SUMMARY
The research interests of Dacre Knight, M.D., include clinical, social and genetic factors associated with inherited disorders of the connective tissue, particularly Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS) and hypermobility spectrum disorders (HSD). In collaboration with colleagues from the areas of rheumatology, neurology, psychology, cardiology and medical genomics, Dr. Knight seeks to identify novel risk factors associated with chronic pain and chronic fatigue, and to improve the diagnostic accuracy and measurement precision of clinical methods of physical exam. Dr. Knight is further interested in using artificial intelligence to understand the social and spiritual factors that influence disparities in the clinical manifestation of chronic illnesses.
Focus areas
- Identifying potential biomarkers to aid in the early detection of heritable disorders of the connective tissue
- Applying advanced statistical methods to identify and mitigate social and spiritual disparities in chronic illness assessments
- Exploring the use of artificial intelligence to distinguish between chronic pain phenotypes and genetic polymorphisms
- Discovering the links among chronic illness from infectious diseases, post-COVID-19 syndrome, fibromyalgia and central sensitization syndrome
Significance to patient care
Dr. Knight's research activities aim to improve current understanding of the complex relationship between genetic, clinical, and sociocultural factors and cognitive outcomes for connective tissue disorders. These findings in turn may yield improved accuracy in the early diagnosis of connective tissue disorders and optimization of potential treatment interventions.