Steven Schiff
Biography
Research & Publications
News
Appointments
Biography
Dr. Steven Schiff is a pediatric neurosurgeon with interests in neural control engineering, sustainable health engineering and global health. He founded the Center for Neural Engineering at Penn State University, wrote the first book on Neural Control Engineering (MIT Press, 2012), and is now developing the Center for Global Neurosurgery at Yale University. He received the NIH Director’s Pioneer and Transformative Awards in 2015 and 2018, respectively, which have enabled him to pursue his interests in the sustainable control of infant infections in the developing world. This work has evolved into an exploration of what Schiff calls Predictive Personalized Public Health (P3H), and included leading the discovery of a new highly lethal infant brain disease in Africa - Neonatal Paenibacilliosis.
Education & Training
- Pediatric Neurosurgery FellowshipChildren's Hospital of Philadelphia (1990)
- Neurosurgery ResidencyDuke University (1989)
- PhDDuke University, Physiology (1985)
- General Surgery InternshipDuke University (1981)
- MDDuke University (1980)
Activities
- Endoscopic versus Shunt Treatment of Hydrocephalus in Infants (ESTHI). ClinicalTrials.gov registration NCT04177914.New Haven, CT, United States 2019North American randomized clinical trial of shunt vs endoscopic treatment of hydrocephalus of infancy.
- Improving Infant Hydrocephalus Outcomes In Uganda: Predicting Developmental Outcomes And Identifying Patients At Risk For Early Treatment Failure After ETV/CPCMbale, Eastern Region, Uganda 2018Study of brain oxygenation and blood flow in hydrocephalus.
- Personalized Predictive Public Health (P3H)Mbale, Eastern Region, Uganda; Mbarara, Western Region, Uganda; Kampala, Central Region, Uganda; Hanoi, Hanoi, Vietnam 2018Optimizing treatment and prevention of infant infections in Uganda.
- Neurocognitive outcomes and changes in brain and CSF volume after treatment of post-infectious hydrocephalus in Ugandan infants by shunting or ETV/CPC: a randomized prospective trial. ClinicalTrials.gov registration number NCT01936272.Mbale, Eastern Region, Uganda 2012A randomized trial of shunt versus endoscopic treatment of postinfectious hydrocephalus of infancy in Uganda.
Honors & Recognition
| Award | Awarding Organization | Date |
|---|---|---|
| NIH Director’s Transformative Award | 2018 | |
| Honorary African Name: Musaazi, Fumbe Clan | 2018 | |
| Fellow | American Epilepsy Society | 2016 |
| NIH Director’s Pioneer Award | 2015 | |
| Fellow | American Association for the Advancement of Science | 2012 |
| Fellow | American Association of Neurological Surgeons | 2010 |
| Fellow | American Physical Society | 2005 |
| Fellow | American College of Surgeons | 1994 |
| Diplomat of the American Board of Neurological Surgery | 1992 |
Professional Service
| Organization | Role | Date |
|---|---|---|
| AANS/CNS Joint Section on Pediatric Neurosurgery Executive Committee | Research Officer of the Chair’s Committee on Planning and Development | 2021 - Present |
| Scientific Advisory Board, Institut de Neurosciences des Systèmes, Marseilles, France | Member | 2019 - Present |
| Neural Computation | Associate Editor | 2015 - Present |
| US Food and Drug Administration | Neurological Devices Panel, Medical Devices Advisory Committee | 2013 - Present |
| Journal of Neural Engineering | Editorial Board Member | 2013 - Present |
| Physical Review X | Editorial Board Member | 2012 - 2018 |
| Journal of Computational Neuroscience | Action Editor | 2006 - Present |
| Physical Review Letters | Divisional Associate Editor | 2006 - 2012 |
| Physical Review E | Editorial Board Member | 2000 - 2005 |