Tzen Lab

Principal Investigator

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Yi-Ting Tzen, Ph.D.

Dr. Tzen’s research interest is early detection and prevention of pressure injury in people with spinal cord injury. She has had clinical training in Physical Therapy and Assistive Technology, and technology training in bioinstrumentation and signal processing.

Students

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Amir Akhavan, BS

Amir Akhavan is an M.D. candidate at the TCU Burnett School of Medicine, currently involved in skin blood flow research in patients with acute and chronic spinal cord injuries with Dr. Tzen. Amir’s current research project goes hand in hand with his goal of becoming a Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation physician where he will care for patients with spinal cord injuries. His research aims to provide valuable information on the prevention of pressure ulcerations in this patient population while also informing future treatment strategies. Amir completed his Bachelor of Science in Psychobiology and Cognitive Science at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). He has worked previously at the Golshani Neurology Lab at UCLA and is currently undergoing another research project surrounding collegiate rodeo athlete injuries.

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Bhavana Sreepad, BS

Bhavana Sreepad is a medical student at the TCU Burnett School of Medicine, currently involved in lipidomics research with Dr. Tzen. Her research is focused on exploring lipid profiles within the context of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation (PM&R), a specialty she is highly considering for her future medical career. With a passion for understanding the biochemical and molecular underpinnings of neurological and musculoskeletal recovery, Bhavana aims to apply her research findings to advance patient care and improve functional outcomes.
 
Bhavana completed her Bachelor of Science in Psychobiology at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). She has been actively engaged in various research projects throughout her academic career, resulting in multiple publications and conference presentations. Her diverse research interests include lipidomics, metabolomics, and healthcare disparities.
 
At Dr. Tzen’s Lab, Bhavana hopes to contribute to innovative lipidomics research and is committed to translating these insights into clinical strategies that benefit PM&R patients.



 

Alumni

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Tasha Champagne, PhD (2023)

Research

The research theme of Dr. Tzen's lab revolves around early detection and prevention of secondary complications in people with spinal cord injury, specifically pressure injury, depression, and heterotopic ossification. Studies in Dr. Tzen's lab have been conducted at the bedside in both trauma and inpatient rehabilitation settings, and laboratory setting. Dr. Tzen's lab is equipped with non-invasive skin blood flow measurement devices and research tools to compute biological signal processing. The Tzen Lab also works closely with core facilities on campus to investigate serum markers and their impact on chronic wound development. Other clinical and research collaborators of the Tzen Lab include Dr. Merrine Klakeel and Dr. Wei-Han Tan at the Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, and Dr. Yen-Sheng Lin at the Department of Orthopaedic Surgery.

Featured Publications

Pubmed links

Clinical risk factors of perioperative pressure injury in older adult patients with a hip fracture. 

Tzen YT, Sambandam S, Delmore B, Wang J, Chu A, Wukich D. Adv Skin Wound Care 2023 Dec

Predictors of one year pressure injury outcomes in hospitalized spinal cord injured veterans with one stage 3 or 4 pressure injury

Champagne PT, Tzen YT, Wang J, Bennett B, Van Beest D, Tan WH. J Spinal Cord Med 2023 Feb

 

Utilisation of skin blood flow as a precursor for pressure injury development in persons with acute spinal cord injury: A proof of concept.

Tzen YT, Champagne PT, Rao V, Wang J, Tan WH, Klakeel M, Jain NB, Wukich DK, Koh TJ, Int Wound J 2022 May

 

Healthcare utilization and outcomes of spinal cord injured veterans with stage 3-4 pressure injuries.

Van Beest D, Koh SJ, Tzen YT, Wang J, Moore-Matthews D, Kargel JS, Cutrell JB, Bedimo RJ, Bennett BR, Tan WH, J Spinal Cord Med 2022 Apr 1-9

 

Assessing Skin Blood Flow and Interface Pressure in Patients With Spinal Cord Injury Provided an Alternating Pressure Overlay: A Cross-sectional Study

Tzen YT, Purohit R, Mei S, Tan WH, Wound Manag Prev 2020 03 66 3 16-28

 

Implementing local cooling to increase skin tolerance to ischemia during normal seating in people with spinal cord injury.

