Department of Anesthesia, Pain Management & Perioperative Medicine

Faculty of Medicine

Melissa O'Brien, PhD

Assistant Professor

melissa-obrien
Department of Anesthesia, Pain Management & Perioperative Medicine

Email: melissa.obrien@dal.ca
Research Topics:
  • Migraine
  • Pain
  • Sex-differences
  • Hormones
  • Electrophysiology

Research interests

Taking a translational approach, Dr. O'Brien's laboratory uses both preclinical and clinical methodologies to study sex-differences in migraine pathophysiology. Her research explores how hormones contribute to migraine pain with the aim of identifying new targets for the management of migraine.

Education

  • BSc, Chemistry (Memorial University, Canada)
  • MSc, Pharmaceutical Sciences (University of British Columbia, Canada)
  • PhD, Pharmacology (Dalhousie University, Canada)
  • PDF, Pharmacology and Anesthesia, Pain Management & Perioperative Medicine (Dalhousie University, Canada)

Selected publications

  • O’Brien, MS, Amey, SA, DeBow, C, Mukhida, K, and McDougall, JJ. (2025). Ambient Green Light Reduces Knee Pain in Osteoarthritis Patients. [In Press, Canadian Journal of Pain]. 
  • O’Brien, MS, Grandy, M, Dawe JA. (2025). Assessment of Migraine Prevalence and Treatment Patterns in Nova Scotia. [In Press, Canadian Journal of Neurological Sciences]. 
  • O’Brien, MS; Richter, E; Woodward, T; Bradshaw, HB; McDougall, JJ. (2024). Visual Exposure to Green Light Therapy Reduces Knee Joint Pain and changes lipidome in Osteoarthritic Rats. Pain. 166(6):1274-1284. 
  • Philpott, H; O'Brien, MS; McDougall, JJ. (2017). Attenuation of early phase inflammation by cannabidiol prevents pain and nerve damage in rat osteoarthritis. Pain. 158(12): 2442-2451. 
  • O'Brien, M; Cairns, B. (2016). Monosodium glutamate alters the response properties of rat trigeminovascular neurons through activation of peripheral NMDA receptors. Neuroscience. 334: 236-244.