Research: Dr. Sedensky’s lab has had a longstanding interest in anesthetics and the role of mitochondria in determining different aspects of behavior, including sensitivity to anesthetics. Her current research includes studies to better understand whether children with mitochondrial dysfunction are more sensitive to gaseous anesthetics. She also plans to study whether particular intravenous anesthetics are safe in children with mitochondrial disease.

Patient Care: Working in close partnership with her husband, Dr. Phil Morgan, who is an attending anesthesiologist at Seattle Children’s Hospital, her work is genuinely “translational research.” This means her research is “translated” into real therapies for real patients. Mitochondrial patients undergoing surgical procedures requiring anesthesia are already benefiting from changes in procedures based on this research. Dr. Sedensky’s goal is to ultimately prevent unexplained poor outcomes post-anesthesia for patients with mitochondrial disease.