Page 35 - University of Martland Nursing Forum - Winter 2017

Despite advances in conventional pharmacological treatments, most
people do not obtain adequate pain relief. An important research focus has been
to determine whether self-management interventions reduce pain. Various
types of such interventions have been tested, including cognitive behavioral therapy, nonpharmacologic treatments (e.g., heat, cold, acupuncture) and exercise/physical activity.
Working toward a solution to this critical public health issue, OASIS
Center scientists will focus on both animal and human studies using omics methods—for example, transcriptomics (involving RNA molecules), epigenomics (involving chemical compounds attached to DNA), metabolomics (involving the products of metabolism), and proteomics (involving proteins)—to identify how individual differences influence the effectiveness of exercise on managing chronic pain.
The School of Nursing will award three additional pilots over the five years of the grant, and UMSON faculty have the opportunity to apply for funding for one of these pilots. Sherrie Lessans, PhD, RN, assistant professor, and Jennifer Klinedinst, PhD, MPH, RN, assistant professor, are principal investigators on the first two pilot studies funded as part of the center. Lessans is using an animal model of chemotherapy-associated nerve pain to explore underlying biologic factors that impact how and why chemotherapy patients do or don’t adhere to exercise regimens as a strategy to self-manage treatment-related pain. Klinedinst is looking at similar factors
in how exercise is approached as a treatment mechanism in people age 55 and older dealing with arthritis/ joint pain.
“These studies are all about looking
at the mechanisms that get people to exercise,” Resnick says. “We already know exercise helps pain. But how exercise is doing it, we never know enough.”
The OASIS Center is a collaborative effort between faculty in UMB’s Center
to Advance Chronic Pain Research, a multidisciplinary research center, and those in UMSON’s organized research center Biology and Behavior Across the Lifespan. What makes OASIS unique is its ability to do translational research— work that “translates” science research into health care, from the bench to the bedside and back—and to involve experts from across the UMB campus, including
those from the dental, pharmacy, and medical schools.
“What is most exciting is our incredible capacity to drive clinical findings back to the bedside,” Dorsey says. “We have the ability to make significant strides in both human and animal studies. Few schools of nursing have the capability we do.”
Renn
Resnick with a patient
UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND SCHOOL OF NURSING 33
KRISTEN BECKERMAN TRACY BROWN