Sam Payabvash Joins Columbia Radiology

We are very pleased to announce that Seyedmehdi (Sam) Payabvash, MD, has joined the Department of Radiology at Columbia University Irving Medical Center as associate professor of radiology. 

Payabvash is a highly accomplished physician-scientist whose focus is on the application of machine learning to neuroimaging. His extensive body of research is primarily focused on the development of tools to guide treatment for cerebrovascular diseases. Among his many contributions to the field are multiple machine learning models designed to risk-stratify and provide treatment guidance for patients with ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke.

He is also recognized for his research on neurodevelopment and brain injury. He has applied advanced imaging techniques and machine learning to evaluate microstructural changes in the brain of neonates and children who are at risk of neurodevelopmental disorders such as autism and sensory processing disorders. His Brain Diffusion Atlas is a publicly available tool which provides an age-adjusted normative atlas of diffusion MRI metrics in neonatal brains.

“It’s an exciting time to use modern neuroimaging tools to study diseases of the brain, and we’re incredibly fortunate to have Dr. Payabvash join our team at Columbia Radiology and NewYork-Presbyterian,” said Ajay Gupta, MD, MS, professor of radiology and chair of the Department of Radiology at the Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons. “Dr. Payabvash is an exceptional neuroradiologist and research scientist, and his highly innovative work will help us stay at the forefront of translating advances in artificial intelligence into everyday clinical practice."

At Columbia, Payabvash will serve as director of clinical translation and innovation for the Center for Innovation in Imaging Biomarkers and Integrated Diagnostics (CIMBID), a new, multidisciplinary center dedicated to developing and integrating quantitative imaging and non-imaging biomarkers for disease prediction. He will lead efforts to bring tools and innovations that are developed at the center into clinical practice.

"Dr. Payabvash’s role as director of clinical translation and innovation at CIMBID will be instrumental in bringing cutting-edge AI tools to the clinic and to direct use for advanced clinical care at New-York Presbyterian," said Despina Kontos, PhD, professor of radiology and director of CIMBID, and director of biomarker imaging for NYP.

Payabvash is the author of more than 190 publications and serves as principal investigator on grants from the National Institutes of Health, American Heart Association, Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, Radiological Society of North America, American Society of Neuroradiology and NVIDIA Applied Research Accelerator Program. He is the recipient of several honors and awards, including selection for the Academy Council of Early Career Investigators in Imaging (CECI²), which recognizes the early career achievements of researchers.

A graduate of the medical school at Tehran University, Payabvash subsequently joined Massachusetts General Hospital for a postdoctoral research fellowship, followed by a radiology residency at University of Minnesota. He completed a neuroradiology fellowship at University of California, San Francisco (UCSF). He joins Columbia from the Yale School of Medicine.