Michael Pezzone

Dr. Michael A. Pezzone is an Associate Professor in the Departments of Medicine, Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Nutrition, and Pharmacology & Chemical Biology at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.  He is also Chief of Gastroenterology at UPMC Mercy. 

Dr. Pezzone’s clinical practice encompasses all aspects of general gastroenterology, including functional and inflammatory disorders, and the neurobiology of pain relating to them. 

Dr. Pezzone attended Cornell University as an undergraduate where he majored in both Chemistry and Biochemistry. While at Cornell, he successfully completed an honors thesis studying structure-activity relationships in glycosidase inhibitors looking at the mechanisms of carbohydrate metabolism. Dr. Pezzone continued his education through studies of an autoimmune basis of schizophrenia and developed an interest in immune function and auto-immune disorders as a Mellon Fellow in Psychiatry at the Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic, and as a member of the Division of Immunopathology at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. 

After his first 2 years of medical school, Dr. Pezzone spent 3 years in the laboratory of Bruce Rabin, MD, PhD, obtaining his PhD from the Department of Pathology studying the central neural and endocrine effects of stress upon the immune system. After completion of medical school, Dr. Pezzone completed both a residency in Internal Medicine and fellowship in Gastroenterology and Hepatology at UPMC. He then began to apply his interests in brain-immune interactions and stress to the gastrointestinal and lower urinary tracts. Dr. Pezzone has received funding from the National Institute of Health in the form of a Mentored Clinical Scientist Development Award and an R01. He also participates in several clinical trials and investigator-initiated pharmaceutical trials. 

Dr. Pezzone’s current research interests include: 

• Studying the role of the gut microbiome in visceral pain disorders of the bowel and bladder 

• Identifying novel methods to control inflammation and pain in the bowel and bladder 

• Studying the role of mast cells in visceral pain  

• Studying the role of satellite glial cells and neuroimmune mechanisms of pelvic visceral pain 

• Use of neuromodulation to modulate visceral pain and restore bowel function 

Dr. Pezzone is a referee for the following journals:  American Journal of Physiology, Brain, Behavior, & Immunity, Brain Research, Gastroenterology, Journal of Anatomy, Journal of Neuroscience, Journal of Spinal Cord Medicine, Pain, Urology, and the World Journal of Gastroenterology.  Dr. Pezzone is a sought-after presenter and the author of numerous abstracts, book chapters/reviews, and referred articles.  He is a Fellow of the American Gastroenterological Association and has been named a top doctor annually by Castle Connolly since 2008 and the Pittsburgh Magazine.