Name: Jessica McDougall
Program: MPT/PhD
Supervisors: Dr. Alex Scott, Dr. John Kramer
Tell us a little bit about your lab!
I’m co-supervised by Dr. Alex Scott (Rehabilitation Sciences) and Dr. John Kramer (Anesthesiology, Pharmacology, and Therapeutics). Dr. Scott’s lab focuses on the basic science of tendon mechanobiology, and how such findings can be used in the prevention and treatment of different musculoskeletal disorders.
Dr. Kramer’s lab focuses on understanding the neurobiology of pain. We use advanced neuroimaging and quantitative sensory testing techniques to better understand how changes in the central & peripheral nervous systems relate to a person’s pain perception, and the development of chronic pain – specifically on the development of neuropathic pain in spinal cord injury.
What project are you currently working on?
I’m in the MPT/PhD program, so I have been working on my physiotherapy degree and PhD together. For my PhD, I’m examining the influence of exercise and anticipation of exercise on pain. I’m currently recruiting for a study (details here) testing how exercise impacts pressure pain perception, and what are some factors that can influence this. I’m also working on a review of placebo effects in spinal cord injury research (spoiler: there’s more placebo effects than you might think!), as well as a study looking at the relationship between cerebral blood flow changes (using MRI) and EEG measurements of pain.
What do you like to do outside of academia?
I like to be outside! Currently lamenting the awful snow year, but normally I love to back country ski, trail run, mountain bike, and rock climb as much as possible. Outside of academia, I also work as a pelvic floor physiotherapist.
Congratulations Jessica on being our featured Student of the Month for March!
Interested in seeing what else our Rehabilitation Sciences students and trainees are working on? Stay tuned for our next feature!