Leading Vascular Surgeon Named Associate Dean of Faculty Affairs

Ali Azizzadeh, MD, an internationally recognized vascular surgeon at Cedars-Sinai, has been appointed associate dean of Faculty Affairs.

In his new role, Azizzadeh will provide strategic guidance and support for faculty members, playing a key role in appointments, promotions and academic career development. He will work directly with department chairs and faculty members and collaborate with Medical Staff Services and Human Resources—serving as a resource to manage faculty-and-personnel-related matters.

“Dr. Azizzadeh is the ideal individual to serve in this important new role, as he is widely respected as a collaborative and thoughtful leader and mentor,” said Shlomo Melmed, MB, ChB, Cedars-Sinai's executive vice president of Academic Affairs and dean of the Medical Faculty. “His academic rigor and dedication to the highest-quality clinical care have strengthened our successful Vascular Surgery program and enriched our organization.”

In his new role, Azizzadeh will report to Bruce L. Gewertz, MD, vice dean of Clinical System Development and Faculty Affairs.

Azizzadeh also is vice chair of Programmatic Development in the Department of Surgery and professor and director of the Division of Vascular Surgery. He is associate director for Vascular Therapeutics in the Smidt Heart Institute at Cedars-Sinai and co-medical director of the Vascular Laboratory.

After earning his medical degree and completing a general surgery residency at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Azizzadeh completed a vascular surgery fellowship at Barnes-Jewish Hospital and Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

Before joining the staff at Cedars-Sinai in 2017, he was a professor and chief of Vascular and Endovascular Surgery at McGovern Medical School at UTHealth and the Memorial Hermann Heart & Vascular Institute in Houston.

A pioneer in minimally invasive treatment of vascular disease, Azizzadeh leads research on novel surgical techniques, stent grafts and other devices and has served as U.S. principal investigator for major clinical trials. He has published prolifically in the peer-reviewed literature and has been a regular invited speaker on vascular surgery topics to local, regional, national and international audiences.

Azizzadeh is a distinguished fellow of the Society for Vascular Surgery and a member of the American Surgical Association, the American College of Surgeons and the American Heart Association. He is the founder and president of the Aortic Trauma Foundation, a nonprofit that advances research and education in traumatic aortic injury.

“I am honored to serve Cedars-Sinai in this new role,” said Azizzadeh. “My aim is to foster the continued success of our academic enterprise.”

Follow Ali Azizzadeh, MD, on Twitter at @DrAliAzizzadeh. 

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