
• Explain in detail. He will use diagrams and diagnostic evidence to be sure you understand current medical problems and possible approaches to treatment.
• Share decision making. Together, you will reach an informed joint decision based on the treatment options available. You will be invited to ask the doctor questions by email or WhatsApp anytime.
• Give you the time you need to process the information, clarify your doubts and encourage you to express any fears or concerns.
• Make you feel unconditionally supported and valued.

Finally, Dr. Romero’s vision is to establish his clinic as a center of clinical and diagnostic excellence, integrating experience, knowledge, and advanced technology without ever losing sight of human warmth and a holistic approach. He wants to continue to positively impact lives so that his legacy as a doctor and human being will happily endure.

Personal comment from Dr. Romero:

Case study of successful reform in HIV/AIDS treatment.

I lived through the period when the country’s government, sadly, flatly refused to provide free treatment for HIV, so patients with advanced HIV suffered from multiple severe opportunistic infections simultaneously and died.

Fortunately, we managed to get an international NGO to provide antiretroviral treatments, while also funding a lawsuit against the state before the Inter-American Court of Human Rights. As a result, I had the honor of receiving dozens of adult patients weighing barely 70-80 pounds, with multiple severe opportunistic infections, and we had the means to rehabilitate them, nourish them, give them antiretroviral therapy, and reintegrate them into society as productive citizens.

It’s truly beautiful and moving to run into them on the street 15 years later and have them come running to give me a hug. It’s priceless, it’s beautiful. Finally, in 2007, free treatment began throughout Guatemala, and these types of cases decreased significantly.