Issam A. Awad, MD
Issam A. Awad, MD
John Harper Seeley Professor of Neurological Surgery
Professor of Neurology
Professor of Neuroscience Institute
Director, Safadi Program of Excellence in Clinical and Translational Neuroscience
Director, Neurovascular Surgery
Specialties
- Neurocritical Care
- Neurosurgery
- Surgery
Locations
- Chicago - Hyde Park
- About
- Specialties & Areas of Expertise
- Locations & Patient Information
- Education & Research
- Accepted Insurance
- External Professional Relationships
Meet Dr. Awad
Issam A. Awad, MD, is an internationally recognized leader in neurosurgery. He is skilled in the surgical management of neurovascular conditions affecting the brain and spinal cord, including cerebral aneurysms, cerebrovascular malformations, carotid surgery, hemorrhagic stroke and skull base tumors. He leads the Neurovascular Surgery Program and co-leads the Stroke and Neurovascular Care team. Dr. Awad is the Director of the Safadi Program of Excellence in Clinical and Translational Neuroscience, and the Centers of Excellence for Cerebral Cavernous Malformations (CCM) and Hereditary Hemorrhagic Telangiectasia (HHT).
Dr. Awad's research focuses on vascular biology, genetics and comprehensive outcome analysis in neurovascular disease and stroke. His active projects include National Institutes of Health (NIH)-funded investigations of molecular mechanisms involved in the formation and progression of cerebrovascular malformations. Additionally, he leads several clinical trials on minimally invasive techniques for surgical treatment of hemorrhagic stroke and novel drug therapies for Cavernous Angiomas With Symptomatic Hemorrhage (CASH).
Dr. Awad’s research contributions have spanned several decades. His scientific innovations include the characterization of subcortical ischemic lesions in the aged, advances in the understanding of the natural history and biologic behavior of cerebral vascular malformations and numerous technical advances in neurovascular and epilepsy surgery.
Recognized as a pioneering and productive scholar, Dr. Awad has educated scores of neurosurgeon trainees and holds prominent editorial responsibilities. He has authored leading textbooks and published more than 350 scholarly papers related to clinical innovations, surgical outcomes and research.
Additionally, Dr. Awad has been elected to some of the most distinguished professional societies and has held leadership positions in professional and learned societies in the United States and around the world. He has served as president of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons, chairman of the Cerebrovascular Section of the American Association of Neurological Surgeons, chairman of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons and on the executive committee of the American Stroke Association and the board of governors of the American College of Surgeons. He serves on the U.S. National Council for Neurological Disorders and Stroke and is the founding chairman of the Scientific Advisory Board of Angioma Alliance. He is regularly included on the list of the "Best Doctors in America."
Specialties
Board Certifications
- Neurological Surgery
Practicing Since
- 1986
Languages Spoken
- Arabic
- English
- French
Medical Education
- Loma Linda University School of Medicine
Internship
- Loma Linda University Medical Center
Residency
- Cleveland Clinic
Fellowship
- St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center
Memberships & Medical Societies
- North American Skull Base Society
- American Society for Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery
- Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society
- International Platform Association
- American Epilepsy Society
- World Association of Lebanese Neurosurgeons
- Chicago Society for Neuroscience
- International College of Surgeons
- Congress of Neurological Surgeons
- Chicago Neurological Society
- Society of Neurological Surgeons
- Yale Surgical Society
- New England Neurosurgical Society
- American Heart Association
- Chicago Medical Society
- Soci?t? de Neurochirurgie de Langue Fran?aise
- American Society of Neuroimaging
- American Association for the Advancement of Science
- World Society for Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery
- New York Academy of Sciences
News & Research
Dr. Awad is director of the Safadi Program of Excellence in Clinical and Translational Neuroscience.
Dr. Awad helps collegiate hockey player Sam Messina get back on the ice after surgery to repair his arteriovenous malformation.
Learn more about Dr. Awad’s research.
Dr. Awad reunited with a grateful patient 27 years after he performed surgery on her following a stroke.
Dr. Awad’s cerebral cavernous malformation (CCM) clinic attracts patients from around the world. Learn how he helped 4-year-old Zane Smith, whose family traveled from Cambridge, England to seek Dr. Awad’s expertise.
A pill to prevent brain surgery? Dr. Awad and his colleagues are investigating a drug that may lower the risk for people with the familial form of CCM.
Published Papers
Insurance
- Aetna Better Health *see insurance page
- Aetna HMO (specialists only)
- Aetna Medicare Advantage HMO & PPO
- Aetna POS
- Aetna PPO
- BCBS Blue Precision HMO (specialists only)
- BCBS HMO (HMOI) (specialists only)
- BCBS Medicare Advantage HMO & PPO
- BCBS PPO
- Cigna HMO
- Cigna POS
- Cigna PPO
- CountyCare *see insurance page
- Humana Medicare Advantage Choice PPO
- Humana Medicare Advantage Gold Choice PFFS
- Humana Medicare Advantage Gold Plus HMO
- Medicare
- Multiplan PPO
- PHCS PPO
- United Choice Plus POS/PPO
- United Choice HMO (specialists only)
- United Options (PPO)
- United Select (HMO & EPO) (specialists only)
- United W500 Emergent Wrap
- University of Chicago Health Plan (UCHP)
Our list of accepted insurance providers is subject to change at any time. You should contact your insurance company to confirm UChicago Medicine participates in their network before scheduling your appointment. If you have questions regarding your insurance benefits at UChicago Medicine, please contact our financial counseling team at OPSFinancialCounseling@uchospitals.edu.
Some of our physicians and health professionals collaborate with external pharmaceutical, medical device, or other medical related entities to develop new treatments and products to improve clinical outcomes for patients. In some instances, the physician has ownership interests in the external entity and/or is compensated for advising or speaking about the entity’s products or treatments. These payments may include compensation for consulting and speaking engagements, equity, and/or royalties for products invented by our physicians. To assure objectivity and integrity in patient care, UChicago Medicine requires all physicians and health professionals to report their relationships and financial interests with external entities on an annual basis. This information is used to review relationships and transactions that might give rise to potential financial conflicts of interest, and when considered to be significant a management plan to mitigate any biases is created.
If you are a patient at UChicago Medicine and would like more information about your physician’s external relationships, please talk with your physician. You may also visit the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Open Payments website at https://openpaymentsdata.cms.gov/ . CMS Open Payments is a national disclosure program that promotes a more transparent and accountable health care system. It houses a publicly accessible database of payments that reporting entities, including drug and medical device companies, make to covered recipients like physicians and hospitals.
Information in the CMS Open Payments database could potentially contain inaccurately reported and out of date payment information. All information is open to personal interpretation, if there are questions about the data, patients and their advocates should speak directly to their health care provider for a better understanding.