Karim Ladha

MD, MSc, FRCPC

Scientist, Li Ka Shing Knowledge Institute

Biography

Dr. Karim Ladha is a clinician-scientist and staff anesthesiologist at St. Michael’s Hospital and the University of Toronto. Dr. Ladha received his medical degree from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He then completed his anesthesia training at Massachusetts General Hospital and obtained a fellowship in cardiac anesthesia at Toronto General Hospital. He also holds a Master’s degree in clinical epidemiology from the Harvard School of Public Health. His program of research uses mixed methodologies to obtain a multifaceted view of pain and recovery after surgery including retrospective analyses of administrative databases, prospective observational studies, and multi-center randomized controlled trials. His research has been published in top-tier journals including JAMA, BMJ, British Journal of Anesthesia and Anesthesiology. He has received numerous awards for his work including the International Anesthesia Research Society Mentored Research Award, a new investigator award from the Canadian Anesthesiologists’ Society and the IMPACT award in anesthesia.

His current research interests include:

–       Exploring the use of anesthetic drugs such as ketamine and nitrous oxide to treat depression

–       Understanding the role of cannabis in mitigating pain

–       Using wearable technology and mobile applications to track recovery after surgery

Please note: Dr. Ladha is not accepting any students at this time.

Recent Publications

  1. Demchenko, I, Tassone, VK, Dunnett, S, Balachandar, A, Li, S, Anderson, M et al.. Impact of COVID-19 on electroconvulsive therapy practice across Canadian provinces during the first wave of the pandemic. BMC Psychiatry. 2023;23 (1):327. doi: 10.1186/s12888-023-04832-7. PubMed PMID:37165333 PubMed Central PMC10170445.
  2. Ladha, KS, Wijeysundera, DN, Wunsch, H, Clarke, H, Diep, C, Jivraj, N et al.. The association between opioid prescribing and opioid-related mortality within neighborhoods in Ontario, Canada: a case control study. J Stud Alcohol Drugs. 2022; :. doi: 10.15288/jsad.22-00170. PubMed PMID:36971756 .
  3. Sussman, D, Tassone, VK, Gholamali Nezhad, F, Wu, M, Adamsahib, F, Mattina, GF et al.. Local Injection for Treating Mood Disorders (LIFT-MOOD): A Pilot Feasibility RCT of Stellate Ganglion Block for Treatment-Resistant Depression. Chronic Stress (Thousand Oaks). 2023;7 :24705470231160315. doi: 10.1177/24705470231160315. PubMed PMID:36895443 PubMed Central PMC9989395.
  4. Diep, C, Goel, A, Wijeysundera, DN, Clarke, H, Ladha, KS. Co-use of cannabis and prescription opioids in adults in the USA: a population-based, cross-sectional analysis of the NHANES from 2009 to 2018. Reg Anesth Pain Med. 2022; :. doi: 10.1136/rapm-2022-103933. PubMed PMID:36543390 .
  5. Jivraj, NK, Ladha, KS, Goel, A, Hill, A, Wijeysundera, DN, Bateman, BT et al.. Nonopioid Analgesic Prescriptions Filled after Surgery among Older Adults in Ontario, Canada: A Population-based Cohort Study. Anesthesiology. 2023;138 (2):195-207. doi: 10.1097/ALN.0000000000004443. PubMed PMID:36512729 .
  6. Ladha, KS, Kitchen, S, Miles, S, Clarke, H, Gomes, T. Use of injections for chronic pain from 2010 to 2019 in Ontario, Canada. Can J Anaesth. 2023;70 (1):100-105. doi: 10.1007/s12630-022-02357-3. PubMed PMID:36450946 .
  7. Vachhani, K, Simpson, AN, Wijeysundera, DN, Clarke, H, Ladha, KS. Cannabis use among pregnant women under different legalization frameworks in the United States. Am J Drug Alcohol Abuse. 2022;48 (6):695-700. doi: 10.1080/00952990.2022.2136035. PubMed PMID:36443912 .
  8. Balachandran, A, Tassone, VK, Adamsahib, F, Di Passa, AM, Kuburi, S, Demchenko, I et al.. Efficacy of ketamine for comorbid depression and acute or chronic pain: A systematic review. Front Pain Res (Lausanne). 2022;3 :1022767. doi: 10.3389/fpain.2022.1022767. PubMed PMID:36353699 PubMed Central PMC9638121.
  9. Ajrawat, P, Yang, Y, Wasilewski, E, Leroux, T, Ladha, KS, Bhatia, A et al.. Medical Cannabis Use and Inflammatory Cytokines and Chemokines Among Adult Chronic Pain Patients. Cannabis Cannabinoid Res. 2022; :. doi: 10.1089/can.2022.0143. PubMed PMID:36342776 .
  10. NIHR Global Health Unit on Global Surgery, COVIDSurg Collaborative. Elective surgery system strengthening: development, measurement, and validation of the surgical preparedness index across 1632 hospitals in 119 countries. Lancet. 2022;400 (10363):1607-1617. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(22)01846-3. PubMed PMID:36328042 PubMed Central PMC9621702.
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Affiliations & Other Activities

  • Department of Anesthesia and Pain Management – University of Toronto and St. Michael’s Hospital