Ochsner Health is a system that delivers health to the people of Louisiana, Mississippi and the Gulf South with a mission to Serve, Heal, Lead, Educate and Innovate.
Ochsner Health is a system that delivers health to the people of Louisiana, Mississippi and the Gulf South with a mission to Serve, Heal, Lead, Educate and Innovate.
Thank you for choosing Ochsner Health for your care. We are committed to making an ongoing difference in the health of our communities.
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Ochsner is committed to a clinically-integrated research program with the ultimate goal of improving the health and wellness of our patients and communities. And as the largest academic medical center in Louisiana, we are training the next generation of healthcare professionals to be leaders who can meet evolving healthcare challenges.
Education Chief 2023-2024
Dr. Cevallos was born and raised in Guayaquil, Ecuador. He completed his MD training at the Catholic University of Santiago de Guayaquil. He developed an interest in medicine and neurology since little based on family background and real life experiences. Dr. Cevallos considers himself a very spiritual person who inspired by his catholic faith tries every day to be better as a human, friend and physician. Notable awards include valedictorian of his class as well as best graduation thesis. In his free time he likes to play video games, eat and travel.
Birthplace: Guayaquil, Ecuador
Medical School: Catholic University of Santiago de Guayaquil
Interests: Education, teaching and neurosciences in general
Notable publications and presentations:
Jimmy Achi Arteaga, David Martínez Neira, Bolívar Cárdenas Mera, Jacques Lara Reyna, Martha Burgos Morales. Solid cerebellar hemangioblastoma Case report and literature review. Revista Ecuatoriana de Neurología. 2013, Jan; 22(1-3): 127-131. Pub Status:Published.
Jurado MB, Santibáñez R, Palacios-Mendoza M, Moreno-Zambrano D, Peñaherrera C, Duarte MC, Gamboa X, Cevallos C, Regato I, Palacio A, Tamariz L. Cognitive Impaitment in Diabetic Patients Between 55 And 65 Years Old. Final Report of a Cross-Sectional, Observational Study in Guayaquil City. Revista Ecuatoriana de Neurología. 2018, Jan; 27(1): 41-50. Pub Status: Published.
Palacios-Mendoza M, Jurado M, Gamboa X, Cevallos C, Moreno-Zambrano D, Duarte M, Penaherrera C, Tamariz L, Palacio A, Santibanez R. Diabetes is associated with cognitive decline in middle-aged patients. Metabolic Syndrome and Related Disorders. 2018, Nov; 16(10): 1-7. Cited in PubMed; PMID: 30311847. Pub Status: Published.
Peñaherrera-Oviedo, C., Moreno-Zambrano, D., Palacios, M., DuarteMartinez, M. C., Cevallos, C., Gamboa, X. & Santibañez, R.. Does intensive glucose control prevent cognitive decline in diabetes? A metaanalysis. International journal of chronic diseases. 2015, Aug; 2015(2015): 1-8. Cited in PubMed; PMID: 26464871. Pub Status: Published.
Jurado, MB., Palacios, M., Moreno-Zambrano, D., Cevallos, C., Regato, I., Gamboa, X., Duarte, MC., Penaherrera, C., Tamariz, L., Santibanez, R. (February, 2019). Comorbidity of depression and diabetes is not associated with increased cognitive impairment in middle aged adults Poster presented at: Final program forty seventh annual meeting international neuropsychological society; New York, NY, USA.
Jurado, MB., Palacios, M., Moreno-Zambrano, D., Cevallos, C., Regato, I., Gamboa, X., Duarte, MC., Penaherrera, C., Tamariz, L., Santibanez, R.. (April, 2017). Cardiovascular risk factors contribute differentially to cognitive functioning in middle-aged adults Poster presented at: American Academy of Neurology 69th Annual Meeting; boston, MA, USA.
Jurado, MB., Palacios, M., Regato, I., Cevallos, C., Gamboa, X., MorenoZambrano, D., Penaherrera, C., Duarte, M-C., Tamariz, L., Santibanez, R. (April, 2016). Verbal Memory and Processing Speed Deficits in Middle-Aged Individuals with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus Poster presented at: American Academy of Neurology 68th Annual Meeting; vancouver, BC, CAN.
