Sujee Jeyapalina

Sujee Jeyapalina, PhD

Languages spoken: English

Academic Information

Departments Primary - Surgery

Divisions: Plastic & Reconstructive Surgery

Sujee Jeyapalina received her Bachelor of Science and Master of Science degrees in Chemistry and Chemical Research in 1994 and 1995, respectively, from King’s College, University of London. She earned her Doctor of Philosophy in Chemistry from Leicester University in 2005. After this, she joined the Department of Orthopaedics, the National University of Singapore in 2005, as a post-doctoral researcher. After earning a fellowship in Materials Research at Loughborough University, she joined the Department of Orthopaedics, the University of Utah, in 2008. She currently co-direct the Orthopaedic and Plastic Surgery Research Laboratory at the Department of Veterans Affairs, Salt Lake City Health Care System, and holds a Research Assistant Professorship with the Division of Plastic Surgery, Department of surgery. She reviews for the Journal of Orthopaedic Surgery and Research, Clinical Orthopaedics and Related Research, and others. Her primary research interest is the development of percutaneous devices that resist infection. Her other research interests include, but not limited to, wound healing, design and development of devices, complete RNA sequencing studies to understand health, diseases and healing, breast implant development, biomaterials, cell-co-cultures, microbiome, osseointegration, translational animal model developments, antimicrobials and drug delivery. Her society memberships include the Orthopaedic Research Society, the Society for Biomaterials, the Plastic Surgery Research Council, and the Wound-healing Society.

Research Statement

Novel percutaneous osseointegrated prosthetics have been utilized increasingly over the past several years to rehabilitate amputee patients with limb-loss. As this type of device is used to serve as a bridge between the internal and external bodily environments, the disintegration of the soft-tissue with the device surface creates many medical challenges. The soft-tissue interface (the epidermis in particular) with this device commonly fails to heal properly and disintegrates over time. It is known that immediately following percutaneous implantation, epidermal cells migrate proximally along the implant surface in an attempt to repair the surgically-created soft-tissue defect. This phenomenon, termed “epidermal downgrowth,” creates a sinus tract around the implant and provides a nidus for bacterial colonization and subsequent infection of peri-prosthetic tissue. In order to improve the patient-satisfaction and acceptance of this device, my primary research goal is to understand the mechanical and biological mechanisms of peri-prosthetic tissue healing. My secondary goal is to find an evidence-based design and/or material solution for preventing infection and improving device longevity.

Education History

Undergraduate King¿s College London
 BSc
Graduate Training King¿s College London
 MSc
Doctoral Training University of Leicester
 PhD

