Category: News

The Department of Anesthesiology would like to congratulate Drs. Douglas Thompson and Anand Lakshmiarasimhachar on their selection as inaugural fellows in the Washington University Academy of Educators. This novel collaboration of local leaders in education will together foster a culture of educational excellence in undergraduate and postgraduate education on our campus. As members of the […]

Simon Haroutounian, PhD has graciously agreed to serve as the interim Chief of the Division of Clinical and Translational Research (DoCTR). In this role, Dr. Haroutounian will be responsible for mentoring trainees and junior and mid-level faculty in clinical and translational research, promoting collaborative efforts both within the Department and across the WU School of […]

Meaghan Creed, PhD, and Jordan McCall, PhD have received exciting new grants to study the biology and mechanisms of pain. The Rita Allen Foundation has named its 2019 class of Rita Allen Foundation Scholars, celebrating young leaders in the biomedical sciences whose research holds exceptional promise for revealing new pathways to advance human health. The […]

In this exciting new role, Dr. Lockhart will work to recruit, develop, and retain excellent faculty members, who are enthusiastically engaged in furthering the mission of our department. She will also aim to develop and maintain policies, resources, and programs that encourage a welcoming and inclusive environment in the Anesthesiology Department. Dr. Lockhart will work […]

Dr. Hardy’s responsibilities will encompass partnering with the Chair and Executive Director in the following areas: managing the business and administrative affairs of the department; providing expertise in the areas of finance (financial reporting and analysis, budgeting, expense control and revenue enhancement), strategic planning, program development, clinical operations administration, human resource management, physical space management, […]

Friends and colleagues from across the School of Medicine gathered at the Eric P. Newman Education Center on June 26, 2019 to honor and thank Dr. Evers for his many years of leadership in the Department of Anesthesiology. More than 100 guests, including leadership from across the School of Medicine and BJC HealthCare, gathered at […]

The Department of Anesthesiology is pleased to announce that Dr. Michael Avidan has accepted the position of head of the Department of Anesthesiology, effective July 1. Michael Avidan is currently the Dr. Seymour and Rose T. Brown Professor of Anesthesiology, as well as Professor of Anesthesiology and Surgery, at Washington University School of Medicine. He […]

Dr. Umeshkumar Athiraman, Director of the neuroanesthesia fellowship in the General Anesthesiology Division, received the William L. Young Neuroscience Research Award for the project titled: “The Role of Isoflurane Conditioning on Cognitive Function Following Subarachnoid Hemorrhage”. The award is presented annually to academic physicians and/or scientists who conduct either clinical or laboratory-based research in neuroanesthesiology […]

The Department of Anesthesiology and Dr. Arvind Palanisamy are excited to announce that Washington University was recently designated as a Center of Excellence (COE) for Anesthesia Care for Obstetric Patients by the Society for Obstetric Anesthesia and Perinatology (SOAP). COE is an all-encompassing designation that assures that WU meets all criteria deemed as essential by […]

This story originally appeared here. Chronic pain involves more than just hurting. People suffering from pain often experience sadness, depression and lethargy. That’s one reason opioids can be so addictive — they not only dampen the pain but also make people feel euphoric. What if it were possible to develop a pain killer that could […]

This story originally appeared here. One in four older adults experiences delirium after surgery. However, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found that closely monitoring brain activity and minimizing anesthesia if needed has no significant effect on the occurrence of delirium. Many older adults who have major surgery experience postoperative […]

John P.A. Ioannidis, M.D., DSc, Professor, Department of Medicine, Stanford University The 31st Annual C. R. Stephen Lecture of the Department of Anesthesiology was be delivered by John P.A. Ioannidis, M.D., DSc, Professor, Department of Medicine, Stanford University Dr. Ioannidis discussed Reproducible, Transparent, True, Useful Research at the lecture on March 6, 2019, at 4:00 p.m. […]

It is our pleasure to announce that Dr. Tanya Wildes has accepted a secondary appointment in the Department of Anesthesiology in our Division of Clinical and Translational Research (DoCTR). Dr. Wildes is internationally recognized as a thought leader and research expert in oncology and in geriatric medicine. As such, we anticipate that she will add […]

This story originally appeared here. Dr. Gereau selected as a new fellow by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Eleven faculty members at Washington University in St. Louis — the most in a decade-and-a-half — are among 416 new fellows selected by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the […]

Mr. Brad Uding, a nurse anesthesia student from Barnes-Jewish College and performing clinical rotations in the Department of Anesthesiology, received the 2018 AANA Student Excellence Award. He was recognized at a Student Luncheon in September at the Nurse Anesthesia Annual Congress which was held in Boston, Massachusetts. Brad was the only student given this award […]

This story originally appeared here. Thomas E. Cox, MD, an innovative educator and noted mentor and anesthesiologist at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, has been named the inaugural Rudolph L. and Mary Frances Wise Endowed Chair in Pediatric Anesthesiology. Cox, a professor and vice chairman of education in the Department of Anesthesiology, […]

Leaders from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) visited the Washington University Medical Campus Sept. 20 to hear about strategies to address the opioid crisis, which has claimed the lives of more than 200,000 people in the United States since 1999.  Eric D. Hargan, HHS deputy, led a roundtable discussion, accompanied by […]

Dr. Umeshkumar Athiraman, M.B.B.S., M.D., Assistant Professor in the Department of Anesthesiology at Washington University School of Medicine and a neuroanesthesiologist in the General Anesthesiology Division, has received three research grants to study the role of nitric oxide synthase in isoflurane conditioning for subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH)-induced delayed cerebral ischemia and the role of isoflurane conditioning […]