Martin, j., Cevallos, C. (October, 2013). Factors that determine the inappropriate use of contraceptives in young people between 16 and 24 years of the Santiago de Guayaquil Catholic University in 2012 Poster presented at: III congreso binacional de ciencia, tecnología e innovación AUSENP; chiclayo, PER.
Cevallos, C., A. ; Martin, J., D. (2016, September 22). Valoración de los ingresos hospitalarios a través de los servicios de medicina interna y cirugía de la emergencia del Hospital Regional Dr. Teodoro Maldonado Carbo, de acuerdo al Appropriateness Evaluation Protocol vigente. http://repositorio.ucsg.edu.ec/handle/3317/6527, Pub Status: Published.
Research Chief 2023-2024
Dr. Maslov was born in Neumünster, Germany and raised in Winnipeg, Canada. He moved to Costa Rica during his sophomore year of high school. He completed his Bachelor of Science at Simon Fraser University and received his medical degree from the University of Queensland. Throughout his travels and education, Alexander developed an interest in Neurology and reducing social disparities in health care.
Birthplace: Germany
Undergraduate: Simon Fraser University, BS General
Science
Medical School: University of Queensland, MD
Interests:
Cooking (especially BBQ), running, and live music.
Notable Publications and Presentations:
Khan, F. A., McIntyre, C., Khan, A. M., & Maslov, A. (2020). Headache and Methemoglobinemia. Headache: The Journal of Head and Face Pain, 60(1), 291-297.
Proactive Ochsner Encounters: engaging all members of the neurology clinical care team in reminding patients of their overdue cancer screenings and immunisations. (175), Alexander Maslov, Caitlin Ernst, Julia Deyeva, Mohona Reza, Ravi Chilukuri, Jose Posas. Neurology, Apr 2020, 94 (15 Supplement) 175;
Implementation of self-reported questionnaires to assess feasibility and adoption of 3D printing (3DP) and 3D virtual reality (VR) patient models in three complex spinal surgical cases (5055) Alexander Maslov, Stephen Fletcher, Caleb Stewart, Jack McGee, Alec Slayden, James Kalyvas, Korak Sarkar. Neurology, Apr 2020, 94 (15 Supplement) 5055;
Manayan O, Masterson C, Poulton H, Ye A, Maslov A, Giddens N, Jin S, Blackie A, Van den Heever J, Chung J. Type II Diabetes Mellitus in Indigenous Australians. Oral presentation at University of Queensland Indigenous Health Symposium, October 2016, Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
Ponzi, D., Zilioli, S., Mehta, P. H., Maslov, A., & Watson, N. V. (2016). Social network centrality and hormones: The interaction of testosterone and cortisol. Psychoneuroendocrinology, 68, 6-13.
Maslov A, Cobarrubias K, Anmole G, Kuang X, Shahid A, Markle T, Le A, Brumme Z, Brockman M. Construction of a Chimeric Antigen Receptor for a T Cell. Poster presentation at Molecular Biology and Biochemistry Colloquium, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada, April, 2015.
Administrative Chief 2023-2024
Dr. Sofía Matta Rodríguez was born and raised in San Juan Puerto Rico. She attended the University of Puerto Rico for undergrad and completed her MD at San Juan Bautista School of Medicine. She was unaware she was interested in Neurology, until starting medical school, but she did know she wanted to practice in a field where sports and rehabilitation were involved. After her clerkships with Multiple Sclerosis patients, she realized Neurology was the specialty to go to. She plans on going on to a fellowship that will allow her to practice outpatient care. As someone born on an island, she enjoys going to the beach the most and tries staying up to date with upcoming local art festivals and restaurants.
