Steven D. Mittelman, MD, PhD
Accepting new patients

Steven D. Mittelman, MD, PhD

(he/him)
  • Pediatric Endocrinology
Westwood Pediatrics | 200 Medical Plaza, Suite 265, Los Angeles, CA 90095

About

Dr. Steven Mittelman first became a Bruin in 1989, when he began his undergraduate work as a Biochemistry major. He was proud to be a member of the Solid Gold Sound of the UCLA Marching Band! After earning his BS in Biochemistry from UCLA, Dr. Mittelman went on to earn his PhD in Physiology and a MD at Keck School of Medicine, USC. He completed both his pediatric residency and pediatric endocrinology fellowship at the Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. There Dr. Mittelman became the Founding Director of the Diabetes & Obesity Program, as well as the Donnell Society for Pediatric Scientists. He also served as Director of the USC/Caltech Combined MD/PhD Program.

Dr. Mittelman was pursuing research in the physiology of obesity, when he learned about the strong associations between obesity and cancer. Namely, obese people have an increased risk of dying from cancer. Dr. Mittelman learned that children who are obese when they are diagnosed with leukemia have a worse prognosis. Based on this clinical observation, Dr. Mittelman developed preclinical models to investigate how obesity influences leukemia outcome. This has resulted in several interesting discoveries which he continues to pursue. Excitingly, some of these findings helped to support a preliminary clinical intervention of diet and exercise, which was associated with a reduction in detectible leukemia cells during chemotherapy treatment.

Dr. Mittelman is also involved in a number of other obesity-related research projects, primarily working on understanding the causes and treatments of childhood obesity and how adiposity alters physiology and leads to long-term consequences. His research program is funded by the NIH and private foundations, and has resulted in over 80 publications. Dr. Mittelman also has extensive clinical experience and enjoys working with patients to improve their quality of life.

Languages

English

Education

Medical Board Certification

Pediatric Endocrinology, American Board of Pediatrics, 2007

Fellowship

Pediatric Endocrinology, Children's Hospital of Los Angeles, 2006

Residency

Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Los Angeles, 2004

Internship

Pediatrics, Children's Hospital of Los Angeles, 2002

Degrees

PhD, University of Southern California, 2001
MD, Keck School of Medicine of the USC, 2001

Recognitions

Locations

Hospital Affiliations

Research

Interests

  • Obesity and Cancer
  • Childhood Obesity

Research projects

  • Links between obesity and childhood leukemia
  • How adipocytes contribute to inflammation and insulin resistance
  • Novel approaches to treating childhood obesity

Research environment

  • Laboratory: The Pediatric Endocrine laboratory encompasses 2600 square feet of laboratory space, equipped for molecular biology and tissue culture.
  • Animals and animal care: The small animal facilities at UCLA house our animals. These facilities are extensive and meet all regulatory requirements, are fully staffed, and appropriately supervised.
  • Endocrine faculty take advantage of a number of cutting edge UCLA core facilities, including the transgenic and knockout mouse, proteomics, mouse metabolic and physiology, human genetics, assay development, and sequencing cores.
  • Research faculty in the Division participate in the School of Medicine’s Metabolism Research Theme

Research bibliography
For a complete up-to-date list, please cross-reference individual faculty in PubMed.

Recognitions

  • Top Doctors, Los Angeles Magazine, 2023
  • Top Doctors, Los Angeles Magazine, 2018, 2021, 2022
  • Membership in American Pediatric Society, 2018
  • DAISY Interprofessional Team Award, 2015
  • Membership in Society for Pediatric Research, 2010