Zhonghui Guan, MD

Professor of Anesthesia
Biography: 

Dr. Zhonghui Guan is an anesthesiologist and pain management specialist. He has particular expertise in treating chronic pain, including low back pain, neck pain, neuropathic pain, complex regional pain syndrome, failed back surgery syndrome and cancer pain.

In his research, Guan focuses on better understanding the regulation of gene expression in chronic pain. Gene expression regulation is essentially cell processes that control synthesis of proteins or other products that play a role in body functions.

Guan earned his medical degree at Peking Union Medical College in Beijing. He completed an anesthesia residency at Massachusetts General Hospital, followed by a pain management fellowship at UCSF.

Guan is a member of numerous professional organizations, including the American Society of Anesthesiologists, California Society of Anesthesiologists and Society for Neuroscience.

Publications: 
Chen VJ, Guan LS, Bokoch MP, Langnas E, Kothari R, Croci R, Campbell LJ, Quan D, Freise C, Guan Z. Mismatched Postsurgical Opioid Prescription to Liver Transplant Patients: A Retrospective Cohort Study From a Single High-volume Transplant Center. Transplantation. 2024 Feb 01; 108(2):483-490.
Kuo J, Langnas E, Zhang L, Seth R, Guan Z. Opioid Overprescription and Underprescription to Patients After Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery. JAMA Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2023 08 01; 149(8):756-758.
Campbell LJ, Mummaneni PV, Letchuman V, Langnas E, Agarwal N, Guan LS, Croci R, Vargas E, Reisner L, Bickler P, Chou D, Chang E, Guan Z. Mismatched opioid prescription in patients discharged after neurological surgeries: a retrospective cohort study. Pain. 2023 Nov 01; 164(11):2615-2621.
He L, Zhao W, Zhang L, Ilango M, Zhao N, Yang L, Guan Z. A Procedure for Mouse Dorsal Root Ganglion Cryosectioning. J Vis Exp. 2023 06 09; (196).
Guan LS, Langnas E, Bongiovanni T, Campbell LJ, Wick EC, Guan Z. Discharge Opioid Over- and Underprescription to Patients after General Surgery: A Retrospective Cohort Study. J Am Coll Surg. 2023 08 01; 237(2):332-342.
Letchuman V, He L, Mummaneni PV, Agarwal N, Campbell LJ, Shabani S, Chan AK, Abrecht CR, Miller C, Sankaran S, Rambachan A, Croci R, Berven SH, Chou D, Holly LT, Guan Z. Racial Differences in Postoperative Opioid Prescribing Practices in Spine Surgical Patients. Neurosurgery. 2023 03 01; 92(3):490-496.
Su PP, Zhang L, He L, Zhao N, Guan Z. The Role of Neuro-Immune Interactions in Chronic Pain: Implications for Clinical Practice. J Pain Res. 2022; 15:2223-2248.
Langnas E, Bishara A, Croci R, Rodriguez-Monguio R, Wick EC, Chen CL, Guan Z. Opioid prescribing practices at hospital discharge for surgical patients before and after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's 2016 opioid prescribing guideline. BMC Anesthesiol. 2022 05 11; 22(1):141.
Xiang X, Chen Y, Li KX, Fang J, Bickler PE, Guan Z, Zhou W. Neuroanatomical Basis for the Orexinergic Modulation of Anesthesia Arousal and Pain Control. Front Cell Neurosci. 2022; 16:891631.
He LL, Zhao WX, Paul Su PY, Sun QR, Guo GL, Yue JN, Ni JX, Yang LQ, Guan Z. Identification of Foramen Ovale With H-Figure Fluoroscopic Landmark Improves Treatment Outcomes in Idiopathic Trigeminal Neuralgia. Anesth Analg. 2022 10 01; 135(4):837-844.
Tan W, Su PP, Leff J, Gao X, Chen J, Guan AK, Kalyanasundaram G, Ma A, Guan Z. Distinct phases of adult microglia proliferation: a Myc-mediated early phase and a Tnfaip3-mediated late phase. Cell Discov. 2022 Apr 12; 8(1):34.
He L, Zhao W, Zhang L, Ilango M, Zhao N, Yang L, Guan Z. Modified Spared Nerve Injury Surgery Model of Neuropathic Pain in Mice. J Vis Exp. 2022 01 25; (179).
Chen J, Guan Z. Function of Oncogene Mycn in Adult Neurogenesis and Oligodendrogenesis. Mol Neurobiol. 2022 Jan; 59(1):77-92.
He L, Guan Z. Novel method of locating the foramen ovale: a stable chair with solid legs. Reg Anesth Pain Med. 2022 01; 47(1):70.
Su PP, Guan Z. Perioperative Use of Gabapentinoids: Comment. Anesthesiology. 2021 04 01; 134(4):665-666.
Yu X, Basbaum A, Guan Z. Contribution of colony-stimulating factor 1 to neuropathic pain. Pain Rep. 2021; 6(1):e883.