Birthplace: San Juan, Puerto Rico
Medical School: San Juan Bautista
School of Medicine- Caguas, Puerto Rico
Interests: Food, Cooking, Traveling/Roadtrips,
music, board games
Dr. Tsai was born in Ohio and grew up in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. She received her bachelor’s degree in Anthropology and Human Biology at Emory University and medical degree from University of Texas Southwestern Medical School. Her interest in Neurology began during her medical school rotation as she saw the wide array of ways neurological conditions can present. In her free time she likes to hang out with her cats, read fiction, and go to pilates class.
Birthplace: Dallas, TX
Medical School: University of Texas Southwestern Medical School
Interests: reading, photography, travel
Dr. Yeganegi grew up in Toronto, Canada after spending his childhood in Iran where he was born. He completed a Masters in Biomedical Engineering at the University of Toronto, before pursuing medicine at Jagiellonian University in Krakow, Poland, a 650 year-old university where Nicolaus Copernicus once studied. Having been an avid programmer since the age of 12, Dr. Yeganegi's research aspirations include applications of signal processing, brain computer interfaces and artificial neural networks to the field of neurology. He follows politics closely and is interested in science and public health policy. He helped create the annual Canadian Science Policy Conference and Center, the first of its kind in Canada, while pursuing his research-based masters.
Hometown: Toronto, Canada
Masters and Undergraduate: University of Toronto, Institute of Biomaterials and Biomedical Engineering
Medical School: Jagiellonian University
Hobbies: Self-taught pursuit of piano and guitar. Masoud enjoys salsa and bachata dancing, photography, as well as cooking.
Notable Publications and Presentations:
Masoud Yeganegi, Pooia Fattahi. Management and Prevention of Cerebrovascular Accidents in SARS-CoV-2–Positive Patients Recovering from COVID-19: a Case Report and Review of Literature, SN Comprehensive Clinical Medicine. January 16, 2021
Pooia Fattahi, Masoud Yeganegi, Katherine Kedzierski. "Neurologic Disorders and Maxillofacial Surgery" in "Perioperative Assessment of the Maxillofacial Surgery Patient", Springer 2018 (Book Chapter)
Yeganegi, M., Kandel, RA, Santerre, JP. Characterization of a biodegradable electrospun polyurethane nanofiber scaffold: Mechanical properties and cytotoxicity. Journal of Acta Biomaterialia, 2010
Yeganegi, M., Kandel, RA., Santerre, JP. Characterization of a Biodegradable Electrospun Polyurethane Nanofiber Scaffold: Mechanical Properties and Cytotoxicity. Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine International Society, World Congress (TERMIS WC 2009), Oral presentation, Seoul, South Korea, 2009
Chau, T., Eaton-Russel, C., Yeganegi M., Blain, S. (2006). Investigation of experimental communication access pathways, Oral presentation. 12th Biennial International Conference of the International Society for Augmentative and Alternative Communication (ISAAC), Oral presentation, Düsseldorf, Germany, 2006
Aarabi, P., Wang, Q.H., Yeganegi, M. Integrated Displacement Tracking And Sound Localization. Proceedings of the 2004 IEEE Conference on Acoustics, Speech, and Signal Processing (ICASSP 2004), Montreal, Canada, 2004
Dr. Bozzorg was born in Minnesota and grew up in Georgia. He attended Georgia Tech where he earned a BS in Applied Psychology and continued to earn a MS in Human-Computer Interactions. He attended Medical College of Georgia in Augusta, Georgia. His interest in medicine stems from his work in memory research at Georgia Tech and neurorehabilitation research at the Atlanta VA in Parkinsons’ and dementia.
Birthplace: Minneapolis, Minnesota
Undergraduate: Georgia Institute of Technology, BS in Applied Psychology; MS in Human-Computer Interactions
Medical School: Medical College of Georgia at Augusta University
Interests: Rock climbing, yoga, and cooking
Notable Publications and Presentations:
Bozzorg, Ariyana, Moon, Nathan, Todd, Robert & Utschig, Tristan. Evaluation of Programmatic Interventions to Improve Postsecondary STEM Education for Students with Disabilities: Findings from SciTrain University. Journal of Postsecondary Education and Disability. (2011); 24(4): 331-349.