Selected Publications

Journal Article

  1. Jeyapalina S, Beck JP, Bachus KN, Bloebaum RD, (2012). Cortical Bone Response to the Presence of Load-Bearing Percutaneous Osseointegrated Prostheses. Anat Rec, 295(9), 1438-1445.
  2. Luo J, Jeyapalina S, Stoddard GJ, Kwok AC, Agarwal J (2021). Coronavirus disease 2019 in veterans receiving care at veterans health administration facilities. Annals of epidemiology, 55, 10-14.
  3. Jeyapalina S, Beck JP, Bloebaum RD, Bachus K (2014). Progression of bone ingrowth and attachment strength for stability of percutaneous osseointegrated prostheses. Clinical orthopaedics and related research, 472(10), 2957-65.
  4. Jeyapalina S, Beck JP, Bachus KN, Chalayon O, Bloebaum R (2014). Radiographic evaluation of bone adaptation adjacent to percutaneous osseointegrated prostheses in a sheep model. Clinical orthopaedics and related research, 472(10), 2966-77.
  5. Lim KH, Chew CM, Chen PC, Jeyapalina S, Ho HN, Rappel JK, Lim B (2008). New extensometer to measure in vivo uniaxial mechanical properties of human skin. Journal of biomechanics, 41(5), 931-6.
  6. Lim KH, Jeyapalina S, Ho HN, Chew CM, Chen PC, Teo CL, Lim B (2008). Non-invasive prediction of skin flap shrinkage: a new concept based on animal experimental evidence. Journal of biomechanics, 41(8), 1668-74.
  7. Beck JP, Grogan M, Bennett BT, Jeyapalina S, Agarwal J, Bartow-McKenney C, Bugayev J, Kubiak E, Sinclair S, Grice (2019). Analysis of the Stomal Microbiota of a Percutaneous Osseointegrated Prosthesis: A Longitudinal Prospective Cohort Study. Journal of orthopaedic research, 37(12), 2645-2654.
  8. Jeyapalina S, Beck JP, Bachus KN, Williams DL, Bloebaum R (2012). Efficacy of a Porous-Structured Titanium Subdermal Barrier for Preventing Infection in Percutaneous Osseointegrated Prostheses. Journal of orthopaedic research, 30(8), 1304-1311.
  9. Juhnke D-L, Beck JP, Jeyapalina S, Aschoff H (2015). Fifteen Years of Experience With Integral-Leg-Prosthesis: Cohort Study of Artificial Limb Attachment System. Journal of rehabilitation research and development. Clinical supplement, 52(4), 407-420.
  10. Jeyapalina S, Mitchell SJ, Agarwal J, Bachus K (2019). Biomimetic coatings and negative pressure wound therapy independently limit epithelial downgrowth around percutaneous devices. Journal of materials science. Materials in medicine, 30(6), 71.
  11. Sujee Jeyapalina, James Peter Beck, Jayant Agarwal, Kent N Bachu (2017). A 24-month Evaluation of a Percutaneous Osseointegrated Limb-Skin Interface in an Ovine Amputation Model. Journal of materials science. Materials in medicine, 28(11), 179-.
  12. Holt BM, Betz DH, Ford TA, Beck JP, Bloebaum RD, Jeyapalina (2013). Pig Dorsum Model for Examining Impaired Wound Healing at the Skin-Implant Interface of Percutaneous Devices. Journal of materials science. Materials in medicine, 24(9), 2181-2193.
  13. Holt BM, Bachus KN, Beck JB, Bloebaum RD, Jeyapalina (2012). Immediate Post-Implantation Skin Immobilization Decreases Skin Regression Around Percutaneous Osseointegrated Prosthetic Implant Systems. Journal of biomedical materials research. Part A, 101(7), 2075-2082.
  14. Pawar DRL, Mitchell SJ, Jeyapalina S, Hawkes JE, Florell SR, Bachus K (2019). Peri-prosthetic tissue reaction to discontinuation of negative pressure wound therapy around porous titanium percutaneous devices. Journal of biomedical materials research. Part B, Applied biomaterials, 107(3), 564-572.
  15. Pawar DRL, Jeyapalina S, Bachus K (2020). Evaluation of soft-tissue response around laser microgrooved titanium percutaneous devices. Journal of biomedical materials research. Part B, Applied biomaterials, 108(5), 2031-2040.
  16. Pawar DRL, Jeyapalina S, Hafer K, Bachus K (2019). Influence of negative pressure wound therapy on peri-prosthetic tissue vascularization and inflammation around porous titanium percutaneous devices. Journal of biomedical materials research. Part B, Applied biomaterials, 107(6), 2091-2101.
  17. Jeyapalina S, Colombo JS, Beck JP, Agarwal JP, Schmidt LA, Bachus K (2020). Epidermal growth factor receptor genes are overexpressed within the periprosthetic soft-tissue around percutaneous devices: A pilot study. Journal of biomedical materials research. Part B, Applied biomaterials, 108(2), 527-537.
  18. Williams DL, Sinclair KD, Jeyapalina S, Bloebaum R (2013). Characterization of a Novel Active Release Coating to Prevent Biofilm Implant-Related Infections. Journal of biomedical materials research. Part B, Applied biomaterials, 101(6), 1078-89.
  19. Jeyapalina S, Beck JP, Drew A, Bloebaum RD, Bachus K (2019). Variation in bone response to the placement of percutaneous osseointegrated endoprostheses: A 24-month follow-up in sheep. PloS one, 14(10), e0221850.
  20. Isaacson B, Jeyapalina (2014). Osseointegration: A review of the fundamentals for assuring cementless skeletal fixation. Orthopedic research and reviews, 6, 55-65.
  21. Bennett BT, Beck JP, Papangkorn K, Colombo JS, Bachus KN, Agarwal J, Shieh JF, Jeyapalina (2019). Characterization and evaluation of fluoridated apatites for the development of infection-free percutaneous devices. Materials science & engineering. C, Materials for biological applications, 100, 665-675.
  22. Luo J, Rosales M, Wei G, Stoddard GJ, Kwok AC, Jeyapalina S, Agarwal J (2022). Hospitalization, mechanical ventilation, and case-fatality outcomes in US veterans with COVID-19 disease between years 2020-2021. Annals of epidemiology, 70, 37-44.
  23. Miller A, Jeyapalina S, Agarwal J, Mansel M, Beck J (2022). A preliminary, observational study using whole-blood RNA sequencing reveals differential expression of inflammatory and bone markers post-implantation of percutaneous osseointegrated prostheses. PloS one, 17(5), e0268977.
  24. Jeyapalina S, Hillas E, Beck JP, Agarwal J, Shea (2022). Fluorapatite and fluorohydroxyapatite apatite surfaces drive adipose-derived stem cells to an osteogenic lineage. Journal of the mechanical behavior of biomedical materials, 125, 104950.
  25. Yin TJ, Jeyapalina S, Naleway S (2021). Characterization of porous fluorohydroxyapatite bone-scaffolds fabricated using freeze casting. Journal of the mechanical behavior of biomedical materials, 123, 104717.
  26. Al Khateeb S,Bennett BT,Beck JP,Jeyapalina S,Sparks T (2023). Exploration of fluorapatite bio-ceramic thin film deposition by ultrasonic spray pyrolysis. Journal of Materials Research,
  27. Isaacson BM,Jeyapalina (2014). Osseointegration: A review of the fundamentals for assuring cementless skeletal fixation. Orthopedic research and reviews, 6, 55-65.
  28. Betz D,Epperson R,Holt B,Bloebaum R,Jeyapalina (2012). A new trichrome technique for PMMA embedded percutaneous implants for the study and characterization of epithelial integration. Journal of histotechnology, 35(4), 164-170.
  29. Griffin A, Brain P, Hancock C, Jeyapalina (2022). A Dentist's Perspective on the Need for Interdisciplinary Collaboration to Reduce Medication-Related Osteonecrosis of the Jaw. The Senior care pharmacist, 37(9), 458-467.
  30. Samantha K. Steyl; James Peter Beck; Jayant P. Agarwal; Kent N. Bachus; David L. Rou; Sujee Jeyapalin (2023). Fluorapatite-Coated Percutaneous Devices Promote Wound Healing and Limit Epithelial Downgrowth at the Skin-Device Interface. Journal of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine,

