Katelynn Boerner

Gender and Sex Influences on Pediatric Chronic Pain
In adult pain research there is a common finding that women experience more frequent, intense, and interfering chronic pain. Many studies also suggest that pain care is often biased towards dismissing the pain of female-identifying individuals. However, very little research has considered the impact of sex and gender on pain from a developmental perspective. Our research aims to address that issue by looking at experiences of acute and chronic pain, intergenerational transmission of pain behaviours, and pain treatment outcomes from a sex and gender lens. Our work has also considered the unique experiences of gender-diverse and transgender young people who live with pain, and advocates for an intersectional approach to understanding pain experiences.

Pain Experiences and Treatment in Autistic Young People
Acute and chronic pain experiences are more common in autistic individuals, but they are underrepresented in research. An ongoing program of research on pain in autistic young people aims to: (a) describe the representation of autistic young people in the “gold-standard” chronic pain treatment literature, (b) summarize what evidence is available for the effective treatment of chronic pain in autistic children and youth, (c) determine the epidemiology of everyday acute and chronic pain experiences in autistic children, youth, and young adults, as well as the associations of this pain with other important health metrics such as sleep, mental health, sensory experiences, and (d) explore the experiences of autistic youth and young adults with chronic pain, as well as parents of autistic children who live with chronic pain, with respect to diagnostic uncertainty, gendered pain expectations, and experiences of healthcare. 

The Living Lab at Home
Most child health research takes place in laboratory of clinical settings, but these settings are often anxiety-provoking and unfamiliar to families. Families who do not live close to a large hospital or university often do not have the opportunity to take part in this type of research, and even when they can, the research often captures a single snapshot of the family’s experience. The Living Lab at Home (LLAH) aims to make research participation more accessible by co-creating with children and families a series of methods that can answer important research questions from the community, that are adapted to fit the needs of children and youth who function across the developmental spectrum. By working with families and constantly adapting our tools, we have developed methods for doing in-home research that are flexible to adapt to family needs, and can better capture experiences like pain, mental health, sleep, and social interactions, that are dynamic and change over time. We are also developing and testing a data visualization platform so families taking part in LLAH studies can see and interact with their own data.