Current Residents

Chief Resident
Pedro Aguilar Salinas, MD Resident paguilar@arizona.edu Medical School: Universidad de Guanajuato - León, Mexico Neurosurgery Interests: General neurosurgery, vascular neurosurgery, oncology Research Interests: Patient outcomes in general neurosurgery, vascular neurosurgery, neuroendovascular technology Hobbies/Free Time: Travel, swimming, family Google Scholar PubMed

PGY-7
Aaron R. Burket, DO Resident aburket@arizona.edu Medical School: University of North Texas Health Science Center - Fort Worth, TX Neurosurgical & Research Interests: Trauma, oncology, plastics, spine, critical care Hobbies/Free Time: Outdoors, cycling, brewing, marksmanship, travel PubMed Google Scholar

PGY-5
Neil Joshi, MD Resident neiljoshi@arizona.edu Medical School: Michigan State University College of Human Medicine Neurosurgery interests: tumor, skull base, endovascular, vascular, complex spine, spine deformity, spine revision, scoliosis, spine trauma, spine oncology, functional spine, pediatric neurosurgery, neurotrauma Research interests: social media, education, cerebrovascular, spine, glioblastoma, pediatric neuroimaging Hobbies/free-time: Music & poetry, hikes, film & TV, desert sports, motorcycles, kettle bell & weight training, traveling Research: In Reply to "No Article an Island: Letter in Response to 'Social Media in Neurosurgery: Using ResearchGate'". Joshi ND, Lieber B, Wong K, Al-Alam E, Agarwal N, Diaz V. World Neurosurg. 2019 Aug;128:633. doi: 10.1016/j.wneu.2019.05.118. No abstract available. Social Media in Neurosurgery: Using ResearchGate. Joshi ND, Lieber B, Wong K, Al-Alam E, Agarwal N, Diaz V. World Neurosurg. 2019 Jul;127:e950-e956. doi: 10.1016/j.wneu.2019.04.007. Epub 2019 Apr 6.

PGY-4
Ryan Palsma, MD Resident rppalsma@arizona.edu Medical School: University of Arizona College of Medicine – Tucson Neurosurgery Interests: Brain tumor, skull base, open/endo Vascular neurosurgery, and complex spine Research Interests: Tumor, skull base anatomy, vascular, functional neurosurgery Hobbies/Free-time: Hiking/exploring Arizona, Ironman triathlon, biking, golfing, spending time with my wife and our Belgian Malinois Topher Research: 1. Bina, R.W., et al., Peripheral Nerve Stimulation for Refractory Trigeminal Pain: Recent Single-Institution Case Series With Long-Term Follow-Up and Review of the Literature. Neuromodulation, 2020. 2. Nisson, P.L., et al., Revascularization of the Posterior Inferior Cerebellar Artery Using the Occipital Artery: A Cadaveric Study Comparing the p3 and p1 Recipient Sites. Oper Neurosurg (Hagerstown), 2020. 3. Palsma, R., et al., Deep Brain Stimulation Surgery for Essential Tremor in a Patient with Type A Hemophilia. World Neurosurg, 2020. 139: p. 158-162. 4. Premyodhin, N., et al., 3D printed mitral valve models: affordable simulation for robotic mitral valve repair. Interact Cardiovasc Thorac Surg, 2018. 26(1): p. 71-76. 5. Schipper, D.A., et al., Chronic Myocardial Ischemia Leads to Loss of Maximal Oxygen Consumption and Complex I Dysfunction. Ann Thorac Surg, 2017. 104(4): p. 1298-1304.

PGY-3
Hasan Sumdani, MD Resident hsumdani@arizona.edu Medical School: Texas A & M Health Science Center College of Medicine, Round Rock, Texas Neurosurgery Interests: Oncology, pediatrics, trauma, ethics, neuroradiology Research Interests: Cancer, stroke, surgical technology Hobbies/Free Time: Music, live music, literature, movies and television, art, pop culture, comedy, philosophy, exotic birds PubMed Google Scholar

PGY-2
Breanna Sheldon, MD, MS Resident bsheldon@arizona.edu Medical School: Albany Medical College, Albany, NY Neurosurgery Interests: Skull Base Tumors, Spinal Tumors, Global Neurosurgery Research Interests: Pain Reduction and Management, Neurotrauma, Optimization of Neurosurgical Outcomes, Neurosurgical Operative Guidelines Hobbies/Free Time: International Travel, Swimming and Water Polo, Dance, Cooking and Fine Dining, Marsupials Pubmed

PGY-1
Dara S. Farhadi, MD, MS Resident darafarhadi@arizona.edu Medical School: University of Arizona College of Medicine - Phoenix, Phoenix, Arizona Neurosurgery Interests: Functional Neurosurgery, Neuromodulation, Pain, Epilepsy, Skull Base Research Interests: Neuromodulation for Pain, Functional, Neuroanatomy, Historical, Vascular, Spine Hobbies/Free Time: Family, Tennis, Journalism, Video Games, Reading, Music, Art, Powered Paragliding Pubmed Google Scholar

Alumni
Mauricio J. Avila, MD, MHPE Resident mavilag@arizona.edu Medical School: Pontificia Universidad Javeriana - Bogota, Colombia Neurosurgery Interests: Spine surgery, neurosurgical trauma, oncology, and general neurosurgery Research Interests: Patient outcomes in spine surgery, anatomical studies, medical education Hobbies/Free Time: Golf, tennis, travel Google Scholar PubMed