Imanuel Lerman

Title(s)Clinical Professor, Anesthesiology
SchoolVc-health Sciences-schools
Address9500 Gilman Drive #
La Jolla CA 92093
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    Collapse Biography 
    Collapse Education and Training
    Massachusetts General Hospital , Boston, MAFellowship 07/2012Pain Medicine
    Yale School of Medicine , New Haven, CTResident 07/2011Neurology
    Yale School of Medicine , New Haven, CTResident 07/2008Internal Medicine
    Georgetown School of Medicine , District of Columbia MD 06/2007Medicine
    Georgetown University , District of Columbia MSc07/2004Physiology and Biophysics
    University of Colorado , Boulder BA06/2000Molecular Cellular Developmental Biology, Kinesiolgy and Applied Physiology
    Collapse Awards and Honors
    Georgetown University School of Medicine 2003  - 2004Exceptional Service Award
    Georgetown University School of Medicine 2004  - 2007Thomas Auth M.D. Excellence in Neurology Award
    Brain and Behavior Foundation 2014  - 2015NARSAD Young Investigator Award
    University of California San Diego, Anesthesiology Department 2016  - 2017Pain Fellowship Teaching Award

    Collapse Overview 
    Collapse Overview
    As a professor in both the Electrical and Computer Engineering and Anesthesiology Departments at the UC San Diego School of Medicine, Dr. Lerman carries out numerous clinical trials at UC San Diego Medical Center, the Altman Clinical Trial Research Institute, the VA San Diego Healthcare System, the Radiology Imaging Center and in the Jacobs Medical Center. His program is primarily funded by the VA Healthcare System, BARDA, DARPA, and generous foundation support. His work centers on neural sensing technology development (magnetometers, novel electrode arrays), and impact of neural stimulation technologies (e.g. spinal cord stimulation, vagal nerve stimulation, and other central and peripheral nerve stimulation)on inflammation, pain, learning and mental health disorders.

    He uses techniques such as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) magnetoencephalography (MEG), Magnetospinography, (MSG) ; inflammatory profiling of cerebrospinal fluid and peripheral blood; and high resolution evaluation of peripheral autonomic nervous system to better understand the interplay between pain and inflammation in the central and peripheral nervous system, in both healthy and disease states.

    Dr. Lerman completed a research fellowship through the Center for Stress and Mental Health at the VA San Diego; his clinical fellowship in pain management at Massachusetts General Hospital and his neurology residency at Yale School of Medicine. He earned his medical degree from Georgetown University School of Medicine, where he also obtained a master's degree in physiology and biophysics. He is triple board certified in neurology, pain medicine and headache medicine (United Council for Neurologic Subspecialties).

    Dr. Lerman is a founding board member of the American Interventional Headache Society, faculty and founding member of the Regenerative Medicine special interest group within the American Society of Regional Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, and faculty member for the World Academy of Pain Medicine Ultrasonography.

    Collapse Research 
    Collapse Research Activities and Funding
    Ultrasound Neural and Immunomodulation Treatment Evaluation for COVID-19 (UNITE Study)
    Medical CBRN Defense Consortium 2005518Mar 15, 2021 - Sep 30, 2021
    Role: Principle Investigator
    Description: The trial will apply a newly developed focused ultrasound device to the lateral chest wall targeting the spleen. Splenic Focused Ultrasound has been shown by our group collaborators to reduce inflammation(in Rheumatoid Arthritis preclinical and clinical models) that is present and can lead to complications (Cytokine storms) in COVID-19 patients.
    Neural Sensor To Detect Physiological States
    David and Janice Katz Neural Sensor Research Fund in Memory of Allen E. Wolf E7043Feb 1, 2021 - Dec 31, 2024
    Role: Principle Investigator
    Description: The Vagus nerve provides an unmatched early signal (neural firing) when there is an infection in the body. This signal happens even before symptoms develop as it registers within minutes of the activation of the inflammatory process. Most importantly, the Vagus also acts as an information superhighway that has very specific information about the infection -including the type of infection and its location. The goal is to identify Vagus nerve signatures of infection prior to symptom onset.
