Our Team – CSIE-Center for Surgical Innovation and Engineering

Principal Investigators

Founder & Director of CSIE

Professor of Orthopaedic Surgery and Neurosurgery, Cedars Sinai
Director, Spine Oncology Center
Prof. Schwab’s research focuses on developing decision-support systems that utilize artificial intelligence, biomedical devices, and wearable technologies.

Hamid Ghaednia, PhD

Co-Founder and Co-Director of CSIE

Assistant Professor of Orthopedic Surgery and Computational Biomedicine
Dr. Ghaednia’s research in mechanical engineering focuses on developing biomedical devices and wearables that utilize concepts from optics, acoustics, and electromagnetism.

Affiliated Faculties and Collaborators

Prof. Cristina Ferrone

Department Chair
Department of Surgery at Cedars Sinai
Professor of Surgery
prof. Ferrone’s research is focused on the development of immunotherapeutic strategies for patients with cancer of the liver, biliary system, and pancreas

Prof. Mark Vrahas

Department Chair
Department of Orthopedic Surgery at Cedars Sinai
Professor of Surgery. Prof. Vrahas’s research focuses on various clinical areas related to fractures and trauma.

Prof. Miguel Hernandez BSEE, MSECE

Manager for the Center for AI Research and Education at the Department of Computational Biomedicine in the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center and member of the Board of Advisors for the Penn EDS (Electronic Design Shop) under the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

Email: miguel.e.hernandez@cshs.org

Paltrinieri, Emilie

Athletic Event Operation Manager Business Development

Research Coordinators and Managers

Rachel Spear

Program Coordinator, Center for Surgical Innovation and Engineering, Department of Orthopaedics, Spine Center of Cedars Sinai

John Monetti, MS, CRA

Manager, Research Ops
Manager at the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery of Cedars Sinai

Joel Arnold

Program Manager, Research
Research Program Manager at the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery of Cedars Sinai

Research Scientists

Amirhossein Yazdkhasti, PhD (Project Scientist – Mechanical Engineering)

Dr. Yazdkhasti’s research focuses on acoustic devices and wearables for quantifying functional exams and diagnosing neuromuscular disease.

Ghazal Shabestanipour, PhD (Research Data Scientist)

Dr. Shabestanipour’s research focuses on decision-making under deep uncertainty in healthcare, leveraging statistics and machine learning to inform practical decision-making in healthcare.

Zahra Karimi, PhD

Dr. Karimi has a PhD in chemical engineering and focuses on bone quality and the electrochemical understanding of the human neuromuscular system.

Clinical Research Fellows

Masahiro Hirahata, MD, PhD

Dr. Hirahata is an Orthopaedic Spine Surgeon from Teikyo University in Japan. His research focuses on metastatic spinal disease, with particular interests in machine learning and medical imaging for clinical decision support. He is also involved in using plantar pressure mapping to assess musculoskeletal function in patients with cancer.

Akira Honda, MD, PhD

Dr. Honda of Gunma University, Japan, is an orthopedic spine surgeon specializing in big data analytics, AI, and machine learning. His research focuses on developing quantitative methods to assess medical imaging and neurological function in patients with spinal disorders. His long-term goal is to integrate imaging, physical examinations, and neurological assessments into an automated platform that improves clinical decision-making and enables more precise, personalized spine care.

Engineers and Clinical Research Assistants

Helen Najjar, MS

Helen is a Biomedical Engineer passionate about innovation and how wearable technology can transform healthcare and enhance the quality of daily life.

Isabel Hansmann Canas, BS

Isabel is a Biomedical Engineer with an extensive hands-on background in developing biomedical devices and wearables.

Sophie Duncan

Sophie is a Bioengineer interested in bridging engineering and medicine through medical device innovation and quantitative human movement research. She plans to pursue medical school and a career in medicine.