Aria Fallah, MD, MS
- Pediatric Neurosurgery|
- Neurosurgery
About
Dr. Aria Fallah is a renowned neurosurgeon specializing in epilepsy surgery for both pediatric and adult patients. Practicing at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center and UCLA Mattel Children's Hospital in Westwood, Dr. Fallah is board-certified by the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada and the American Board of Pediatric Neurological Surgery. He holds the Dr. Alfonsina Q. Davies Endowed Chair in honor of Paul Crandall, M.D., for Epilepsy Research at UCLA and serves as the co-medical director of the epilepsy surgery program at UCLA. Additionally, he is an associate professor of neurosurgery and pediatrics at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA.
Dr. Fallah is distinguished for his thoughtful and meticulous approach to surgery, dedicating his entire practice to the research and treatment of epilepsy. He employs cutting-edge techniques to achieve the best outcomes for his patients. Dr. Fallah is one of the very few neurosurgeons in the country who routinely operates on both complex pediatric and adult epilepsy patients, maintaining one of the busiest surgical epilepsy practices in the country.
Dr. Fallah holds a medical degree and a graduate degree in clinical epidemiology and biostatistics from McMaster University in Ontario. His neurosurgical residency at the University of Toronto included pediatric rotations at the renowned Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto. 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. He is currently obtaining his executive MBA degree at UCLA's Anderson School of Management.
Internationally recognized as a leader in epilepsy surgery, Dr. Fallah has successfully performed over 800 epilepsy operations, significantly improving the lives of many children and adults. He has particular expertise in hemispherectomies and responsive neural stimulation. At UCLA, he has been pivotal in advancing the Pediatric Epilepsy Program, pioneering novel treatments, and developing evidence-based guidelines that have transformed care for patients with medically intractable epilepsy. He collaborates with experts in pediatric and adult epileptology, neuroradiology, neuropathology, neuropsychology, psychiatry, and neuro-rehabilitation to ensure comprehensive care.
Dr. Fallah has pioneered procedures such as the implantation of thalamic responsive neuromodulation and was the earliest adopter of corpus callosotomy for infants with infantile spasms in the country. He also has extensive experience with robotic-assisted surgeries and minimally invasive approaches whenever possible.
Dr. Fallah's team offers a range of diagnostic and surgical options, including stereotactic robotic-assisted electroencephalography, subdural grid implantation, resective epilepsy surgeries, and MRI-guided laser thermal therapy. For patients not eligible for resective surgery, options include the latest generation of vagus nerve, deep brain, and responsive neurostimulation.
Beyond his clinical work, Dr. Fallah has authored over 150 peer-reviewed articles, many published in the top epilepsy and neurosurgical journals. He maintains active research collaborations with basic and translational neuroscientists, utilizing human biobank tissue, electrophysiological, and clinical research. Dr. Fallah is dedicated to teaching and global outreach, having participated in volunteer missions to provide pediatric neurosurgical care in Haiti, and initiating epilepsy surgery programs in India and China. 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
Education
Medical Board Certification
Fellowship
Residency
Degrees
Recognitions
- Super doctors, Southern California, 2024
- Super Doctors® Southern California, 2025
- Top Doctors, Los Angeles Magazine, 2021
- Southern California Rising Stars, Super Doctors®, 2021
- See More
Related Clinical Trials
Locations
Hospital Affiliations
Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center
UCLA Santa Monica Medical Center
Medical Services
Areas of Focus
Videos
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
Dr. Fallah's PubMed publications
Selected Recent Publications
- 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).
- 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).
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
- 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.
In the News
- Years of isolation end for young man after epilepsy surgery at UCLA Health - UCLA Health
- 17-22 Segment 2: Giggling Epilepsy
- New surgical technique at UCLA cures boy of 'giggling' epilepsy
- UCLA surgeons use minimally invasive procedure to cure boy with rare form of seizures - UCLA Newsroom
- Olivia's journey: 3-year-old conquered a rare disorder all with a smile on her face
Note: Website links may expire without notice.
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Recognitions
- Super Doctors® Southern California, 2025
- 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