    Novel Vagus Nerve Signaling to Improve Learning Throughout Adverse Sleep Challenge (NOVEL-TASC)
    Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) W911NF2010027Apr 1, 2020 - Mar 1, 2024
    Role: Principle Investigator
    Description: Sleep deprivation, ubiquitous for the active duty military warfighter, (up to 41% active military sleep < 5 hours per night) (1), is known to result in unfavorable errors. Rapid and efficient training critical to improve working memory may prevent errors in the sleep deprived state. Learned maximal mental flexibility may expand problem solving, especially in the austere resource degraded environment. In this study we will create a transcutaneous Vagus Nerve Stimulation memory and creativity platform aimed to: 1) probe sleep deprivation effects on learning and creativity, and 2) improve learning and creativity in a partially deprived sleep state. This work has transformational potential to radically advance learning and promote maximal mental flexibility to provide a significant sleep-based performance advantage for the US warfighter.
    In-Vivo Vagus Sentinels to Detect and Prevent Infection
    BARDA HHS 7515011900038Aug 1, 2019 - Sep 30, 2021
    Role: Principle Investigator
    Description: Non-invasive, continuous monitoring of host-response through measurements of vagus nerve firing patterns can lead to development of novel diagnostic monitoring systems on the user or in the home. The goal of this project is to develop novel magnetometer sensor technology that may provide Americans continuous monitoring to alert them of potential exposures to pathogens. This allows interventions against progression of disease potentially days before symptoms appear.
    Vagal nerve stimulation to probe inflammation and brain in posttraumatic stress
    NIH IK2RX002920Apr 1, 2019 - Mar 31, 2024
    Role: Principal Investigator
    Description: The proposal aims to determine if non-invasive vagus nerve stimulation(nVNS) will alter: 1) the peripheral inflammatory biomarker profile, 2) the neural correlates of change in pain stimuli and 3) PTSD symptom severity and 4) life quality and function in Veterans with PTSD. The planned inflammatory biomarker and neuroimaging results can 1) promote knowledge of inflammatory and neurobiological mechanisms that contribute to pain in PTSD, and 2) advance our ability to provide targeted neuromodulation based interventions that support improved life quality and function for Veterans. These goals are consistent with the VA’s mission to sponsor research examining variables related to pathogenesis, diagnosis, and(ultimately) treatment of neuropsychiatric disorders.
    Effects of High Frequency Spinal Cord Stimulation As Measured by Autonomic Tone and Functional Brain Imaging
    NEVRO LLC 20172749Sep 1, 2018
    Role: Principle Investigator
    Description: The purpose of this study is to measure neural circuits, autonomic output (heart rate variability (HRV), breathing rate, galvanic skin response and skin temperature) in response to painful stimuli in two separate conditions of high frequency spinal cord stimulation (hFSCS) vs no spinal cord stimulation. High frequency spinal cord stimulation is FDA approved to treat pain in this subject population.

    Collapse ORNG Applications 
    Collapse Clinical Trials
    Collapse Featured Publications

    Collapse Bibliographic 
    Collapse Publications
    Publications listed below are automatically derived from MEDLINE/PubMed and other sources, which might result in incorrect or missing publications. Researchers can login to make corrections and additions, or contact us for help. to make corrections and additions.
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    Altmetrics Details PMC Citations indicate the number of times the publication was cited by articles in PubMed Central, and the Altmetric score represents citations in news articles and social media. (Note that publications are often cited in additional ways that are not shown here.) Fields are based on how the National Library of Medicine (NLM) classifies the publication's journal and might not represent the specific topic of the publication. Translation tags are based on the publication type and the MeSH terms NLM assigns to the publication. Some publications (especially newer ones and publications not in PubMed) might not yet be assigned Field or Translation tags.) Click a Field or Translation tag to filter the publications.
