My lab uses advanced imaging methods to understanding the brain and various brain diseases or disorders.
My primary projects are currently in:
- Hydrocephalus (with Dr. Rick Abbott, Neurosurgery)
- Multiple sclerosis, gait and the brain (with Dr. Roee Holtzer, Psychology)
- Leukemia (with Dr. Elyse Sussman, Neuroscience)
- Sleep apnea (with Dr. Raanan Arens, Pediatrics)
- Prostate cancer (with Dr. Elyse Sussman, Neuroscience)
- Animal model of intraventricular hemmorhage (with Dr. Praveen Ballabh, Neuroscience)
In hydrocephalus, we use a technique called MR Elastography to virtually "feel" the brain, and have shown changes in brain stiffness in chronic hydrocephalus children and young adults, and the relationship between brain stiffness changes and patient outcome.
In multiple sclerosis, we use advanced statistical modelig methods to merge structural and functional MRI data with gait data (taken outside the scanner) to understand the brain substrates of gait impairment in older adults in general, and in older adults with MS.
In leukemia, we are interested in the cognitive impairments which occur in > 50% of children following chemotherapy treatments (also common in other cancers). We are using EEG and functional MRI methods to study the brain pathways altered in these children to understand the changes in these pathways, and how these changes might be improved with treatments such as exercise and cognitive rehabilitation for mitigating the effects on these kids.
In sleep apnea, we use real-time MRI to visualize airway collapse, while pediatric patients sleep inside the MRI! The goals of this work is to use real-time imaging of airway motion to develop advanced biomechanical models of the airway which can guide better treatments for obstructive sleep apnea.
In prostate cancer, we are using methods similar to our leukemia work, except in this case we are focused on functional imaging of the hippocampus and the effects of androgen deprivation treatment (i.e. testosterone suppression) on memory in patients.
In IVH, we use MRI measures of blood brain barrier function and leakage to understand the changes in the BBB brought on by IVH, and the relationship of these changes to behavioral outcome measures - in an animal model of IVH, using out high-field, 9.4 Tesla MRI scanner.
In summary, I am interested in developing and implementing advanced imaging, image processing and data analysis for better understanding what happens to the brain, and how these changes drive clinically-relevant outcome.
Finally, I am interested in MRI pulse sequence development, i.e. manipulating the MRI machine to extract new types of information from MRI images.
Focus areas:
- Quantitative flow imaging
- Hydrocephalus
- Animal models of disease
- Dynamic MRI and sleep apnea
- Multiple sclerosis
- Diffusion tensor imaging
- Volumetric analysis
- MRI Pulse sequence development