Anesthesiology Research

doctors reaching into laboratory equipment

Advancing Science, Improving Patient Care

Join the next generation of researchers in our quest to be the preeminent academic anesthesiology department in the world.

A culture of research and discovery

The U-M Medical School Department of Anesthesiology is at the forefront of addressing key questions in outcomes, neuroscience, and pain and opioids research. Our research is supported by National Institutes of Health funding, as well as a wide array of foundation, state, and industry funding.

Our work spans the translational spectrum, from computational in silico modeling, to animal experimentation, to prospective observational or interventional clinical research, to large-scale epidemiology.

We focus on three areas of research in nationally and internationally recognized centers:

In addition to generating some of the most influential work within the field of anesthesiology, we have rich and productive interdisciplinary connections to basic science, public health, engineering, and even philosophy and the arts.

Our faculty serve major research leadership roles across the university and nationally, in fields that transcend the traditional boundaries of anesthesiology, including genomics, precision health, drug discovery, and translational science. 

We are committed to making a major impact in anesthesiology as well as science, medicine, and society through our discoveries shared through widely-published research and commentaries. We also are focused on shaping a more diverse and inclusive future for academic anesthesiology, both within our department and across the country.

Research Areas

Neuroscience Research

Leading the research of the neuroscientific mechanisms of anesthesia affecting memory, awareness, consciousness and pain.

Outcomes Research

Standing at the forefront of research to better understand the care we provide and the decisions made by clinicians in perioperative practice.

Pain & Opioids Research

Driving efforts to understand pain and how we can improve care and outcomes for patients with acute and chronic pain.

Student Research

Offering a range of opportunities for students to engage in scholarly work across our research domains.

two meant part of the cstar group landing next to their poster in display show

Developing the Next Generation

Career development starts from our internship, with a unique research training month, then progresses to our research resident track, the C-STAR program. We are also one of 16 departments in the country to host an NIH T32 postdoctoral training program.

Learn More About C-STAR

Research Leadership

Chad Brummett

Chad M Brummett, MD

Bert N LaDu Professor of Anesthesiology Research
Professor of Anesthesiology and Associate Chair for Research
Department of Anesthesiology
Medical School
Karsten Bartels

Karsten Bartels, MD, PHD, MBA

Professor of Anesthesiology
Professor of Psychiatry
Professor of Learning Health Sciences and Executive Director, Pain and Opioid Research
Anesthesiology
Medical School
portrait of Amy Bohnert

Amy SB Bohnert, PhD, MHS

Professor of Anesthesiology
Professor of Psychiatry
Program Director, Anesthesiology, Medical School
Professor of Epidemiology, School of Public Health
Douglas Colquhoun

Douglas A Colquhoun, MB ChB, MPH

Associate Professor of Anesthesiology
Program Director and Program Assistant, Anesthesiology
Medical School
Michael Mathis

Michael Mathis, MD

Research Professor
Associate Professor of Anesthesiology
Program Director
Medical School
portrait of Phillip E Vlisides

Phillip E Vlisides, MD

Associate Professor of Anesthesiology and Executive Director
Neuroscience Research
Medical School

Featured News & Stories

See all news
Rebecca Nause-Osthoff
Department News

Rebecca Nause-Osthoff, MD, named Associate Chair for Pediatric Anesthesiology

Rebecca Nause-Osthoff, M.D., has been named the Department of Anesthesiology’s Associate Chair for Pediatric Anesthesiology. She also will serve as M-PLAN Director for the C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital operating rooms and post-anesthesia care unit. Her appointments begin November 16, 2026. 
People in a classroom setting
Department News

A new day for anesthesiology resident education

University of Michigan's anesthesiology residency program has replaced weekly one-hour tutorials with a full day of protected education each month. The program is creating more space for simulation, hands-on practice, discussion and reflection
An adult guides a child inserting a breathing tube into an airway-training mannequin in a medical simulation room.
Department News

Bring Your Family to Work Day provides a glimpse behind the curtain

Bring Your Family to Work Day gives families a hands-on, inside look at the tools and skills involved in caring for patients each day within Michigan Medicine’s Department of Anesthesiology. More than 200 people — including CRNAs, faculty, residents and their family members — participated in this year’s event on Sunday, September 20. 
getty image of a woman bending over in a red seat in pain with green painted background
Health Lab

Who’s at risk for painful periods?

A University of Michigan-led study looked more closely at dysmenorrhea, which is pain that comes with menstruation, in girls before and after their first periods.
Grid of 13 formal headshot portraits
Department News

Michigan Anesthesiology welcomes 13 new faculty members

Get to know the new University of Michigan Anesthesiology faculty members.
pink background faces facing eachother look accordian like and going bigger to smaller towards eachother
Health Lab

Psychedelics and anesthetics create mirror image patterns in the brain

A new study takes a data driven approach and reveals that psychedelics and anesthetics create “mirror image” patterns of large-scale brain organization, with opposite network features.