chronic pain

An array of ultrasound transducers covering the head focuses an ultrasound beam to a location deep in the brain associated with pain perception (bright spot). (illustration by Thomas Manuel, PhD)
December 20, 2023

Nonaddictive pain relief system nears clinical trials

Researchers in the Vanderbilt are nearing completion of an ingenious undertaking that may be a highpoint of their careers — a non-addictive alternative for relieving chronic pain.

By Bill Snyder
April 20, 2023

Genetics and chronic pain

Polygenic risk scores — scores that reflect the influence of common genetic variants — could be used to predict the likelihood of developing chronic overlapping pain conditions and guide biomarker and targeted prevention efforts.

By Bill Snyder
February 24, 2022

Spinal cord stimulator implants helping ease chronic pain

Specialists at Vanderbilt University Medical Center implanted 130 spinal cord stimulators last year to help ease patients’ chronic pain.

By Paul Govern
July 14, 2020

New tools to study bioactive lipids

Vanderbilt researchers have identified and characterized inhibitors of an enzyme that synthesizes lipid signaling molecules with roles in energy balance, inflammation and addiction.

By Leigh MacMillan
March 10, 2020

Loss of ‘Jedi’ alters neuron activity

This is not the Jedi you’re thinking of. This Jedi is a receptor that helps clear away dead neurons during development, and its loss changes the activity of dorsal root ganglia neurons, which could have implications for treating chronic pain.

By Leigh MacMillan
Researchers developing a focused ultrasound neuromodulation device for treating chronic pain include, from left, Charles Caskey, PhD, William Grissom, PhD, and Li Min Chen, MD, PhD.
November 7, 2019

Device studied as non-addictive option for chronic pain

Vanderbilt researchers are developing a focused ultrasound neuromodulation device as a non-invasive and non-addictive method for treating chronic pain.

By Kelsey Herbers
August 16, 2018

Battlefield acupuncture used as alternative for chronic pain

Franklin resident Diane Grich admits she was surprised when she was asked if she would like to try acupuncture instead of a more invasive medical procedure to address the chronic lower back pain that had troubled her off and on for 17 years; she chose acupuncture.
By Jill Clendening
November 30, 2017

Study seeks to reduce opioid use for chronic pain

Kristin Archer, PhD, DPT, associate professor and vice chair of Orthopaedics and Rehabilitation, will serve as principal investigator at Vanderbilt University Medical Center (VUMC) for a clinical trial that is examining strategies for reducing opioid use among patients with chronic pain.
By Tom Wilemon
January 10, 2014

A pain in the … genes

Vanderbilt researchers have discovered that variation in the gene encoding the potassium channel GIRK1 plays a role in modulating human pain perception.
By Leigh MacMillan
September 12, 2013

Program takes new approach to pain management

Patients with chronic pain who are covered by the Vanderbilt Employee Health Care Plan or workers’ compensation system can now enroll in an innovative rehabilitation program that could dramatically change how chronic pain is treated.
By Jill Clendening
August 30, 2012

Targeting new pathways to ease pain

The spinal cord’s neuropeptide Y signaling pathway may be a good target for new pain therapeutics.
By Leigh MacMillan