Surgeon, CEO, and He’s Only 21 Years Old
Dylan Amiri is a senior at the University of Miami pursuing a degree in biology, with plans to become a neurosurgeon. As an undergraduate, he has cultivated an impressive portfolio of accomplishments that exceed typical expectations, and we want to use this platform to try and inspire other undergraduates in the University of Miami community. Before we dive into two notable accomplishments that highlight his attempts to make systemic changes in research and medicine at such a young age, it’s important to understand what motivated him to make the most of his undergraduate career.
Growing up, Dylan would eagerly ask his parents about the most fascinating cases from their work—jaw-dropping MRIs, unusual dental surgeries, or intracranial hemorrhages. What captivated him most was the anatomy of the brain. Whenever his dad mentioned a lobe or nuclei, he would research it that night and share what he learned the next day, sparking discussions that deepened his love for neuroanatomy.
By late high school, this curiosity turned into obsession. He read papers on mechanisms like long-term potentiation and studied how different structures in the brain interact, like in the Papez circuit: the neural pathway involved in emotions and memory. But, he wanted to see how neuroscience applied to real patients. Shadowing provided that bridge—suddenly, the stories he grew up with had faces: a child with epilepsy, an elderly patient with treatment-resistant Parkinson’s. Each encounter revealed the human weight behind the science.
Still, he wanted to contribute more directly to patient care. Reading about one innovation specifically, Neuralink, revealed that possibility. The idea that brain-machine interfaces could restore mobility to quadriplegic patients reignited the same fascination he had as a child. He became especially intrigued by the precision of neurosurgical techniques, like implanting microelectrode arrays with robotic assistance, which crystallized his desire to pursue neurosurgery.
Upon arriving to the U, he immediately threw himself into research. The research of Dr. Oliver Bracko especially caught his eye, as he was investigating Alzheimer’s disease and potential vascular associations (specifically, reduced blood flow), hoping to uncover potential avenues for therapeutic interventions.
Initially, Dylan did some wet lab research with micropipettes and setting up gels, but then, during a seemingly standard lab meeting, Dr. Bracko mentioned an opening for an undergraduate in the lab to begin conducting surgeries on the animals they were working with. Dylan was in love even with the idea of performing surgery in the future as a medical doctor, and for an opportunity to present itself where he could sample that dream already as an undergraduate—he was all over it.
Today, Dylan is leading a surgery study focused on understanding the often-overlooked behavioral consequences of tympanic membrane perforation that can occur during stereotaxic surgery. While this detail might seem minor at first glance, its effects on the animals’ quality of life can be profound and debilitating. Dylan’s goal is not simply to collect data, but to spark a larger conversation across the scientific community about how survival surgeries on animal models are conducted. He hopes this work will inspire systemic changes at the university level and beyond, ensuring that all researchers approach these procedures with the utmost respect for life and an unwavering commitment to minimize harm—whether the patient is an animal or a human.
In laboratories, it’s easy for living beings to become reduced to numbers, specimens, or variants on a spreadsheet. Day after day, researchers may lose sight of the fact that behind every statistic is a creature experiencing fear, pain, or relief. Dylan wants his study to serve as a reminder that science is not separate from ethics; the two must be inseparable. By shedding light on the behavioral toll that small surgical details can have, he aims to engrave in the minds of researchers the responsibility they carry each time they perform an operation.
Ultimately, Dylan envisions a culture of research where animal safety is never an afterthought but rather the foundation upon which scientific discovery is built. He hopes that this project can ensure that animal safety both during and after any operation is of the highest standard. In doing so, not only does science advance, but so does the moral compass of the researchers carrying it out.
Outside of his research at the university, Dylan also conducts a series of retrospective chart reviews for neurology clinics throughout Charlotte, North Carolina. His most recent publication revealed significant inconsistencies between a questionnaire that we’ve been using for three decades to screen for sleep apnea—a sleep disorder characterized by repeated episodes of pauses in breathing during sleep—and the actual sleep study that revealed the patient’s sleep apnea severity—the screening tool was only correct 50% of the time, which puts patients suffering from sleep apnea in danger.
When he first discovered this while collecting data, he was appalled. For the medical community to have allowed patients to rely on this inconsistently accurate diagnostic assessment for 30 years was a shame, and it created a burning desire in Dylan to develop a new diagnostic assessment that patients could trust: the Amiri Sleepiness Diagnostic Assessment. But as he dug deeper, he realized sleep apnea was only one piece of a much larger problem. Misdiagnoses in attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) were leaving countless children and adults misunderstood, stigmatized, or untreated. Just as he refused to accept complacency in sleep medicine, he felt compelled to take action here as well, leading to the creation of the Amiri ADHD Diagnostic Assessment.
Collectively, he turned this passion of wanting to change medical diagnostics for the better into a single company that represents these ideals, Amiri Diagnostics. The company is currently conducting a full clinical trial for the Amiri Sleepiness Diagnostic Assessment, and the results are promising. In addition, they’re beginning to run a pilot study for their Amiri ADHD Diagnostic Assessment, hoping that it will lead to a reduction in false positives or underdiagnoses that have plagued ADHD diagnosis for years.
Dylan Amiri’s journey is a reminder that passion, curiosity, and compassion can reshape the future of medicine. From late-night conversations about neuroanatomy to leading groundbreaking research and founding his own diagnostics company, he has shown that age is no barrier to impact. As Dylan continues to carve his path toward neurosurgery and beyond, his story serves as proof that the next generation of physicians will not only heal patients but also reimagine how medicine itself is practiced. With determination, heart, and vision, Dylan is helping to create a future in which science advances hand in hand with empathy—and that is something worth looking forward to with hope.
