Kathleen A. Sluka, Ph.D., PT

Professor
Graduate Program in Physical Therapy & Rehabilitation Science

Education & Training

• 1985 B.S., Physical Therapy, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia
• 1993 Ph.D., Anatomy, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, Texas
• 1993-95, Postdoctoral Fellowship with W.D. Willis, MD, PhD, University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston, TX

Research Activities

• Director, NEUROBIOLOGY OF PAIN LAB
• Pain Research Program
• US Department of Health & Human Services, National Institutes of Health Grant (9/20/05-8/31/2010); $1,078,000) to study "Central Contributions to Pathobiology of Fibromyalgia"
• US Department of Health & Human Services, National Institutes of Health Grant (9/25/2006-08/31/2011); $2,444,823 to study "Role of ASIC3 in the Etiology of Fibromyalgia"

Teaching Responsibilities

• DPT-- Pain Mechanisms & Treatment (101:133)
• PhD-- Mechanisms of Pain Transmission (101:277)

Academic & Professional Activities

• Memberships: APTA, American Pain Society, International Association for the Study of Pain, Society for Neuroscience, Councilor International Association for the Study of Pain, Board Member American Pain Society
• Manuscript reviewer for: Journal of Neurochemistry, Experimental Brain Research, Journal of Neuroscience, Journal of Neuroscience Methods , Journal of Orthopedic and Sports Physical Therapy, Anesthesiology, American Journal of Physiology, Pain, Physiotherapy Research International, Journal of Pharmacology & Experimental Therapeutics, Somatosensory and Motor Research, Journal of Pain, European Journal of Pain

Selected Publications

• Walder RY, Sluka KA. Centering on central mechanisms in the development and maintenance of chronic widespread muscle pain. J Musculosksketal Pain 2008; 16(1&2):107-113.
• Maeda Y, Wacnik P, Sluka KA.  Low frequencies, but not high frequencies of bi-polar spinal cord stimulation reduce cutaneous and muscle hyperalgesia induced by nerve injury.  Pain. 2008; 138(1):143-152. Epub Jan 18.
• Ikeuchi M, Kolker SJ, Burnes LA, Walder RY, Sluka KA. Role of ASIC3 in the primary and secondary hyperalgesia produced by joint inflammation in mice. Pain. 2008; 137(3):662-669. Epub Mar 13.
• Desantana JM, Santana-Filho VJ, Sluka KA. Modulation between high- and low-frequency transcutaneous electric nerve stimulation delays the development of analgesic tolerance in arthritic rats. Arch Phys Med Rehabil. 2008; 89(4):754-760.
• Hingne PM, Sluka KA.  Blockade of NMDA receptors prevents analgesis tolerance to repeated transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) in rats.  J Pain. 2008; 9(3):217-225. Epub 2007 Dec 3.
• Tillu DV, Gebhart GF, Sluka KA. Descending facilitatory pathways from the RVM initiate and maintain bilateral hyperalgesia after muscle insult.  Pain. 2008; 136(3):331-339. Epub 2007 Aug 30.
• Burnes LA, Kolker SJ, Danielson JK, Walder RY, Sluka KA. Enhanced muscle fatigue occurs in male but not female ASIC3-/- mice. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol. 2008; 294(4):R1347-55. Epub 2008 Feb 27.
• DeSantana JM, Santana-Filho VJ, Guerra DR, Sluka KA, Gurgel RQ, da Silva WM Jr. Hypoalgesic effect of the transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation following inguinal herniorrhaphy: a randomized, controlled trial. J Pain. 2008; 9(7):623-629. Epub 2008 Apr 3.
• Frey Law LA, Evans S, Knudtson J, Nus S, Scholl K, Sluka KA. Massage reduces pain perception and hyperalgesia in experimental muscle pain: a randomized, controlled trial. J Pain 2008; 9(8):714-721.
• Frey Law LA, Sluka KA, McMullen T, Lee J, Arendt-Nielsen L, Graven-Nielsen T.  Acidic buffer induced muscle pain evokes referred pain and mechanical hyperalgesia in humans.  Pain. 2008; 140(2):254-264. Epub 2008 Oct 2.
• DeSantana JM, Sluka KA.  Central mechanisms in the maintenance of chronic widespread non-inflammatory muscle pain.  Curr Pain Headache Rep. 2008; 12(5):338-343.
• DeSantana JM, Sluka KA, Lauretti GR. High and low frequency TENS reduce postoperative pain intensity after laparoscopic tubal ligation: a randomized controlled trial. Clin J Pain. 2009; 25(1):12-19.
• Ikeuchi, M, Kolker, SJ, Sluka KA. Acid sensing ion channel 3 expression in mouse knee joint afferents and effects of carrageenan-induced arthritis. J Pain. 2009; 10(3):336-342.  Epub 2009 Jan 29.
• Maeda Y, Ikeuchi M, Wacnik P, Sluka KA. Increased c-fos immunoreactivity in the spinal cord and brain following spinal cord stimulation is frequency-dependent.  Brain Res 2009; 1259(9):40-50. Epub 2009 Jan 6.
• Arendt-Nielsen L, Sluka KA, Nie HL. Experimental muscle pain impairs descending inhibition. Pain 2008; 140(3):465-471. Epub 2008 Nov 1.
• De Santana JM, Sluka K.  Transcutaneous Electrical Nerve Stimulation (TENS) at both high and low frequencies activates ventrolateral periaqueductal grey to decrease mechanical hyperalgesia in arthritic rats.  In Press.
• DeSantana JM, Walsh DM, Vance C, Rakel BA, Sluka KA. Effectiveness of transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation for treatment of hyperalgesia and pain. Curr Rheumatol Rep. 2008; 10(6):492-499.
• Walsh DM, Howe TE, Johnson MI, Sluka KA.  Review: Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation for acute pain.  Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews 2009, Issue 2. Art. No.: CD006142. DOI: 10.1002/14651858. CD006142.pub2.
• Sluka KA, Turk DC. Invited Commentary, Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy for Older Adults with Chronic Pain. Phys Ther. 2009; 89(5):470–473.  
• Cowen, S, McKenna J, McCrum-Gardner E, Johnson MI, Sluka KA, Walsh DM. An investigation of the hypoalgesic effects of TENS delivered by a glove electrode. J Pain. 2009 Apr 22 [Epub ahead of print].
• Walsh DM, Howe TE, Johnson MI, Sluka KA. Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation for acute pain. Cochrane Database Syst Rev. 2009 Apr 15;(2):CD006142. Review.
• Radhakrishnan R, Sluka KA. Increased glutamate and decreased glycine release in the rostral ventromedial medulla during induction of a pre-clinical model of chronic widespread muscle pain. Neurosci Lett 2009 457(3):141-145.

   

• Full CV available here