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Nalaka
S. Gooneratne, M.D.
Postgraduate Training and Fellowship Appointments
Research/Clinical Interests Biographical SketchDr. Gooneratne’s research interests are centered around studying the nature of sleep disorders in the elderly. While many older adults complain of difficulties with sleep, it is an area about which modern medicine has only a limited understanding. Funded by a National Institute on Aging Mentored Research Career Development Award (K23), he is pursuing research examining the role of melatonin, a hormone secreted by the pineal gland, in sleep in the elderly. Dr. Gooneratne also has a strong interest in the attitudes of senior citizens towards their sleep problems and how their background/ethnicity informs their decisions. This project has been funded by a Hartford foundation pilot grant (“Attitudes of Older Adults Towards Sleep Disorders Evaluations,” Hartford Scholars Program/Penn Center for Excellence, 11/1/2002-10/30/2003). Recently completed pilot grant funding is as follows: “Cohort Study of Insomnia in Advanced Lung Cancer,” Veterans Affairs Administration Competitive Pilot Project Fund; “Sleep and Fall Risk in Institutionalized Elderly,” Academic Long-Term Care Network Pilot grant. Dr.Gooneratne also runs a Sleep Disorders Clinic for Seniors in an effort to address the medical needs of these patients. In addition, Dr. Gooneratne helps organize the Geriatric Research Conference, which provides a forum for patient-oriented researchers to meet and discuss work in progress, and he also helps to coordinate the research activities of the fellows in order to provide them increased access to the broad range of ongoing research projects within the Division of Geriatric Medicine. |
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