Eellan Sivanesan, M.D.

Headshot of Eellan Sivanesan
  • Director of Neuromodulation - Pain Medicine Division
  • Assistant Professor of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine

Specializes in: Adults (18+ years), Geriatrics (55+ years)

Male

Expertise

Back Pain, Botox Injections, Botulinum Toxin Injections, Cancer Pain, Chemotherapy Induced Peripheral Neuropathy, Chronic Pain, Complex Regional Pain Syndrome, Comprehensive Pain Treatment, Degenerative Spine Disease, Diabetic Neuropathy, Disc Pain, Epidural Injections, Facial Pain, Failed Back Surgery Syndrome, Head Pain, Image-Guided Interventional Procedures, Interventional Pain Management, Intra-Articular Joint Injections, Intrathecal Baclofen Therapy, Joint Injection: Hip, Joint Injections, Joint Pain, Kyphoplasty, Lumbar Spine Diseases, Minimally Invasive Interventions, Multimodal Analgesic, Musculoskeletal Related Abdominal Pain, Myofascial Pain, Neck Pain, Nerve Blocks, Nerve Injury, Neuralgia, Neurological Disease, Neuromas, Neuropathic Pain, Neuropathies, Pain Management, Pain Medicine, Percutaneous Spine Intervention, Peripheral Nerve Blocks, Peripheral Nerve Disorders, Peripheral Nerve Injury, Peripheral Neuropathies, Peripheral Neuropathy, Phantom Limb Pain, Postherpetic Neuralgia, Post-Mastectomy Pain Syndrome, Radiofrequency Ablation (RFA), Radiofrequency Ablation for Pain Control, Sciatica, Selective Nerve Root Injections, Shingles Pain, Spinal Block, Spinal Cord and Dorsal Root Ganglion Stimulation Trials/Implants, Spinal Cord Stimulation Therapy, Spinal Cord Stimulator Removal, Spinal Pain, Spinal Stenosis, Stomach Pain, Sympathetic Nerve Plexus Blocks, Therapeutic Neuromodulation, Thoracic Outlet Syndrome, Trigeminal Neuralgia, Trigger Point Injections, Ulnar Neuropathy, Vertebroplasty ...read more

Research Interests

Neuromodulation-Spinal Cord Stimulation; Cancer Pain; Chemotherapy-induced Peripheral Neuropathy; Dorsal Root Ganglion (DRG) Stimulation; Peripheral Nerve Stimulation; Intrathecal Drug Delivery; Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS) ...read more

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Insurance Information

Main Phone

Outside of Maryland & Washington D.C.

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International Patients

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Locations

Johns Hopkins Outpatient Center (now called Levi Watkins, Jr., M.D., Outpatient Center)

Appointment Phone: 410-955-7246
601 N. Caroline St.
Blaustein Pain Treatment Center, Suite 3062
Baltimore, MD 21287
Fax: 410-367-2047
Johns Hopkins Outpatient Center (now called Levi Watkins, Jr., M.D., Outpatient Center) - Google Maps

The Johns Hopkins Hospital (Main Entrance)

Appointment Phone: 410-955-7246
1800 Orleans St.
Sheikh Zayed Tower
Baltimore, MD 21287
The Johns Hopkins Hospital (Main Entrance) - Google Maps

Background

Dr. Eellan Sivanesan is Director of Neuromodulation and faculty of the Johns Hopkins University-School of Medicine, Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine. He treats patients with chronic back, joint, abdominal, pelvic, headache, facial, neuropathic, cancer, complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS), post-amputation, and other pain conditions at the Blaustein Pain Treatment Center. He performs fluoroscopically and ultrasound-guided interventions such as injections of peripheral nerves, spine, muscles, joints, thermal radiofrequency ablation, pulsed radiofrequency ablation, and various chemodenervation procedures.

Dr. Sivanesan is an expert in advanced neuromodulation and minimally invasive spine techniques, which he uses to treat a range of chronic pain conditions. He is a regularly invited national and international speaker on these topics. He is specialized in all modalities of spinal cord stimulation including the latest waveforms and technologies. He is also an expert in Dorsal Root Ganglion (DRG) stimulation, peripheral nerve stimulation, craniofacial stimulation, and intrathecal drug delivery. He has introduced numerous new pain treatment modalities to The Johns Hopkins Health System, including minimally invasive lumbar decompression, indirect decompression device/interspinous spacers, temporary peripheral nerve stimulation, ‘wireless’ spinal cord and peripheral nerve stimulation, restorative neurostimulation, and multiple other neuromodulation and minimally invasive spine advancements.

Dr. Sivanesan serves on the editorial boards of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, Pain Medicine (Section-Neuromodulation and Minimally Invasive Spine), Frontiers of Pain Research, and Neuromodulation. He is also an Ad-Hoc reviewer for Nature Communications, Anesthesia and Analgesia, Neuromodulation, Physical Therapy, Pain Practice, Pain Reports, Translational Neuroscience, European Journal of Pain, Bioelectronic Medicine, Cancer Reports, Annals of Clinical and Translational Neurology and multiple other pain and neuromodulation journals. He also serves on committees of the International Neuromodulation Society (INS), the American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine (ASRA), the International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP), and the North American Neuromodulation Society (NANS).

