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UF Health University of Florida
Department of Anesthesiology College of Medicine
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Research Overview

PeCAN Lab
Perioperative Cognitive Anesthesia Network

Perioperative Cognitive Anesthesia Network

Mission

To promote awareness of brain health in older adults prior to surgical procedures with anesthesia, intensify collaborative focus on brain-behavior-anesthesia interactions, and promote translation of research findings to clinical care.

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Our Team

Catherine Price

Catherine Price, Ph.D., director of PeCAN, and professor in the Departments of Clinical and Health Psychology, Neuropsychology, and Anesthesiology, designed her laboratory and research around two primary aims. First, to understand the relative contribution of brain white matter integrity versus subcortical gray matter structure integrity on the cognitive profiles associated with neurodegenerative subcortical diseases (e.g., small vessel vascular dementia/Alzheimer’s disease spectrum disorder, Parkinson’s disease). Second, to apply this knowledge towards more collaborative and longitudinal research examining the predictive value of these patients’ white and gray matter structure integrity on a) disease associated cognitive decline and b) vulnerability to cognitive change after elective medical interventions with anesthesia (e.g., major orthopedic surgery). Federal funding and non-profit institutions continue to support both of these research aims. An important research sub-aim of her laboratory involves furthering appreciation for reliable and valid neuroimaging and cognitive assessment approaches for examining cognitive-structure dissociations/associations.

Collaborators

Benjamin Chapin
Department: MD-ANESTHESIOLOGY-GENERAL

Benjamin Chapin MD

Assistant Professor
Steven T DeKosky
Department: MD-BEHAVIORAL NEUROLOGY

Steven T DeKosky MD

Deputy Director, McKnight Brain Institute; Aerts-Cosper Professor Of Alzheimer's Research; Senior Advisor, 1Florida AD Research Center And Professor Of Neurology & Neuroscience
Brenda G Fahy
Department: MD-ANEST CRITICAL CARE MED

Brenda G Fahy MD, MCCM, FCCP

Professor Of Anesthesiology; Associate Chair, Faculty Affairs and Professional Development; Program Director, Adult Combined Cardiothoracic Critical Care Fellowship
Cyndi Garvan
Department: MD-ANESTHESIOLOGY-GENERAL

Cyndi Garvan PhD

Statistician; Professor of Anesthesiology
Thomas H Mareci
Department: MD-BIOCHEM – MOLECULAR BIOL

Thomas H Mareci Ph.D.

Professor Emeritus
Thomas A Pearson
Department: Department of Epidemiology

Thomas A Pearson MD, PhD

Kimberly Sibille
Department: MD-PHYSICAL MEDICINE & REHAB

Kimberly Sibille Ph.D., M.A.

Associate Professor; Director, Pain TRAIL
Glenn E Smith
Department: Department of Clinical and Health Psychology

Glenn E Smith Ph.D., ABPP-cn

Professor
Jared J Tanner
Department: Department of Clinical and Health Psychology

Jared J Tanner Ph.D.

Research Associate Professor
Patrick J Tighe
Department: MD-ANESTHESIOLOGY-GENERAL

Patrick J Tighe M.D., M.S.

Executive Director, Quality and Patient Safety Initiative (QPSi)

Our Research

PeCAN Cores

  • Clinical-Cognitive
    • To guide clinical and experimental approaches for perioperative cognitive and delirium examination, clinical cognitive diagnostic classification, and clinical participant recruitment/ retention planning.
  • Neuro-Imaging
    • To guide state-of-the-art neuro-imaging studies on participants or animal-based studies employing functional (fMRI), structural, and spectroscopy based methods within research-dedicated scanners within the Evelyn F. and William L. McKnight Brain Institute or UF Health patient oriented 3T clinical scanners.
  • Biomarker
    • To guide acquisition, and processing of perioperative and intraoperatively obtained biomarkers including CSF, plasma, total tau, phospho-tau, pNF-H, UCHL1, and inflammation markers (e.g., IL6, IL8, CRP).
  • Data Science
    • To guide the science of data integration and modeling for preoperative characteristics, intraoperative time-series data, postoperative clinically reported outcomes, and research based assessments from the adjoining cores. To provide trainee guidance on data quality control, database development, and collaboration with data scientists.

Resources & Publications

Training

A unique component of the PeCAN program is the broader goal of interdisciplinary training for anesthesiology, neuropsychology, geriatric medicine, neuroscience, surgeons, and biomedical engineering. To this end, residents and medical students at the UF College of Medicine attend periodic lectures on the utility and administration of cognitive screeners.

Discussions include:

  • the rationale for incorporating cognitive tools into preoperative settings
  • the cognitive profile and behavioral presentation of highly prevalent neurodegenerative conditions (e.g., Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease)

The PeCAN program is based on extensive research indicating that preoperative cognitive and brain health are risk factors for negative postoperative cognitive decline.

Contact Us

Our clinic is located within UF Health Shands Hospital: