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Viterbi Physician-Engineer Elected to ASCI


December 11, 2009 —

Tzung "John" Hsiai in his laboratory
Tzung "John" Hsiai, associate professor of biomedical engineering,has been elected to the American Society for Clinical Investigation (ASCI), one of the nation's oldest and most respected medical honor societies.

"This is indeed a great honor for John, and all of us in BME Department congratulate him on this extraordinary accomplishment," said Michael Khoo, chair of the Department of Biomedical Engineering.  "There are currently only 17 faculty at the Keck School of Medicine who have ASCI membership.  Membership is highly selective and recognizes physician-scientists for their outstanding records of scholarly achievement in biomedical research."

A physician and biomedical engineer, Hsiai is applying micro and nano scale technologies to address fundamental cardiovascular questions.  He is currently developing a Micro Electro Mechanical System (MEMS) sensor to help clinicians distinguish cardiac emergencies requiring immediate surgery from chronic problems that can be managed with drugs and/or a lifestyle change.

Hsiai completed his undergraduate education at Columbia University and received his M.D. from the University of Chicago.  He earned his Ph.D. in biomedical engineering at UCLA while also completing a cardiology fellowship.  He is board certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine Cardiovascular Disease.