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Aria Fallah, MD, MS

  • Pediatric Neurosurgery
Westwood Neurosurgery | 300 Stein Plaza Suite 420, Los Angeles, CA 90095

About

Dr. Aria Fallah is a pediatric neurosurgeon who practices at UCLA Mattel Children's Hospital and Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center in Westwood. Dr. Fallah is board-certified in neurosurgery by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons and board-certified by the American Board of Pediatric Neurological Surgery. Additionally, he holds the position of associate professor of neurosurgery and pediatrics at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.

Dr. Fallah is known for his thoughtfulness and meticulous approach as a surgeon, specializing in the research and treatment of pediatric neurosurgical conditions. These conditions include medically intractable epilepsy, hydrocephalus, Chiari malformations, and craniofacial abnormalities. He also possesses expertise in brain tumors, arachnoid cysts, spinal dysraphism, and other congenital malformations of the developing nervous system.

Dr. Fallah's educational background comprises a medical degree and a graduate degree in clinical epidemiology and biostatistics, both earned at McMaster University in Ontario. He successfully completed his neurosurgical residency program at the University of Toronto and undertook pediatric rotations at the esteemed Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto. Furthermore, Dr. Fallah received specialized epilepsy training at Toronto Western Hospital and the Cleveland Clinic. Subsequently, he completed a fellowship in pediatric neurosurgery at Miami Children's Hospital.

Dr. Fallah is internationally recognized as a leader in pediatric epilepsy surgery, with a focus on hemispherectomies. He has successfully performed over 800 epilepsy operations, resulting in many children being cured of their epilepsy. During his tenure at UCLA, he has been an integral part of the Pediatric Epilepsy Program, known for pioneering novel treatments, establishing protocols, developing diagnostic tools, and creating evidence-based guidelines that have transformed the care of children with medically intractable epilepsy. The pediatric epilepsy surgery team collaborates with UCLA Health experts in pediatric epileptology, pediatric neuroradiology, pediatric neuropathology, pediatric neuropsychology, child psychiatry, and pediatric neuro-rehabilitation to achieve the best outcomes for patients.

The pediatric neurosurgery team offers a range of diagnostic surgeries, including stereotactic electroencephalography and subdural grid implantation. They also perform resective epilepsy surgeries, from focused microsurgical resections to large hemispheric resections. Additionally, the team utilizes MRI-guided laser thermal therapy for minimally invasive treatments. Children who are not eligible for resective surgery may be offered implantation of the latest generation of vagus nerve stimulators, responsive neurostimulation, and deep brain stimulation.

In addition to his clinical work at UCLA, Dr. Fallah has authored over 145 peer-reviewed articles, with a particular focus on epilepsy, published in leading medical journals. He is committed to teaching and providing clinical care in developing nations, having participated in volunteer trips to provide pediatric neurosurgical care for hydrocephalus in Haiti. He has also played a key role in initiating an epilepsy surgery program in India and China, and he has performed complex surgical epilepsy procedures, such as a peri-insular hemispherotomy, in the youngest patient in Chile and one of the smallest infants in the United States.

Languages

English

Education

Medical Board Certification

Neurological Surgery, Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada, 2014

Fellowship

Pediatric Neurosurgery, Miami Children's Hospital/Nicklaus Childrens Hospital, 2015

Residency

Neurosurgery, University of Toronto Faculty of Medicine, 2014

Degrees

MS, McMaster University School of Medicine, 2013
MD, McMaster University School of Medicine, 2008

Locations

Hospital Affiliations

Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center

UCLA Santa Monica Medical Center

Areas of Focus

Craniofacial anomalies
Spinal dysraphism
Hydrocephalus
Hemispherectomy
Epilepsy surgery

Videos

Profile
Meet Aria Fallah, MD, MS
Surgical Treatment of Epilepsy in Children with Tuberous Sclerosis Complex
Hemispherectomy: When half the brain is better than the whole
A Modern and Comprehensive Approach to Pediatric Epilepsy Surgery
Management of Pediatric Hydrocephalus

Research

Interests

Dr. Fallah's research interests are in Evidence-Based Surgery, Clinical Trials, Observational Studies, Meta-Analyses, and Umbrella Reviews, as it relates to Pediatric Epilepsy Surgery and Pediatric Neurosurgery. He has been the principal investigator in several multicenter collaborative studies in epilepsy surgery including the HOPS (Hemispherectomy) Study and REST (Tuberous Sclerosis Complex) Study. Dr. Fallah has written extensively, having authored or coauthored more than 145 peer-reviewed publications. He has written book chapters and is a regular invited speaker at international and national epilepsy and pediatric neurosurgery conferences.

 