Tzen YT, Brienza DM, Karg PE, J Tissue Viability 2019 Nov 28 4 173-178

 

Increased skin blood flow during low intensity vibration in human participants: Analysis of control mechanisms using short-time Fourier transform.

Tzen YT, Weinheimer-Haus EM, Corbiere TF, Koh TJ, PLoS ONE 2018 13 7 e0200247

 
 

Lab News

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Dr. Tzen presented at the 2024 PVA Summit

Dr. Yi-Ting Tzen presented "Insulin resistance index for pressure injury risk in people with chronic spinal cord injury" at the 2024 Paralyzed Veterans of America Summit.

August 28th, 2

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Dr. Tzen presented at the 2024 NPIAP Webinar

Dr. Yi-Ting Tzen presented "Pressure injuries in the spinal cord injury population: current evidence in risk assessment, prevention and early detection" at the 2024 National Pressure Injury Advisory Panel Webinar.

June 18th, 2024

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Dr. Tzen presented at the 2024 UT Southwestern School of Health Professions Capra Symposium

Dr. Yi-Ting Tzen, Dr. Yen-Sheng Lin and Applied Clinical Research PhD student Andrew Nasr presented "Rotator cuff myosteatosis: a multimodal musculoskeletal imaging study" at the 2024 UT Southwestern School of Health Professions Capra Interdisciplinary Healthcare Symposium. Read the 2024 Capra Symposium news on UT Southwestern Center Times Plus.

February 14th, 2024

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Dr. Tzen Re-elected to serve as Board of Director for the National Pressure Injury Advisory Panel

Dr. Yi-Ting Tzen was re-elected to serve as Board of Director for the National Pressure Injury Advisory Panel. Dr. Tzen currently serve as co-chair for the Standards Mission Committee and task force chair of the Emerging Leaders Program. 

Jan 1st, 2024.

 

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Congratulations Dr. Tasha Champagne!

PhD student Ms. Tasha Champagne received PhD in Applied Clinical Research at the 2023 UT Southwestern School of Health Professions Commencement. Her dissertation topic is "Identifying depression in spinal cord injury utilizing Tumor Necrosis Factor-Alpha and endothelial function -- a pilot study". Congratulations Dr. Champagne!

December 17th, 2023

Dr. Tzen Received the 2023 Research Recognition Award

Dr. Yi-Ting Tzen received the 2023 Research Recognition Award from the UT Southwestern School of Health Professions.

November 2nd, 2023

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Ms. Champagne Received the 2023 Dr. Ruth Guy Student Leadership Award

PhD student Ms. Champagne received the 2023 Dr. Ruth Guy Student Leadership Award from the UT Southwestern School of Health Professions.

November 2nd, 2023

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Dr. Tzen presented at the 2023 NPIAP conference

Dr. Yi-Ting Tzen presented "Markers for pressure injury in patients with spinal cord injuries" at the 2023 National Pressure Injury Advisory Panel annual Conference at San Diego, CA.

March 17th, 2023

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Ms. Tasha Champagne presented at the 2022 ACRM conference

PhD student Ms. Tasha Champagne presented her research study "Predictors of one year pressure injury outcomes in hospitalized spinal cord injured veterans" at the 2022 American Congress of Rehabilitation Medicine annual Conference at Chicago, IL.

Nov. 10th, 2022

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Dr. Tzen Spoke on RN Huddle Podcast

Dr. Yi-Ting Tzen spoke about pressure injury in the spinal cord injured population on RN Huddle Podcast.

Feb. 3rd, 2022

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Dr. Tzen received research grant from the PVA Research Foundation

Dr. Yi-Ting Tzen received research grant from the Paralyzed Veterans of America Research Foundation.

Jan. 1st, 2021

Contact Us

Dr. Yi-Ting Tzen

Email address: Yi-Ting.Tzen@UTSouthwestern.edu
Phone Number: 214-648-1786

Participate in our research study

Phone Number: 214-648-1786