David Dean, Ph.D.

David Dean received the Ph.D. degree from the City University of New York in 1993. Following a two-year Postdoctoral appointment in the Institute for Reconstructive Plastic Surgery at the New York University, in 1994 he joined the faculty of the School of Medicine at Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) in Cleveland, Ohio. In 2013 his primary appointment transferred from the Department of Neurological Surgery at CWRU to The Ohio State University (OSU) where he was an Associate Professor in the Departments of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery and Materials Science and Engineering. In August 2025, his primary appointment transferred to the University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW-Madison) where he is a Professor of Biomedical Engineering. David Dean’s research has led to the development of novel techniques used in Virtual Surgical Planning, morphometrics and mechanical modeling used in computer aided design of both inert and tissue engineered bone implants, biofabrication (e.g., Melt Electrowriting and Chaotic Printing) of hydrogel and photocrosslinked solid tissue engineering devices, the machining and/or 3D printing of NiTi and Mg alloy skeletal fixation and joint replacement devices, and image-guided surgery. At OSU, a member of the original NSF-funded HAMMER Engineering Research Center (ERC) team, he led the Point-of-Care Manufacturing (POCM) Testbed from 2022-2025. That Testbed has developed the “Robotic Skeletal Fixation Shaper” for POCM skeletal fixation personalization (i.e., bending), a collaboration which continues through UW-Madison’s joining of the HAMMER ERC.

Publications

Curriculum Vitae