Drucker, Jonathon H., Sathian, K., Crosson, B., Krishnamurthy, V., McGregor, K. M., Bozzorg, Ariyana, ... & Evatt, M.. Internally guided lower limb movement recruits compensatory cerebellar activity in people with Parkinson's disease. Frontiers in neurology. (2019); 10(10): 537. Cited in PubMed; PMID: 31231297.
Hackney, M. E., Byers, C., Butler, G., Sweeney, M., Rossbach, L., & Bozzorg, A.. Tango improves mobility, motor–cognitive function, and gait but not cognition in older adults in independent living. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society. (2015); 63(10): 2105-2113.
Cited in PubMed; PMID: 26456371.
McKay, J. L., Bozzorg, A., Nocera, J., & Hackney, M. E.. (2017, April 11). The Influence of Parkinson’s Disease and Neurotypical Aging on Cognitive Performance Among Volunteers for an Exercise-based Rehabilitative Intervention. https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/126607v1.full
Moon, N. W., Baker, P. M., Roy, R. G., & Bozzorg, A.. Disability Issues and Planning Education: Findings from a Longitudinal Survey of Planning Programs and Lessons for Urban e-Planning.. International Journal of E-Planning Research. (2014); 3(3): 38-52.
Silverstein, H. A., Hart, A. R., Bozzorg, A., & Hackney, M. E.. Improved Mobility, Cognition, and Disease Severity in Corticobasal Degeneration of an African American Man After 12 Weeks of Adapted Tango: A Case Study.. American Journal of Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation. (2019); 99(2): 21-27. Cited in PubMed; PMID: 30801264.
Utschig, T. T., Moon, N. W., Bozzorg, A., & Todd, R. L.. Impact of faculty development on classroom accessibility as measured using a classroom observation instrument.. International Journal of Process Education. (2012); 4(1): 61-77.
Dr. Benhuri was born and raised in New York City. He received his medical degree from the University of Toledo College of Medicine and Life Sciences. His interest in neurology first started in the anatomy lab and continued during the clinical years, especially pertaining to localization and neuroimaging. In his free time he enjoys watching movies, listening to new records, and playing board games.
Birthplace: New York, NY
Undergraduate: Hunter College, The City University of New York, BA in History
Medical School: University of Toledo College of Medicine and Life Sciences
Interests: Film, Music, Stand-up comedy, Chess, Backgammon
Dr. Cochran was born and raised in Greenville, South Carolina. He completed his undergraduate work at the University of South Carolina Honors College where he majored in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology and minored in Neuroscience. He then completed his medical degree at the Medical University of South Carolina. He developed an interest in medicine and neurology after working in an assisted living facility and minoring in neuroscience. He has an ongoing interest in vascular neurology and cognitive neurology. In his free time, he enjoys boating, biking, and playing the saxophone.
Birthplace: Greenville, SC
Undergraduate: University of South Carolina, BS Biochemistry and Molecular Biology
Medical School: Medical University of South Carolina
Interests: Music, Gardening, Outdoors
Dr. Nelson is from La Crosse, Wisconsin. He completed an undergraduate degree in biology at the University of Minnesota, and received his medical degree from Kirksville College of Osteopathic Medicine. He developed a passion for neurology during his clinical years of medical school, and is particularly interested in neuroimmunology. When he is not working, he enjoys cooking, tennis, and playing the piano.
Dr. Leon-Ariza was born in Colombia and raised in Japan. He received his MD at the Universidad de Santander. Ever since he was a kid, he developed interests in Neurology and Neurosciences. He is passionate about research in brain tumors and vascular neurology, with extensive experience in the development of Phase I and Phase II neuro-oncology clinical trials.