Two internationally recognized Informaticians join Washington University School of Medicine (WUSM). Joanna Abraham and Thomas Kannampallil will be the first joint faculty members in the Washington University Anesthesiology Department (WUDA) and the Institute for Informatics (I2). Joanna Abraham received a PhD in Information Sciences and Technology from Pennsylvania State University in May 2010. Prior to […]

Kate Meacham MD, PhD has been awarded an IARS (International Anesthesia Research Society) Mentored Research Award for her project titled “A wireless system for the mechanistic study of spinal cord stimulation.” Dr. Meacham will use the two years of support to develop a novel translational device for investigating mechanisms-of-action of new types of spinal cord […]

Kate Gurba, MD, PhD was recently awarded a Foundation for Anesthesia Education and Research (FAER) Research Fellowship grant for her project titled “Preclinical Evaluation of Analgesia Mediated by a Novel Muscarinic M4 Positive Allosteric Modulator”. The opioid epidemic has created an urgent need for effective, nonopioid analgesics, and previous work suggests analgesic efficacy from the M4 […]

The Department of Anesthesiology is pleased to announce that Dr. Arvind Palanisamy, MD, FRCA, won the best paper award for his abstract, ‘Effect of uterine hypercontractility on the placenta and the fetal brain’, at the recently concluded annual meeting of the Society for Obstetric Anesthesia and Perinatology (SOAP) in Miami, FL. In a pregnant rat […]

David Potter, Director of CRNA Activities, is the Winner of the Washington University School of Medicine Dean’s Distinguished Service Award for 2018. Prior to his career in anesthesiology, David Potter served in the US Navy from 1978 – 1984 as Department Supervisor and Sonar Technician. He returned to school after the Navy and graduated Valedictorian […]

The Department of Anesthesiology at Washington University is pleased to announce that Aaron Norris, MD, PhD will formally be joining the Anesthesiology Residency Program Leadership group serving in the position of Assistant Program Director for Scholarship. This past academic year, Dr. Norris directed the selection and mentorship programs for the Department’s clinician-scientist training programs. Dr. […]

The Department of Anesthesiology at Washington University is pleased to announce that Dr. Douglas Thompson will become Program Director of the Anesthesiology Residency Training Program beginning July 1, 2018. For the past year he has been Associate Program Director of the Anesthesiology Residency Training Program. Dr. Thompson is a graduate of the University of California […]

This story originally appeared here. For some people, particularly those who are elderly, even a light touch of the skin or contact with clothing can lead to unbearable itching. What’s worse, anti-itch treatments, including hydrocortisone, don’t provide much relief for this type of itching. Now, researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St Louis […]

Jordan Shaker, a Washington University in St. Louis undergraduate student graduating in 2018 with a major in Biology: neuroscience track and a minor in Chemistry, has been selected as this year’s recipient of the Spector prize for the best Undergraduate Research Thesis in biology. Jordan’s thesis work, titled “Endogenous Opioidergic Circuits Involved in Thermoregulation” was […]

Jose Moron-Concepcion, PhD was invited as a special guest of the U.S. Customs and Border Protection’s (CBP) New York Field Office, which hosted an Illicit Synthetic Opioids Interdiction Summit in New York City on April 18, 2018 at the historic Alexander Hamilton U.S. Custom House. Pharmaceutical fentanyl misuse was first seen in the mid-1970s in […]

In 2016, five teams from some of the world’s leading medical research institutes were selected to explore how digital health devices could shape the future of research. Each study was inspired by our Everyone Included™ research principles, which emphasize the role of patients and multidisciplinary care teams in study design. The results were remarkable. The teams used […]

MAYDAY FUND ANNOUNCES 2018-19 WINNERS OF THE MAYDAY PAIN AND SOCIETY FELLOWSHIP Twelve pain experts selected to prestigious Fellowship program focused on communications and advocacy for improved pain care NEW YORK (March 9, 2018) – The MAYDAY Fund today announced the selection of twelve experts in pain science and care to be Fellows of The Mayday […]

This story originally appeared here. The Mahoney Institute for Neurosciences (MINS) at the University of Pennsylvania announced that Michael R. Bruchas, PhD, the Henry E. Mallinckrodt Professor in the departments of Anesthesiology and Neuroscience at Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, is the recipient of the inaugural Rising Star Award in neuroscience research. To […]

This story originally appeared here. While many people have never heard of sepsis, it causes about 250,000 deaths annually in the United States. The condition develops when an infection triggers an overwhelming immune response, ultimately wreaking havoc on the immune system. Standard treatment involves high doses of antibiotics that fight the infection, but they often […]

The 30th Annual C. R. Stephen Lecture of the Department of Anesthesiology was delivered by Vamsi Mootha, M.D., Investigator, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Professor of Systems Biology, Harvard Medical School, Professor of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital. Dr. Mootha discussed Mitochondrial Systems Biology: Understanding the Whole from the Parts at the lecture on April 11, 2018, at 4:00 p.m. in […]

This story originally appeared here. Michael Avidan and his colleagues sit in a windowless room in front of a panel of screens tapped into every operating room at Barnes-Jewish Hospital. It’s conceptually similar to an air traffic control tower, except they aren’t tracking airplanes. Relying on customized software, the screens provide synthesized data about patients, […]