Publications

Link to Dr. Fallah's PubMed publications

Selected Recent Publications

  1. Nagahama Y, Zervos T, Murata K, Holman L, Karsonovich T, Parker JJ, Chen JS, Phillips HW, Fajardo M, Nariai H, Hussain S, Porter B, Grant GA, Ragheb J, Wang S, O’Neill BR, Alexander A, Bollo RJ, Fallah A.  Real-world Experience with Responsive Neurostimulation in Pediatric Epilepsy: A Multi-Center Retrospective Observational Study.  Neurosurgery (in press).
  2. Fallah A, Lewis E, Ibrahim GM, Kola O, Tseng CH, Harris WB, Chen, JS, Lin KM, Cai LX, Liu QZ, Lin JL, Zhou WJ, Mathern GW, Smyth MD, O’Neill BR, Dudley R, Ragheb J, Bhatia S, Delev D, Ramantani G, Zentner J, Ojemann J, Wang AC, Dorfer C, Feucht M, Czech T, Bollo RJ, Issabekov G, Zhu H, Connelly M, Steinbok P, Zhang JG, Zhang K, Hidalgo ET, Weiner HL, Wong-Kisiel L, Lapalme-Remis S, Hader W, Wang FP, Yao Y, Champagne PO, Guo Q, Li SC, Budke M, Pérez-Jiménez MA, Raftapoulos C, Finet P, Michel P, Schaller K, Stienen MN, Baro V, Malone CC, Pociecha J, Chamorro N, Muro VL, von Lehe M, Vieker S, Oluigbo C, Gaillard WD, Al-Khateeb M, Al Otaibi F, Ramantani G, Krayenbühl N, Bolton J, Pearl P, Weil AG.  Comparative of the Effectiveness of Vertical Versus Lateral Functional Hemispheric Surgery Techniques for Pediatric Drug-Resistant Epilepsy: a Post-hoc Analysis of the HOPS Database. Epilepsia (in press).
  3. Weil AG, Lewis E, Ibrahim GM, Kola O, Tseng CH, Zhou X, Lin KM, Cai LX, Liu QZ, Lin JL, Zhou WJ, Mathern GW, Smyth MD, O’Neill BR, Dudley R, Ragheb J, Bhatia S, Delev D, Ramantani G, Zentner J, Ojemann J, Wang AC, Dorfer C, Feucht M, Czech T, Bollo RJ, Issabekov G, Zhu H, Connelly M, Steinbok P, Zhang JG, Zhang K, Hidalgo ET, Weiner HL, Wong-Kisiel L, Lapalme-Remis S, Hader W, Wang FP, Yao Y, Champagne PO, Guo Q, Li SC, Budke M, Pérez-Jiménez MA, Raftapoulos C, Finet P, Michel P, Schaller K, Stienen MN, Baro V, Malone CC, Pociecha J, Chamorro N, Muro VL, von Lehe M, Vieker S, Oluigbo C, Gaillard WD, Al-Khateeb M, Al Otaibi F, Ramantani G, Krayenbühl N, Bolton J, Pearl PL, Fallah A.  Hemispheric Surgery Outcome Prediction Scale: Development and Validation of a Seizure Freedom Prediction Tool. Epilepsia. 2021 Mar 13.
  4. Chivukula S, Modiri O, Kashanian A, Ibrahim GM, Weil AG, Wu JY, Mathern GW, Fallah A.  Effect of Gene Mutation on Seizures for Tuberous Sclerosis Complex. Can J Neurol Sci. 2020 Aug 28; 1-18.
  5. Bellamkonda N, Phillips HW, Chen JS, Tucker A, Maniquis C, Mathern GW, Fallah A. Epilepsy Surgery for Rasmussen Encephalitis: The UCLA Experience. J Neurosurg Pediatr 2020 Jul 17;1-9.
  6. Harris W, Phillips HW, Chen JS, Weil AG, Ibrahim GM, Fallah A. Predictors of Seizure Outcomes in Children with Rasmussen's Encephalitis Undergoing Resective Epilepsy Surgery: An Individual Participant Data Meta-Analysis. J Neurosurg Pediatr. 2019 Dec 6:1-10.
  7. Owens GC, Garcia AJ, Mochizuki A, Chang JW, Reyes S, Salamon N, Prins RM, Mathern GW, Fallah A. Evidence for innate and adaptive immune responses in a cohort of intractable pediatric epilepsy surgery patients. Frontiers in Immunology, section Multiple Sclerosis and Neuroimmunology January 2019, Volume 10, Article 121.
  8. Cooper Y, Pianka S, Alotaibi NA, Babayan D, Salavati B, Weil AG, Ibrahim GM, Wang AC, Fallah A. Repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation for the treatment of drug-resistant epilepsy: a systematic review and individual participant data meta-analysis of real-world evidence. Epilepsia Open 2017 Dec 27;31(1):55-65.
  9. Fallah A, Rodgers SD, Weil AG, Vadera S, Mansouri A, Connolly MB, Major P, Ma T, Devinsky O, Weiner HL, Gonzalez-Martinez JA, Bingaman WE, Najm I, Gupta A, Ragheb J, Bhatia S, Steinbok P, Witiw CD, Widjaja E, Snead OC, Rutka. Resective Epilepsy Surgery for Tuberous Sclerosis (REST): An International Multi-Center Retrospective Observational Study. Neurosurgery. 2015; 77(4):517-524.
  10. Fallah A, Guyatt GH, Snead OC, Ebrahim S, Ibrahim GM, Mansouri A, Reddy D, Walter SD, Kulkarni AV, Bhandari M, Banfield L, Bhatnagar N, Liang S, Teutonico F, Liao J, Rutka JT. Predictors of seizure outcomes in children with tuberous sclerosis and intractable epilepsy undergoing resective epilepsy surgery: An individual participant data meta-analysis. PLoS One 2013;8(2):e53565.

Recognitions

  • Top Doctors, Los Angeles Magazine, 2021
  • Southern California Rising Stars, Super Doctors®, 2021
  • Top Doctors, Los Angeles Magazine, 2020
  • Southern California Rising Stars, Super Doctors®, 2020
  • Top Doctors, Los Angeles Magazine, 2019
  • Southern California Rising Stars, Super Doctors®, 2019
  • Ulrich Batzdorf, MD Teaching Award, UCLA Neurosurgery Gold Medal Recipient, 2016
  • Top Clinical Research Poster at AANS/CNS Section on Pediatric Neurological Surgery, 2014
  • Outstanding Resident Surgeon and Investigator Award, University of Toronto, 2014
  • Annual Research Day First prize, McMaster University, 2012
  • William J. Horsey Prize Competition First prize, University of Toronto, 2012