Birthplace: Bucaramanga, Colombia
Medical School: Universidad de
Santander
Interests: Running, Crossfit, Futbol and Traveling
Notable publications and presentations:
Leon-Ariza DS, Leon-Ariza JS, Nangiana J, Grau GV, Leon-Sarmiento FE, Quiñones-Hinojosa A. Evidences in neurological surgery and a cutting edge classification of the trigeminocardiac reflex: a systematic review. World Neurosurgery 2018; 117:4-10
Leon-Ariza DS, Campero A, Romero Chaparro RJ, Prada DG, Vargas Grau G, Rhoton Jr AL. Key aspects in foramen magnum meningiomas: From old neuroanatomical conceptions to current far lateral neurosurgical intervention. World Neurosurgery 2017; 106:477-483
Leon-Ariza DS, Romero Chaparro RJ, Rosen L, Leon-Ariza JS, Leon-Sarmiento FE, Villalonga JF, Quinones-Hinojosa A, Campero A. Combined Presigmoid-Subtemporal Approach in a Semi-Sitting Position for Petroclival Meningiomas: A Technical Report. Cureus. 2021; 13:e19609
Leon-Ariza DS, Leon-Ariza JS, Leon-Sarmiento FE. Territorial and extraterritorial trigeminocardiac reflex: a review for the neurosurgeon and a type IV reflex vignette. Cureus 2020; 12(11): e11646
Leon-Ariza DS, Leon-Ariza JS, Bayona EA, Bayona-Prieto J, Leon-Sarmiento FE. Remote dysfunctions in spinal cord injury: Closer than ever. Clinical Neurology and Neurosurgery 2015; 133:102-103
Leon-Sarmiento FE, Peckham E, Leon-Ariza DS, Bara-Jimenez W, Hallett M. Auditory and lower limb tactile prepulse inhibition in primary restless legs syndrome: clues to its pathophysiology. Journal of Clinical Neurophysiology 2015; 32:369-374
Leon-Sarmiento FE, Gonzalez-Castaño A, Rizzo-Sierra CV, Aceros J, Leon-Ariza DS, Leon-Ariza JS, Prada DG,
Bara-Jimenez W, Wang ZY. Neurophysics assessment of the muscle bioenergy generated by transcranial magnetic
stimulation. Research (Science) 2019; 3: 7109535
Leon-Ariza JS, Prada DG, Leon-Ariza DS, Castillo C, Leon-Sarmiento FE. The three nociceptive responses of the orbicularis oculi reflex in alzheimer’s disease: state of the evidence and meta-analysis. Clinical EEG and Neuroscience 2019; 50: 354-360
Leon-Sarmiento FE, Contreras VA, Leon-Ariza JS, Leon-Ariza DS, Bayona-Prieto J, Boutros N. Fractal neurophysiological meta-analysis of the blink reflex in Tourette syndrome. Biological Psychiatry 2007; 61 (Suppl 1): 237
Leon-Sarmiento FE, Leon-Ariza JS, Leon-Ariza DS. Rapid modulation of motor cortex after playing a videogame. Neurology 2006; 66: 179-180
Dr. Pina was born and raised in the suburbs of Miami, FL. She completed her undergraduate work at The Pennsylvania State University and received her medical degree from Ross University School of Medicine. She first developed an interest in Neurology while shadowing in a General Neurology clinic during her pre-medical studies. She has an ongoing interest in Neuro-Immunology and Cognitive Disorders. In her free time, she likes to travel and read.
Birthplace: Hialeah, FL
Undergraduate: The Pennsylvania State University; B.S. Biology, B.S. Human Development & Family Studies
Medical School: Ross University School of Medicine
Interests: Traveling, reading, and event planning
Dr. Stone was born and raised in Sylacauga, Alabama. He completed his undergraduate work at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, earning his bachelor’s degree in Biology while being an active member of the university drumline. He continued studying at the University of Alabama at Birmingham Heersink School of Medicine, where he received his MD. His passion to pursue neurology developed after volunteering at a rehabilitation center during his undergraduate studies. He is particularly interested in Epilepsy and Vascular Neurology. In his free time, he enjoys drumming, indoor gardening, and finding new places to explore with his dog.
Birthplace: Sylacauga, Alabama
Undergraduate: The University of Alabama at Birmingham, BS in Biology
Medical School: The University of Alabama at Birmingham, Heersink School of Medicine
Interests: Music, Indoor plants, Film
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