Dr. Sahar Ahmad is a practicing specialist in Critical Care and Pulmonary Medicine within the Stony Brook Division of Pulmonary Medicine. Her research portfolio spans both clinical and educational domains. In clinical research, Dr. Ahmad has published and continues to lead studies focused on bedside ultrasound, including echocardiography and the use of ultrasound in assessing diaphragm dysfunction and pleural disease. She is also a recognized expert in cardiac arrest and resuscitation and serves as Co‑Director of the Division’s Resuscitation Research Laboratory. In the realm of educational research, Dr. Ahmad’s work includes publications and ongoing investigations in ultrasound education and simulation‑based training.
Select Educational Research from Ahmad Lab:
Pakzad N, Flora BK, Ahmad S. The Utility of Teaching Bedside Ultrasound to Internal Medicine Residents. Med Sci Educ. 2017. 27(2): 189-191.
Borodyanskiy A, Timko-Swaim L, Ahmad S. Effectiveness of a Brief Course in Bedside Ultrasound for Physician Assistant Students. J Physician Assist Educ. 2019 Mar;30(1):72-75. doi: 10.1097/JPA.0000000000000242. PubMed PMID: 30801560.
Richman PS, Olvet DM, Ahmad S, Chandran L. Use of student feedback to drive quality improvement (QI) in a preclinical U.S. medical school course. Med Educ Online. 2019 Dec;24(1):1583968. doi: 10.1080/10872981.2019.1583968. PubMed PMID: 30810513; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC6394303.
Friedmann T, Bai JDK, Ahmad S, Barbieri RM, Iqbal S, Richman PS. Outcomes of Introducing a Mobile Interactive Learning Resource in a Large Medical School Course. Med Sci Educ. 2020 Mar;30(1):25-29. doi: 10.1007/s40670-019-00829-8. eCollection 2020 Mar. PubMed PMID: 34457632; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC8368856.
Dufurrena Q, Ullah KI, Taub E, Leszczuk C, Ahmad S. Feasibility and Clinical Implications of Remotely Guided Ultrasound Examinations. Aerosp Med Hum Perform. 2020 Jul 1;91(7):592-596. doi: 10.3357/AMHP.5527.2020. PubMed PMID: 32591036.
Heslin SM, Qadeer A, Kotarba AE, Ahmad S, Morley EJ. Click and learn: a longitudinal interprofessional case-based sepsis education curriculum. BMJ Open Qual. 2024 Nov 2;13(4):e002859. PMID: 39488436; PMCID: PMC11535707.
Kuperstein H, Gada K, Alam W, Ahmad S. A longitudinal blended learning curriculum for bedside ultrasound education in pulmonary and critical care fellowship. BMC Med Educ. 2025 Jan 24;25(1):123. PMID: 39856687.
Kuperstein H, Alam W, Paroya A, Patel KP, Ahmad S. The design, performance and organizational impact of a point-of-care ultrasound (POCUS) elective for internal medicine residents. BMC Med Educ. . 2025 Feb 18;25(1):261. PMID: 39966831.
Johnkutty M, Kuperstein H, Koroma F, Chen J, Mattson J, Ahmad S. A novel simulation paradigm for medical ICU cardiopulmonary arrest training: the in situ mirror simulation. Med Educ Online. 2025 Dec;30(1):2528355. PMID: 40607656; PMCID: PMC12231319.
Select Clinical Research from Ahmad Lab:
Shah R, Spiegel R, Lu C, Crnosija I, Ahmad S. Relationship Between the Subcostal and Right Lateral Ultrasound Views of Inferior Vena Cava Collapse: Implications for Clinical Use of Ultrasonography. Chest. 2018 Apr;153(4):939-945. doi: 10.1016/j.chest.2017.10.002. Epub 2017 Oct 12. PubMed PMID: 29032036.
O'Hara DN, Chabra V, Ahmad S. Bedside Ultrasound for Guiding Fluid Removal in Patients with Pulmonary Edema: The Reverse-FALLS Protocol. J Vis Exp. 2018 Jul 28;(137). doi: 10.3791/57631. PubMed PMID: 30102272; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC6126571.
Wong A, Patail H, Ahmad S. The Absent Sinusoid Sign. Ann Am Thorac Soc. 2019 Apr;16(4):506-508. doi: 10.1513/AnnalsATS.201810-654CC. PubMed PMID: 30932704.
Patail H, Wong A, Ahmad S. Reply: Is the Finding of an Absent "Sinusoid Sign" on Lung Ultrasound Meaningful?. Ann Am Thorac Soc. 2019 Aug;16(8):1076. doi: 10.1513/AnnalsATS.201905-372LE. PubMed PMID: 31100012; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC6774749.