    1. High fiber plant-based diet for chronic pain and posttraumatic stress disorder: a feasibility study. Pain Med. 2023 07 05; 24(7):900-902. Herbert MS, McLean CL, Chu GM, Lerman I, Baker DG, Lang AJ. PMID: 36562557.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions:    Fields:    Translation:Humans
    2. Magnetoencephalogram-based brain-computer interface for hand-gesture decoding using deep learning. Cereb Cortex. 2023 07 05; 33(14):8942-8955. Bu Y, Harrington DL, Lee RR, Shen Q, Angeles-Quinto A, Ji Z, Hansen H, Hernandez-Lucas J, Baumgartner J, Song T, Nichols S, Baker D, Rao R, Lerman I, Lin T, Tu XM, Huang M. PMID: 37183188.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions:    Fields:    Translation:Humans
    3. EMG-projected MEG High-Resolution Source Imaging of Human Motor Execution: Brain-Muscle Coupling above Movement Frequencies. medRxiv. 2023 Jun 29. Huang MX, Harrington DL, Angeles-Quinto A, Ji Z, Robb-Swan A, Huang CW, Shen Q, Hansen H, Baumgartner J, Hernandez-Lucas J, Nichols S, Jacobus J, Song T, Lerman I, Bazhenov M, Krishnan GP, Baker DG, Rao R, Lee RR. PMID: 37425691; PMCID: PMC10327237.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions:
    4. Multi-path decoder U-Net: A weakly trained real-time segmentation network for object detection and localization in ultrasound scans. Comput Med Imaging Graph. 2023 07; 107:102205. Al-Battal AF, Lerman IR, Nguyen TQ. PMID: 37030216.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions:    Fields:    Translation:Humans
    5. A flexible adhesive surface electrode array capable of cervical electroneurography during a sequential autonomic stress challenge. Sci Rep. 2022 Nov 14; 12(1):19467. Bu Y, Kurniawan JF, Prince J, Nguyen AKL, Ho B, Sit NLJ, Pham T, Wu VM, Tjhia B, Shin AJ, Wu TC, Tu XM, Rao R, Coleman TP, Lerman I. PMID: 36376365; PMCID: PMC9663551.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions:    Fields:    Translation:HumansCells
    6. Non-invasive cervical vagus nerve stimulation effects on reaction time and valence image anticipation response. Brain Stimul. 2022 Jul-Aug; 15(4):946-956. Lerman I, Klaming R, Spadoni A, Baker DG, Simmons AN. PMID: 35738468; PMCID: PMC9721369.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 2     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    7. Toward Composite Pain Biomarkers of Neuropathic Pain-Focus on Peripheral Neuropathic Pain. Front Pain Res (Lausanne). 2022; 3:869215. Diaz MM, Caylor J, Strigo I, Lerman I, Henry B, Lopez E, Wallace MS, Ellis RJ, Simmons AN, Keltner JR. PMID: 35634449; PMCID: PMC9130475.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 6  
    8. Sex-specific differences in the efficacy of traditional low frequency versus high frequency spinal cord stimulation for chronic pain. Bioelectron Med. 2022 Apr 28; 8(1):8. Conic RRZ, Caylor J, Cui CL, Reyes Z, Nelson E, Yin S, Lerman I. PMID: 35484578; PMCID: PMC9052649.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 1  
    9. Effects of Noninvasive Cervical Vagal Nerve Stimulation on Cognitive Performance But Not Brain Activation in Healthy Adults. Neuromodulation. 2022 Apr; 25(3):424-432. Klaming R, Simmons AN, Spadoni AD, Lerman I. PMID: 35396072; PMCID: PMC8144242.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 6     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    10. Peripheral Nerve Magnetoneurography With Optically Pumped Magnetometers. Front Physiol. 2022; 13:798376. Bu Y, Prince J, Mojtahed H, Kimball D, Shah V, Coleman T, Sarkar M, Rao R, Huang M, Schwindt P, Borna A, Lerman I. PMID: 35370794; PMCID: PMC8975546.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 3  
    11. A CNN Segmentation-Based Approach to Object Detection and Tracking in Ultrasound Scans with Application to the Vagus Nerve Detection. Annu Int Conf IEEE Eng Med Biol Soc. 2021 11; 2021:3322-3327. Al-Battal AF, Gong Y, Xu L, Morton T, Du C, Bu Y, Lerman IR, Madhavan R, Nguyen TQ. PMID: 34891951.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 1     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    12. Resting-state magnetoencephalography source magnitude imaging with deep-learning neural network for classification of symptomatic combat-related mild traumatic brain injury. Hum Brain Mapp. 2021 05; 42(7):1987-2004. Huang MX, Huang CW, Harrington DL, Robb-Swan A, Angeles-Quinto A, Nichols S, Huang JW, Le L, Rimmele C, Matthews S, Drake A, Song T, Ji Z, Cheng CK, Shen Q, Foote E, Lerman I, Yurgil KA, Hansen HB, Naviaux RK, Dynes R, Baker DG, Lee RR. PMID: 33449442; PMCID: PMC8046098.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 3     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    13. Effects of Noninvasive Cervical Vagal Nerve Stimulation on Cognitive Performance But Not Brain Activation in Healthy Adults. Neuromodulation. 2020 Nov 25. Klaming R, Simmons AN, Spadoni AD, Lerman I. PMID: 33236815; PMCID: PMC8144242.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 1     Fields:    
    14. Ultrasound-Guided Cervical Medial Branch Blocks: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Article. 2020; 01( 03):1-12. Stephania Paredes MD, Roderick J. Finlayson MD, Samer Narouze MD PhD , Sameh M Hakim MD MSc (Pain) MSc (Anesth) PGDipM DipBiostat, , Daniel Adams PA-C MSHS DMA, Nimish Mittal MBBS MD MSc, Michael Catapano BHSc MD, Lynn Kohan MD, Patrick Connell BSc, Nebojsa Nick Knezevic MD PhD, Alex Feoktistov MD PhD, Imanuel Lerman MD MSc, Antoun Nader MD, Dmitri Souza MD PhD. View Publication.
