Alexander Taghva, M.D.

Year: PGY-5, Chief Resident, Stereotactic Radiosurgery Service
Team Physician, USC Trojan Football Team

Undergraduate Education:
University of Southern California
BS Biochemistry, 2001, Summa Cum Laude

Medical School Education:
Johns Hopkins University, MD, 2005

Research interests:

Automation of intraoperative navigation for deep brain stimulator surgery.

Rational design of cortical-cortical brain prostheses (with lab of Dr. Theodore Berger)

Application of advanced computational methods to neurosurgery.

Peer-Reviewed Articles

Taghva A (2009).  "An Automated Navigation System for Deep Brain Stimulator Placement Using Hidden Markov Models." Manuscript in revision for Neurosurgery.

Taghva A, Li KW, Liu JC, Gokaslan ZL, Hsieh PC (2009).  "Circumferential decompression and stabilization for aggressive metastatic disease of the thoracic spine through a minimally invasive approach." In press. Neurosurgery.

Terterov S, Taghva A, MacDougal M, Giannotta SL (2009). "Posttraumatic Human Cerebral Myiasis: Case Report and Literature Review." Manuscript submitted to World Neurosurgery.

Terterov S, Taghva A, Khalessi A, Liu CY (2009). "Intramedullary Abscess of the Spinal Cord in the Setting of Patent Foramen Ovale: Case Report and Review of the Literature." Manuscript in preparation for World Neurosurgery.

Taghva A, Zada G, Khalessi AA, Hsieh PC (2009). “Minimally Invasive Posterior Atlantoaxial Fusion: A Cadaveric and Clinical Feasibility Study.” Manuscript in preparation.

Ohara S, Taghva A, Kim JH, Lenz FR (2007).  "Spontaneous low threshold spike bursting in awake humans is different in different lateral thalamic nuclei."  Experimental Brain Research. 180:281-8.

Sciubba DM, Garonzik IM, Suk I, Gallia GL, Tufaro A, Wolinsky JP, Taghva A, Gokaslan ZL (2006). Frameless stereotaxy in a transmandibular, circumglossal, retropharyngeal cervical decompression in a Klippel-Feil patient: technical note.  European Journal of Spine. 15(8):1286-91

Yu K, Taghva A, Ma Y, Lieber MR (2004).  "Kinetic analysis of the nicking and hairpin steps in V(D)J recombination." DNA Repair. 3:67-75.

Taghva A, Ma Y, Lieber MR (2002).  "Analysis of the Kinetic and Equilibrium Binding of Ku Protein to DNA."  Journal of Theoretical Biology. 214:  85-97. 

Yu K, Taghva A, Lieber MR (2002).  "The cleavage efficiency of the human immunoglobulin heavy chain VH elements by the RAG complex:  implications for the immune repertoire."  Journal of Biological Chemistry 277:  5040-5046.

Lin IG, Han L, Taghva A, O'Brien LE, Hsieh CL (2002)  "Murine de novo methyltransferase Dnmt3a demonstrates strand asymmetry and site preference in the methylation of DNA in vitro."  Molecular and Cellular Biology. 22: 704-23.

Book Chapters and Review Articles:

Taghva A, Kim PE, Liu CY, Apuzzo MLJ. "Molecular Imaging: A primer for neurosurgeons." Manuscript in preparation for World Neurosurgery.

Taghva A, Kim PE, Liu CY, Apuzzo MLJ. "Applications of Molecular Imaging to Neurosurgery." Manuscript in preparation for World Neurosurgery.

Taghva A, Hoh DJ, Laruyssen CL. “Advances in the management of spinal cord and spinal column injuries.”  In Handbook of Neurology, Volume on Spinal Cord Trauma. Eds. Verhaagen J, McDonald JW, 2009.

Taghva A., Patel S.H., Fernandez A., Weiss N., Lenz. F.A. Thalamic Bursting Activity, Chronic Pain. In 'Thalamus and Pain' (V. Apkarian, Sect. Ed.) from Encyclopedia of Pain. Eds. R Schmidt and WD Willis. Springer Verlag:Berlin. 2410-2412, 2007.

Taghva A., Patel S.H., Fernandez A., Weiss N., Lenz F.A. Central pain, human studies of Physiology.  In 'Central Pain' from Encyclopedia of Pain. Eds. R Schmidt and WD Willis. Springer Verlag:Berlin. 324-326, 2007.

Abstracts/Presentations:

Taghva A, Song D, Berger TW. “Time-delayed mutual information versus cross-correlation in the detection of information transfer between CA3 and CA1 neurons in the rat hippocampus.” Abstract at Society for Neuroscience Meeting, 2009.

Taghva A. Automated Intraoperative Navigation for Deep Brain Stimulator Placement: A Hidden Markov Model Based Prototype System Using Microelectrode Recording Data. Accepted as oral presentation at Congress of Neurological Surgeons Annual Meeting Forum on Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery 2009.

Taghva A, Zada G, Khalessi A, Hsieh PC. Minimally Invasive Posterior Atlantoaxial Fusion: A Pilot Cadaveric and Clinical Study. Accepted as digital poster at Congress of Neurological Surgeons Annual Meeting 2009.

Taghva A, Terterov S, Russin J, Giannotta SL. Primary Decompressive Craniectomy in the Management of Blunt Head Trauma: A Preliminary Retrospective Review. Accepted as digital poster at Congress of Neurological Surgeons Annual Meeting 2009.

Hsieh PC, Taghva A, Gallia G, Sciubba D, Wolinsky JP, Gokaslan ZL. En-bloc resection of chordomas in the cervical spine: Review of 5 consecutive patients with mean follow-up of over 4 years. Accepted as digital poster at Congress of Neurological Surgeons Annual Meeting 2009.

Hsieh PC, Taghva A, Gokaslan ZL, Liu JC. Posterolateral approach for corpectomy with circumferential decompression and instrumented fusion using expandable cages: A prospective case series of 15 consecutive patients. Accepted as digital poster at Congress of Neurological Surgeons Annual Meeting 2009.

Taghva A, Winer J, Hoh DJ. Serum markers predictive of positive MRI for spinal infection in patients evaluated in the emergency department. Poster at AANS/CNS Section on Disorders of the Spine and Peripheral Nerves 2009 meeting.

Bristol RE, Taghva A, Krieger MD, McComb JG.  Primary Spinal Cord Astrocytomas in the Pediatric Population.  2008 International Symposium on Pediatric Neuro-Oncology.

Taghva A, Kim KA, Russin J, Giannotta SL. Use of Cerebral Oxygenation Monitoring as a guide to Triple-H therapy for SAH-induced vasospasm: Preliminary Report.
Accepted as abstract to 2007 Congress of Neurological Surgeons meeting.

Kim KA, McDonald M, Pik JHT, Taghva A, Wang MY. Dynamic intraspinous Spacer Technology (DIAM) for Posterior Dynamic Stabilization: clinical and radiographic mean 29 month follow-up.
Abstract, April 2007 American Association of Neurological Surgeons Meeting.

« Back to Current Residents