Lentz RJ, Shojaee S, Grosu HB, Rickman OB, Roller L, Pannu JK, DePew ZS, Debiane LG, Cicenia JC, Akulian J, Walston C, Sanchez TM, Davidson KR, Jagan N, Ahmad S, Gilbert C, Huggins JT, Chen H, Light RW, Yarmus L, Feller-Kopman D, Lee H, Rahman NM, Maldonado F. The Impact of Gravity vs Suction-driven Therapeutic Thoracentesis on Pressure-related Complications: The GRAVITAS Multicenter Randomized Controlled Trial. Chest. 2020 Mar;157(3):702-711. doi: 10.1016/j.chest.2019.10.025. Epub 2019 Nov 9. PubMed PMID: 31711990.
O'Hara DN, Pavlov A, Taub E, Ahmad S. Ultrasonographic modeling of diaphragm function: A novel approach to respiratory assessment. PLoS One. 2020;15(3):e0229972. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0229972. eCollection 2020. PubMed PMID: 32163474; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC7067453.
Tolia VJ, O'Hara DN, Ullah KI, Ahmad S. Response. Chest. 2020 Apr;157(4):1044-1045. doi: 10.1016/j.chest.2020.01.005. PubMed PMID: 32252913.
Paroya AA, Patel KM, Ahmad S. Barrier Techniques to Reduce Aerosolization During Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation. Crit Care Explor. 2020 Jul;2(7):e0161. PMID: 32766558; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC7339326.
Patel KM, Patel RB, Ahmad S. Barrier Techniques to Reduce Aerosolization During Extubation. Crit Care Explor. 2020 Jul;2(7):e0160. PubMed PMID: 32766557; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC7339189.
O'Hara DN, Randazzo S, Ahmad S, Taub E, Huang E, Vosswinkel JA, Jawa RS. Diaphragm ultrasound: A novel approach to assessing pulmonary function in patients with traumatic rib fractures. J Trauma Acute Care Surg. 2020 Jul;89(1):96-102. PubMed PMID: 32282755.
Patel KM, Ullah K, Patail H, Ahmad S. Ultrasound for Pleural Disease. Beyond a Pocket of Pleural Fluid. Ann Am Thorac Soc. 2021 May;18(5):749-756. PMID: 33621161.
Akinjero A, Chulani S, Ahmad S. Utilizing a novel point of care ultrasound (POCUS) protocol to guide diuresis - A case series. Respir Med Case Rep. 2022; 38:101695. PMID: 35799865.
Mattson JR, Gada KD, Jawa R, Zhang X, Ahmad S. Impact of Humidification Modality on Incidence of Endotracheal Tube Occlusion in COVID-19 Patients. J Intensive Care Med. 2024. PMID: 38634177.
Huang W, Yuan C, Patel K, Falli M, Alaienia C, Ahmad S. Vasopressors Administration Through Midline Catheters: Experience From a Single Center. CHEST Crit Care, 2024. 2:3 1-5.
Huang W, Yuan C, Patel KM, Mei A, Avilla K, Zhang X, Ahmad S. Transthoracic Ultrasound to Predict Exudative Pleural Effusion Etiology. J Ultrasound Med. 2025. 44(8):1343-1353. PMID: 40156237.
Chua A, Mattson JR, Rakowski E, Capuano H, Ahmad S. The Semi awake Exit: Revisiting Extubation Timing in COVID-19. CHEST Crit Care. 2025; 3(2): 100149.
Tierney S, Germana S, Papik F, Alam W, Chua A, Chulani S, Hasegawa K, Zhang X, Ahmad S. Implementation of point-of-care ultrasound in the medical intensive care unit: A retrospective analysis of physician practices and patient outcomes. PLoS One. 2025 Aug 28;20(8):e0330719. PMID: 40875620; PMCID: PMC12393712.
Narala B, Patel K, Menashe E, Ahsan M, Patel J, Hasegawa K, Yang J, Ahmad S. Point-of-care-ultrasound in in-hospital cardiac arrest. Resusc Plus. 2026;30:101385. PMID: 42382149
Kuperstein H, Tierney S, Parsa S, Meydan Y, Krauss B, Mukhi A, Stahl J, Rutigliano D, Vosswinkel J, Ahmad S, Jawa R. Cardiac Dysfunction in Blunt Traumatic Brain Injury Patients. Crit Care Explor. 2026 Sep 4;8(9):e1480. doi: 10.1097/CCE.0000000000001480. PMID: 42695272; PMCID: PMC13544710.
Hawthorne J, Razzaq S, Malhas C, Liao Y, Yang J, Parnia S, Ahmad S, Patel JK. Impact of calcium administration on survival and neurologic outcomes in adults with in-hospital cardiac arrest. Resusc Plus. 2026 Jul 24;31:101427. doi: 10.1016/j.resplu.2026.101427. PMID: 42602905; PMCID: PMC13475521.
