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Department of Anesthesiology Department of Anesthesiology
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Pain Research

The UC San Diego Center for Pain Medicine is an active and fruitful environment for both basic and clinical research with a demonstrated track record of pushing the limits of our knowledge of chronic pain conditions and their treatment. Areas of active and past investigation include:

  • Complex regional pain syndrome
  • Medical marijuana
  • Cancer-related pain
  • Post-laminectomy syndrome
  • Spinal cord stimulation
  • Vagal nerve stimulation
  • Intrathecal drug delivery

Current Research Studies

We currently have the following IRB-approved clinical research studies:

  1. Bisphosphonates for the treatment of complex regional pain syndrome type I
    • Enrolling patients recently diagnosed with complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS, RSD)
  2. Vagal nerve stimulation for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis
    • Enrolling patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA)
  3. Biomarkers of pain in patients with multiple sclerosis
    • Enrolling patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) who have severe pain, patients with multiple sclerosis who do not have pain, and healthy volunteers
  • Dr. Michael Vaninetti

    Dr. Michael Vaninetti

    • TMS Research for Phantom Limb Pain - Investigate novel transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) sequences to modulate cortical reorganization and alleviate phantom limb pain in amputees.

    • Implantable Neuromodulation Devices for Low Back Pain - Developing innovative implantable neuromodulation device aimed at treating facetogenic low back pain through targeted nerve modulation.

    • Medical Devices for Anesthesiology and Chronic Pain Management - Conducting research into various new medical devices designed to improve anesthesiology and chronic pain management.
  • Dr. Mark Wallace

    Dr. Mark Wallace

    • A Novel Therapeutic to Ameliorate Chronic Pain and Reduce Opiate Use - NIH funded (NIDA UG3 DA047680)) phase IA study in healthy volunteers to determine safety, tolerability and drug pharmacokinetics of a new therapeutic for chronic pain
    •  Nezavist, A Novel Molecule for Treatment of Alcohol Use Disorder - NIH funded ( NIAAA R44 AA024905) phase IA study in healthy volunteers to determine safety, tolerability and drug pharmacokinetics of a new therapeutic for alcohol use disorder
    • An interventional, Phase III, double-blind, randomized, controlled, parallel-group, multi-site, clinical trial evaluating the efficacy and safety of Qutenza in subjects with post-surgical neuropathy. -Industry sponsored Phase III study to determine the efficacy and safety of high dose topical capsaicin for chronic postsurgical neuropathic pain