NIH-funded research
Investigation of reconstructive outcomes and clinically meaningful questions.
Research & innovation
Research & Innovation
As an Assistant Professor-in-Residence at UCLA, NIH-funded investigator, and FDA advisor, Dr. DeLong studies questions that shape reconstructive outcomes, breast-implant safety, and medical-device regulation.
Academic medicine
Research grounded in patient needs.
Dr. DeLong is an active NIH-funded researcher whose work focuses on cancer and breast reconstruction outcomes, breast-implant safety, and medical-device regulatory science. He completed a fellowship at the FDA Center for Devices and Radiological Health and has served as a voting member of the FDA General and Plastic Surgery Devices Panel.
He also built a 95-site quality improvement program for breast reconstruction, bringing shared measurement and learning to reconstructive care across participating sites.
His academic service includes manuscript review for multiple journals.
FDA experience
Training in device regulation and service on a federal advisory panel.
Implant safety
Research on breast implants, reconstruction materials, and device science.
Quality improvement
Built a 95-site quality improvement program for breast reconstruction.
Scholarly recognition
Best Breast Paper (2020) and Bernard G. Sarnat Award (2019).
Selected publications
Contributions to the field.
- 01Plastic Surgeons’ Perspective on the FDA Breast Implant Regulatory Mandates.Aesthetic Surgery Journal · 2024
- 02Review of Outcomes in Prepectoral Prosthetic Breast Reconstruction with and without Surgical Mesh Assistance.Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery · 2021
- 03Overview of Host Defense Peptides and Their Applications for Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons.Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery · 2020
- 04Systematic Review of the Impact of Acellular Dermal Matrix on Aesthetics and Patient Satisfaction in Tissue Expander-to-Implant Breast Reconstructions.Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery · 2019
- 05Evolving Trends in Textured Implant Use for Cosmetic Augmentation in the United States.Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery · 2018
- 06A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Synthetic Mesh Outcomes in Alloplastic Breast Reconstruction.Aesthetic Surgery Journal Open Forum · 2024