Veizi, Elias, MD, PhD

Dr. Elias Veizi is a practicing pain physician and neuroscientist with over two decades of experience spanning basic science, clinical trials, and outcomes research in the treatment of chronic and neuropathic pain.

His expertise encompasses spinal cord stimulation, peripheral nerve stimulation, intrathecal drug delivery, and the development of novel neuromodulation technologies, with a particular focus on improving outcomes for veterans with intractable pain. He has contributed to landmark multicenter randomized controlled trials and has authored book chapters and atlas entries on spinal cord stimulation techniques.

Dr. Veizi is actively engaged in translational research at the intersection of pain medicine and neural engineering, collaborating with engineers from the Cleveland FES Center and Advanced Platform Technology Center on projects developing new technologies for pain relief and functional restoration . His current work includes developing neuroimaging biomarkers of spinal cord stimulation efficacy using resting-state near-infrared spectroscopy and EEG, with the goal of identifying brain “matrix signatures” associated with pain relief states.

RESEARCH PROGRAMS

• Neuropathic and intractable pain of somatic and visceral origin
• Development of novel treatments using neuromodulation including electrical and intrathecal drug infusion via implantable devices.
• Spinal cord stimulation — mechanisms of action, application, and anatomically guided neural targeting
  Peripheral nerve stimulation for neuropathic and chronic musculoskeletal pain
• Intrathecal therapies — optimal delivery patterns and new applications
• Neuroimaging biomarkers of neuromodulation efficacy (NIRS/EEG)
• Functional outcomes from neuromodulation using wearable devices and patient-reported measures

MAJOR PROJECTS & FUNDING

• VA-Funded Research, Brain Connectivity Changes with Spinal Cord Stimulation Treatment of Chronic Pain, co-investigator on resting-state NIRS/EEG pilot trial
• LUMINA Study, co-investigator on multicenter study demonstrating superiority of anatomically guided 3D neural targeting SCS over traditional SCS for chronic axial low back pain
• Multicenter RCT, co-investigator on comparative effectiveness study of epidural steroid injections vs. gabapentin for lumbosacral radicular pain
• Coulter Foundation supported studies, developing new technologies for pain relief and functional restoration with FES Center engineers
• Intrathecal opioid and bupivacaine combination therapy studies — evidence base for optimizing implantable pump programming

HONORS & RECOGNITION

• Selected Presenter, North American Neuromodulation Society, 2011
• Pfizer Clinical Fellow in Pain Medicine, Pfizer Medical & Academic Partnership Program, 2010–2012
• Invited contributor to Expert Consults and Atlas of Pain Management Procedures (McGraw-Hill) on spinal cord stimulation techniques