Book Chapter

  1. Webster J, Beck JB, Bachus KN, Jeyapalina, S, Blobaum R (2017). Osseointegration.
  2. Webster JB,Bachus KN,Beck JP,Jeyapalina S,Drew AJ,Bloebaum R (2017). Osseointegration research. Full Stride: Advancing the State of the Art in Lower Extremity Gait Systems, 167-193.

Conference Proceedings

  1. Tiang Z,Bennett BT,Cartmill T,Beck JP,Bachus KN,Trent A,Vandyke M,Jeyapalina (2019). Development of small animal infection model for evaluating barrier properties of the epidermal seal against infection around the percutaneous implant systems ¿ a pilot study. Transactions of the Annual Meeting of the Society for Biomaterials and the Annual International Biomaterials Symposium, 40, 775.
  2. Bennett BT,Beck JP,Bachus KN,Trent A,Vandyke M,Jeyapalina (2019). Keratin nanomaterial coating limits epithelial downgrowth around percutaneous devices. Transactions of the Annual Meeting of the Society for Biomaterials and the Annual International Biomaterials Symposium, 40, 429.

Abstract

  1. Jeyapalina S, Bloebaum RD, Beck JP, Bachus NB, Holt B (2012). Phenomenon of Wound-Healing around the Percutaneous Osseointegrated Prosthesis. Wound repair and regeneration, 20, A12-48.