Dr Tetreault joined the Apkarian lab as a Postdoctoral Fellow in September 2013. He is in charge of a clinical trial targeting corticostriatal plasticity that will start in winter 2014. In this study, subacute back pain patients will be separated into two main groups based on specific structural and functional brain biomarkers identified previously in the lab. The main goal is to evaluate if a dopaminergic treatment will be able to block the development of chronic back pain. This trial is therefore evaluating a true curative treatment for patients subjected to develop chronic pain. People dealing with acute back pain from less than 12 weeks are welcome to contact Dr Tetreault (pronounced “Tetro”) for more information. Additionally, he is responsible for the completion of a study on the effect of duloxetine on brain morphology and functionality of osteoarthritic patients.
Dr Tetreault performed his doctoral research in Dr Philippe Sarret’s lab at the Universitede Sherbrooke in Quebec, Canada from 2008 to 2013. During his Ph.D, he studied the implication of specific receptors (NTS1 and NTS2) and neuropeptide (neurotensin) during the establishment of neuropathic pain in animals. He also worked on a new method to assess pain in animals. The new technique, called “dynamic weight bearing” allows researchers to evaluate coping behaviours induced by chronic pain. This type of analysis is considered to be closer to clinical reality than previous assessment devices and therefore provides better preclinical painkiller evaluation.
Contact Dr Tetreault at: pascal.tetreault@northwestern.edu