    15. Marked Increases in Resting-State MEG Gamma-Band Activity in Combat-Related Mild Traumatic Brain Injury. Cereb Cortex. 2020 01 10; 30(1):283-295. Huang MX, Huang CW, Harrington DL, Nichols S, Robb-Swan A, Angeles-Quinto A, Le L, Rimmele C, Drake A, Song T, Huang JW, Clifford R, Ji Z, Cheng CK, Lerman I, Yurgil KA, Lee RR, Baker DG. PMID: 31041986.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 7     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    16. A Letter to the Editor: Impact of Neck Position on the Probability of Common Carotid Artery Puncture during Ultrasound-Guided Stellate Ganglion Block. PM R. 2019 11; 11(11):1250-1251. Reddy R, Lerman I, Chen J. PMID: 31397974; PMCID: PMC7050194.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 2     Fields:    
    17. Spinal cord stimulation in chronic pain: evidence and theory for mechanisms of action. Bioelectron Med. 2019 Jun 28; 5. Caylor J, Reddy R, Yin S, Cui C, Huang M, Huang C, Ramesh R, Baker DG, Simmons A, Souza D, Narouze S, Vallejo R, Lerman I. PMID: 31435499; PMCID: PMC6703564.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 37  
    18. MEG Working Memory N-Back Task Reveals Functional Deficits in Combat-Related Mild Traumatic Brain Injury. Cereb Cortex. 2019 05 01; 29(5):1953-1968. Huang MX, Nichols S, Robb-Swan A, Angeles-Quinto A, Harrington DL, Drake A, Huang CW, Song T, Diwakar M, Risbrough VB, Matthews S, Clifford R, Cheng CK, Huang JW, Sinha A, Yurgil KA, Ji Z, Lerman I, Lee RR, Baker DG. PMID: 29668852.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 7     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    19. Noninvasive vagus nerve stimulation alters neural response and physiological autonomic tone to noxious thermal challenge. PLoS One. 2019; 14(2):e0201212. Lerman I, Davis B, Huang M, Huang C, Sorkin L, Proudfoot J, Zhong E, Kimball D, Rao R, Simon B, Spadoni A, Strigo I, Baker DG, Simmons AN. PMID: 30759089; PMCID: PMC6373934.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 23     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    20. Relations of combat stress and posttraumatic stress disorder to 24-h plasma and cerebrospinal fluid interleukin-6 levels and circadian rhythmicity. Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2019 02; 100:237-245. Agorastos A, Hauger RL, Barkauskas DA, Lerman IR, Moeller-Bertram T, Snijders C, Haji U, Patel PM, Geracioti TD, Chrousos GP, Baker DG. PMID: 30390522.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 11     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    21. Spinal Cord Stimulator Related Infections: Findings From a Multicenter Retrospective Analysis of 2737 Implants. Neuromodulation. 2017 Aug; 20(6):553-557. Bendel MA, O'Brien T, Hoelzer BC, Deer TR, Pittelkow TP, Costandi S, Walega DR, Azer G, Hayek SM, Wang Z, Eldrige JS, Qu W, Rosenow JM, Falowski SM, Neuman SA, Moeschler SM, Wassef C, Kim C, Niazi T, Saifullah T, Yee B, Kim C, Oryhan CL, Warren DT, Lerman I, Mora R, Hanes M, Simopoulos T, Sharma S, Gilligan C, Grace W, Ade T, Mekhail NA, Hunter JP, Choi D, Choi DY. PMID: 28726312.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 11     Fields:    Translation:HumansCellsPHPublic Health
    22. Spinal Cord Stimulator Implant Infection Rates and Risk Factors: A Multicenter Retrospective Study. Neuromodulation. 2017 Aug; 20(6):558-562. Hoelzer BC, Bendel MA, Deer TR, Eldrige JS, Walega DR, Wang Z, Costandi S, Azer G, Qu W, Falowski SM, Neuman SA, Moeschler SM, Wassef C, Kim C, Niazi T, Saifullah T, Yee B, Kim C, Oryhan CL, Rosenow JM, Warren DT, Lerman I, Mora R, Hayek SM, Hanes M, Simopoulos T, Sharma S, Gilligan C, Grace W, Ade T, Mekhail NA, Hunter JP, Choi D, Choi DY. PMID: 28493599.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 17     Fields:    Translation:HumansPHPublic Health