Dr. Sivanesan’s neuromodulation and cancer pain research is driven by his mission to discover new pain treatments to help his patients at the Johns Hopkins Blaustein Pain Treatment Center and all patients suffering from pain across the globe. His lab is particularly interested in the use of targeted electrical stimulation (e.g., spinal cord stimulation) for painful chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) and cancer-related pain.  His work has been published in the Lancet, Anesthesiology, Neuromodulation, Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine, Journal of Clinical Anesthesia, Infection Control & Hospital Epidemiology, Journal of Pain & Palliative Care Pharmacotherapy, Pain Reports, Pain Medicine, Anesthesia and Analgesia, Neuroscience Bulletin, Molecular Pain, and featured on the covers of Anesthesia & Analgesia and Neuromodulation.

Education: After graduating from The University of Oklahoma with a dual bachelors of science in Biochemistry and Zoology, Dr. Sivanesan stayed near his childhood home and completed medical school at The University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center-College of Medicine. He then completed an anesthesiology residency (clinical scientist track) and pain medicine fellowship at The University of Miami-Miller School of Medicine. After this clinical training, Dr. Sivanesan completed a National Institutes of Health (NIH) postdoctoral research fellowship for clinician scientists. Dr. Sivanesan has received research awards from The National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, The Jacob and Hilda Blaustein Foundation, The American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine (ASRA), The Thompson Family Foundation, and The Foundation of Anesthesia Education and Research (FAER).

Contact Dr. Eellan Sivanesan

The Johns Hopkins Pain Clinic

Johns Hopkins Blaustein Pain Treatment Center

Johns Hopkins Outpatient Center

601 North Caroline Street, Suite 3062

Baltimore, MD 21287

Phone: 410-955-7246

Fax: 410-367-2047

Directions to the Outpatient Center

Appointment Information: 410-955-PAIN (7246)

...read more

Titles

  • Director of Neuromodulation - Pain Medicine Division
  • Assistant Professor of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine

Departments / Divisions

Centers & Institutes

Education

Degrees

  • MD; University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center College of Medicine (2012)

Residencies

  • Anesthesiology; University of Miami Miller School of Medicine (2016)

Fellowships

  • Pain Medicine; University of Miami Miller School of Medicine (2017)

Board Certifications

  • American Board of Anesthesiology (Anesthesiology) (2017)
  • American Board of Anesthesiology (Pain Medicine) (2017)

Research & Publications

Lab

Funded by the National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Dr. Sivanesan’s neuroscience research at Johns Hopkins aligns with his clinical practice as he investigates the effects of spinal cord stimulation. His lab is particularly interested in the use of neuromodulation for cancer pain and chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy. Work in the Sivanesan Neuromodulation Laboratory (SNL) focuses on developing electrical stimulation therapies for treating neuropathic pain conditions and discovering novel applications for patients suffering from painful conditions.

Make a Gift

Lab Website: Sivanesan Neuromodulation Laboratory (SNL)

Technology Expertise Keywords

Neuromodulation; Spinal Cord Stimulation; Dorsal Root Ganglion (DRG) Stimulation; Peripheral Nerve Stimulation

Clinical Trial Keywords

Neuromodulation; Spinal Cord Stimulation; Dorsal Root Ganglion (DRG) Stimulation; Peripheral Nerve Stimulation; Chemotherapy-induced Peripheral Neuropathy; Peripheral Neuropathy; Complex Regional Pain Syndrome (CRPS); Cancer Pain

Contact for Research Inquiries

Johns Hopkins Blaustein Pain Treatment Center
Johns Hopkins Outpatient Center
601 North Caroline Street, Suite 3062
Baltimore, MD 21287 map

Activities & Honors

Honors

  • Clinical Ultrasound and Pain Management Teaching Award, Hunan Provincial Tumor Hospital, Changsha, China, 2017
  • Blaustein Pain Research Award, Jacob and Hilda Blaustein Foundation, Department of Neurosurgery, Johns Hopkins University - School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 2018
  • Stimulating and Advancing ACCM Research (StAAR) Award, Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine, Johns Hopkins University - School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 2018
  • Thomas Family Foundation Initiative Outreach Award, Department of Neurology, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY, 2018
  • Chronic Pain Medicine Research Award, American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Chronic Pain Medicine (ASRA), 2019
  • Research Award, The Foundation for Anesthesia Research and Education (FAER), American Society of Anesthesiology, 2020
  • Stimulating and Advancing ACCM Research (StAAR) Investigator Award, Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care Medicine, Johns Hopkins University - School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, 2021
  • Extramural Program Award for Clinical Researchers, The National Cancer Institute, The National Institutes of Health, 2021 - 2023
  • Clinical Scientist Award, The National Cancer Institute, The National Institutes of Health, 2021 - 2026

Memberships

  • International Association for the Study of Pain (IASP)
  • International Neuromodulation Society (INS)
  • American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine (ASRA)
  • North American Neuromodulation Society (NANS)
  • American Association of Cancer Research (AACR)

Videos & Media

Recent News Articles and Media Coverage

Treating Pain with Spinal Cord Stimulators | Johns Hopkins Medicine

Intrathecal Pain Pump | Johns Hopkins Medicine

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