Loepke Lab Research
The Effects of Anesthetics and Sedatives on the Developing Brain
Millions of children are treated every year with anesthetics and sedatives to facilitate surgical procedures and to provide sedation in emergency and intensive care. In addition to rendering patients insensible to painful stimuli, these compounds have numerous other effects, some of them protective, while others may be deleterious. Accordingly, our laboratory examines the effects of anesthetics and sedatives on the developing brain.
Neuroprotection
Thousands of infants require complex surgical procedures early in life, such as neurosurgery, surgery for inherent malformations or repair of congenital heart disease, which may predispose them to hemodynamic instability and periods of inadequate supply of oxygen and blood flow (hypoxia-ischemia) to their immature brains, potentially resulting in brain damage and long-term developmental abnormalities. Our research efforts are directed toward improving the detection of hypoxic and hypoxic-ischemic episodes using noninvasive techniques, to identify the mechanisms of hypoxic and hypoxic-ischemic brain injury, to characterize neurological injury and subsequent neurocognitive outcome, as well as to develop treatment strategies, with a special focus on anesthetics.
Neurotoxicity
Mounting evidence from animal studies has implicated all commonly used anesthetics and sedatives to induce widespread neuronal cell death, resulting in long-term neurological abnormalities under certain conditions. These findings have raised serious concerns regarding the safe use of these medications in young children. Our research sets out to clarify the underlying mechanisms of anesthesia-induced neurotoxicity and the selectivity of the phenomenon, which will be critical for assessing its human relevance, and if necessary, for discovering mitigating therapies. Moreover, our preclinical research aims to identify biomarkers of anesthesia-induced developmental neuroapoptosis. Our clinical research efforts are directed toward examining the phenomenon’s long-term brain morphological effects using non-invasive imaging technology. Moreover, we are participating in a multicenter trial, the PANDA study, which investigates the long-term neurobehavioral effects of surgery with anesthesia early in life.
Training
Our laboratory offers research opportunities at the undergraduate, graduate and postgraduate levels, including training for residents and fellows as part of the Pediatric Anesthesia Fellowship in the Department of Anesthesia at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, as well as the Neuroscience Graduate Program at the University of Cincinnati.
