Browsing by Author "Rahimi Darabad, Raheleh"

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    Peripheral Nerve Stimulation in Chronic Knee Pain: A Case Series
    (Springer Nature, 2023-12-07) Kelly, Timothy D.; Pazzol, Michael L.; Rahimi Darabad, Raheleh; Emergency Medicine, School of Medicine
    Introduction: Chronic knee pain is increasing in prevalence and is associated with substantial limitations in functional mobility. Peripheral nerve stimulation (PNS) has been increasingly used to treat various chronic pain conditions. However, there is a paucity of research exploring the potential therapeutic benefit of PNS for chronic knee pain. Methods: This research is a retrospective case series of all patients who received PNS for the treatment of chronic knee pain performed at a single-center academic medical institution between March 2021 and June 2022. The primary outcome was percent pain reduction six months after implantation. Outcome data was obtained via chart review and phone calls to patients. Secondary outcomes included percent pain reduction two weeks and two months after implantation and adverse medical events related to the procedure and nerve stimulation. Results: Fourteen individual patients received PNS for chronic knee pain during the study period. Three of these patients received bilateral PNS for a total of 17 cases. The mean percent pain reduction six months after implantation was 52% (SD=28.2) (N=12). A total of 75.0% of participants (9/12) reported ≥50% reductions in pain six months after implantation. No adverse events were reported relating to the implantation procedure and/or nerve stimulation. Conclusion: PNS is a safe and efficacious treatment modality for chronic knee pain with demonstrated long-term benefit. Further research should clarify patient factors associated with improved treatment response.
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    Testosterone Influence on Gene Expression in Lacrimal Glands of Mouse Models of Sjögren Syndrome
    (Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology, 2019-05) Morthen, Mathias Kaurstad; Tellefsen, Sara; Richards, Stephen M.; Lieberman, Scott M.; Rahimi Darabad, Raheleh; Kam, Wendy R.; Sullivan, David A.; Anesthesia, School of Medicine
    Purpose: Sjögren syndrome is an autoimmune disorder that occurs almost exclusively in women and is associated with extensive inflammation in lacrimal tissue, an immune-mediated destruction and/or dysfunction of glandular epithelial cells, and a significant decrease in aqueous tear secretion. We discovered that androgens suppress the inflammation in, and enhance the function of, lacrimal glands in female mouse models (e.g., MRL/MpJ-Tnfrsf6lpr [MRL/lpr]) of Sjögren syndrome. In contrast, others have reported that androgens induce an anomalous immunopathology in lacrimal glands of nonobese diabetic/LtJ (NOD) mice. We tested our hypothesis that these hormone actions reflect unique, strain- and tissue-specific effects, which involve significant changes in the expression of immune-related glandular genes. Methods: Lacrimal glands were obtained from age-matched, adult, female MRL/lpr and NOD mice after treatment with vehicle or testosterone for up to 3 weeks. Tissues were processed for analysis of differentially expressed mRNAs using CodeLink Bioarrays and Affymetrix GeneChips. Data were analyzed with bioinformatics and statistical software. Results: Testosterone significantly influenced the expression of numerous immune-related genes, ontologies, and Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes (KEGG) pathways in lacrimal glands of MRL/lpr and NOD mice. The nature of this hormone-induced immune response was dependent upon the autoimmune strain, and was not duplicated within lacrimal tissues of nonautoimmune BALB/c mice. The majority of immune-response genes regulated by testosterone were of the inflammatory type. Conclusions: Our findings support our hypothesis and indicate a major role for the lacrimal gland microenvironment in mediating androgen effects on immune gene expression.