A core mission of our department is to generate new knowledge that will advance the understanding and practice of anesthesiology.

The Department of Anesthesiology is heavily funded by grants and consistently ranks among the top five nationally in NIH funding.

Our research efforts are organized into three primary divisions*: the Division of Basic Research (DBR), the Washington University Pain Center (WUPC), and the Division of Clinical & Translational Research (DoCTR), and two Centers: the Center for the Study of Itch & Sensory Disorders (CSISD), which is in partnership with the Department of Dermatology, and the Center for Clinical Pharmacology (CCP), a collaborative partnership with the University of Health Sciences and Pharmacy in St. Louis.

* Research projects for students, residents, and postdoctoral fellows are currently available in all three divisions and both centers.

Number 3 in NIH Funding among anesthesiology departments
researcher working in lab

Division of Basic Research (DBR)

The Division of Basic Research (DBR) explores fundamental scientific questions relevant to medicine and anesthesiology.


Tiffany Osborn, MD, and Shawn Reynolds, Physician's Assistant reviewing data

Division of Clinical and Translational Research (DoCTR)

The Division of Clinical & Translational Research is the home for patient-oriented research in the Department of Anesthesiology.


research lab equipment

Washington University Pain Center (WUPC)

A multidisciplinary center that combines basic research, clinical research, clinical pain management and education in an organized, interactive group of dedicated researchers and clinicians.


Center for Clinical Pharmacology

Center for Clinical Pharmacology

The Department of Anesthesiology and the University of Health Sciences and Pharmacy in St. Louis established this center which is focused on human-oriented research with the goal of improving the use of current and new therapeutics and diagnostics. 


scratching itchy skin

Center for the Study of Itch & Sensory Disorders (CSISD)

This center seeks to understand the fundamental underlying mechanisms of itch and translate these findings into treatments for patients suffering from intractable itch.


Latest News

Department ranks in top 3 in NIH research funding

Department ranks in top 3 in NIH research funding

According to the latest data compiled by the Blue Ridge Institute for Medical Research, the Department of Anesthesiology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis ranked No. 3 among the nation’s top anesthesiology departments in terms of research funding from the National Institutes of Health (NIH).