Zhou W, Guan Z. Ion Channels in Anesthesia. Adv Exp Med Biol. 2021; 1349:401-413.
He L, Zhao W, Su PP, Guo G, Yue J, Ni J, Yang L, Guan Z. Novel fluoroscopic landmark to significantly facilitate the visualization of foramen ovale in treating idiopathic trigeminal neuralgia. Reg Anesth Pain Med. 2021 04; 46(4):350-353.
Yu X, Liu H, Hamel KA, Morvan MG, Yu S, Leff J, Guan Z, Braz JM, Basbaum AI. Dorsal root ganglion macrophages contribute to both the initiation and persistence of neuropathic pain. Nat Commun. 2020 01 14; 11(1):264.
Yu X, Leff J, Guan Z. Rapid Isolation of Dorsal Root Ganglion Macrophages. J Vis Exp. 2019 09 07; (151).
Chinn G, Guan Z. Case Report and Literature Review: Interventional Management of Erythromelalgia. Transl Perioper Pain Med. 2019; 6(4):91-97.
Palmer N, Guan Z, Chai NC. Spinal Cord Stimulation for Failed Back Surgery Syndrome -- Patient Selection Considerations. Transl Perioper Pain Med. 2019; 6(3):81-90.
Chen K, Wang J, Dai J, Luo A, Tian Y, Guan Z, Wang X. Anesthetic management of radical nephrectomy in patients with renal cell carcinoma involving renal vein or inferior vena cava. Tumori. 2019 Oct; 105(5):411-416.
Sheehan K, Lee J, Chong J, Zavala K, Sharma M, Philipsen S, Maruyama T, Xu Z, Guan Z, Eilers H, Kawamata T, Schumacher M. Transcription factor Sp4 is required for hyperalgesic state persistence. PLoS One. 2019; 14(2):e0211349.
Zhou W, Cheung K, Kyu S, Wang L, Guan Z, Kurien PA, Bickler PE, Jan LY. Activation of orexin system facilitates anesthesia emergence and pain control. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2018 11 06; 115(45):E10740-E10747.
Guan Z, Hellman J, Schumacher M. Contemporary views on inflammatory pain mechanisms: TRPing over innate and microglial pathways. F1000Res. 2016; 5.
Guan Z, Kuhn JA, Wang X, Colquitt B, Solorzano C, Vaman S, Guan AK, Evans-Reinsch Z, Braz J, Devor M, Abboud-Werner SL, Lanier LL, Lomvardas S, Basbaum AI. Injured sensory neuron-derived CSF1 induces microglial proliferation and DAP12-dependent pain. Nat Neurosci. 2016 Jan; 19(1):94-101.
Bráz JM, Wang X, Guan Z, Rubenstein JL, Basbaum AI. Transplant-mediated enhancement of spinal cord GABAergic inhibition reverses paclitaxel-induced mechanical and heat hypersensitivity. Pain. 2015 Jun; 156(6):1084-1091.
Solorzano C, Villafuerte D, Meda K, Cevikbas F, Bráz J, Sharif-Naeini R, Juarez-Salinas D, Llewellyn-Smith IJ, Guan Z, Basbaum AI. Primary afferent and spinal cord expression of gastrin-releasing peptide: message, protein, and antibody concerns. J Neurosci. 2015 Jan 14; 35(2):648-57.
Guan Z, Baker K, Sandberg WS. Misalignment of disposable pulse oximeter probes results in false saturation readings that influence anesthetic management. Anesth Analg. 2009 Nov; 109(5):1530-3.
Yu JX, Guan Z, Nash HA. The mushroom body defect gene product is an essential component of the meiosis II spindle apparatus in Drosophila oocytes. Genetics. 2006 May; 173(1):243-53.
Levine AA, Guan Z, Barco A, Xu S, Kandel ER, Schwartz JH. CREB-binding protein controls response to cocaine by acetylating histones at the fosB promoter in the mouse striatum. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2005 Dec 27; 102(52):19186-91.
Guan Z, Kim JH, Lomvardas S, Holick K, Xu S, Kandel ER, Schwartz JH. p38 MAP kinase mediates both short-term and long-term synaptic depression in aplysia. J Neurosci. 2003 Aug 13; 23(19):7317-25.
Guan Z, Giustetto M, Lomvardas S, Kim JH, Miniaci MC, Schwartz JH, Thanos D, Kandel ER. Integration of long-term-memory-related synaptic plasticity involves bidirectional regulation of gene expression and chromatin structure. Cell. 2002 Nov 15; 111(4):483-93.
Guan Z, Prado A, Melzig J, Heisenberg M, Nash HA, Raabe T. Mushroom body defect, a gene involved in the control of neuroblast proliferation in Drosophila, encodes a coiled-coil protein. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2000 Jul 05; 97(14):8122-7.
Guan Z, Scott RL, Nash HA. A new assay for the genetic study of general anesthesia in Drosophila melanogaster: use in analysis of mutations in the X-chromosomal 12E region. J Neurogenet. 2000 Apr; 14(1):25-42.
Honors and Awards: 
Top Doctor in Pain Management, U.S. News & World Report, 2012