    23. Posttraumatic stress disorder influences the nociceptive and intrathecal cytokine response to a painful stimulus in combat veterans. Psychoneuroendocrinology. 2016 11; 73:99-108. Lerman I, Davis BA, Bertram TM, Proudfoot J, Hauger RL, Coe CL, Patel PM, Baker DG. PMID: 27490714.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 17     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    24. Noninvasive Transcutaneous Vagus Nerve Stimulation Decreases Whole Blood Culture-Derived Cytokines and Chemokines: A Randomized, Blinded, Healthy Control Pilot Trial. Neuromodulation. 2016 Apr; 19(3):283-90. Lerman I, Hauger R, Sorkin L, Proudfoot J, Davis B, Huang A, Lam K, Simon B, Baker DG. PMID: 26990318.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 70     Fields:    Translation:HumansCells
    25. Techniques in Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine. Optimizing needle tip visualization during out-of-plane ultrasonography: A novel technique. 2015; 4(18):123-125. Imanuel R.Lerman MD MS Dmitri Souzdalnitski MD PhD, Bryan A. Davis MD MS, Lei Shi MD PhD . View Publication.
    26. A Novel Freehand (Underhand), Out-of-Plane Ultrasound Technique to Optimize Visualization of Needle Tip During Subacromial Bursa Injection. Reg Anesth Pain Med. 2015 Nov-Dec; 40(6):730-1. Shi L, Souzdalnitski D, Lerman I. PMID: 26488082.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions:    Fields:    Translation:Humans
    27. Ultrasound-guided regional anesthesia simulation and trainee performance. Techniques in Regional Anesthesia and Pain Management. 2015; 18(4):110-118. Imanuel R. Lerman, MD, MS, Dmitri Souzdalnitski, MD, PhD, Thomas Halaszynski, DMD, MD, MBA, Feng Dai, PhD, Maged Guirguis, MD, Samer N. Narouze, MD, PhD, FIPP. View Publication.
    28. Novel High-Frequency Peripheral Nerve Stimulator Treatment of Refractory Postherpetic Neuralgia: A Brief Technical Note. Neuromodulation. 2015 Aug; 18(6):487-93; discussion 493. Lerman IR, Chen JL, Hiller D, Souzdalnitski D, Sheean G, Wallace M, Barba D. PMID: 25832898.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 9     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    29. A low-cost, durable, combined ultrasound and fluoroscopic phantom for cervical transforaminal injections. Reg Anesth Pain Med. 2012 May-Jun; 37(3):344-8. Lerman IR, Souzdalnitski D, Narouze S. PMID: 22476241.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 2     Fields:    Translation:Humans
    30. Genetic variability in forced and voluntary endurance exercise performance in seven inbred mouse strains. J Appl Physiol (1985). 2002 Jun; 92(6):2245-55. Lerman I, Harrison BC, Freeman K, Hewett TE, Allen DL, Robbins J, Leinwand LA. PMID: 12015333.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 115     Fields:    Translation:Animals
    31. Alterations in cardiac adrenergic signaling and calcium cycling differentially affect the progression of cardiomyopathy. J Clin Invest. 2001 Apr; 107(8):967-74. Freeman K, Lerman I, Kranias EG, Bohlmeyer T, Bristow MR, Lefkowitz RJ, Iaccarino G, Koch WJ, Leinwand LA. PMID: 11306600; PMCID: PMC199560.
      View in: PubMed   Mentions: 51     Fields:    Translation:AnimalsCells
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