Diana Escalona‐Vargas

Federal Grant PI

Assistant Professor

UAMS

Last publication 2025 Last refreshed 2026-05-22

faculty

descalonavargas@uams.edu

11 h-index 43 pubs 352 cited

Research Areas

Links

ORCID Lab Website

OverviewAI-generated summary

Diana Escalona‐Vargas's research focuses on the application of advanced sensing technologies and signal processing techniques to investigate physiological processes, particularly in the context of maternal and fetal health. She has received significant federal funding from the NIH for projects aimed at developing novel systems for fetal magnetocardiography (fMCG) and magnetoencephalography (MEG) measurements. These grants support the creation of low-cost, bed-based optically pumped magnetometer systems designed to enhance the assessment of fetal well-being and neurodevelopment, especially in pregnancies complicated by conditions such as diabetes.

Her work investigates the correlation between maternal health factors, such as inflammatory markers and neurotrophic factors, and fetal physiological responses, including heart rate dynamics and brain activity. Escalona‐Vargas has published research exploring the use of fMCG for diagnosing fetal dysrhythmias and understanding the influence of factors like fetal sex and maternal pregestational diabetes on fetal autonomic nervous system function. She also maintains an active laboratory and collaborates with researchers at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, with whom she has multiple shared publications.

Metrics

h-index: 11
Publications: 43
Citations: 352

Selected Publications

Visual Working Memory in Pediatric Epilepsy using Magnetoencephalography: Pilot Study (2025)

DOI OpenAlex
Fetal Movement Assessment Using Optically Pumped Magnetometers from Multisensor Magnetocardiographic Recordings (2025)

1 citation DOI OpenAlex
Acute Disruption of Cortical Epileptiform Discharges With Thalamic Stimulation (2025)

DOI OpenAlex
Magnetomyographic assessment of pelvic floor muscles compared to ultrasound during pregnancy (2025)

DOI OpenAlex
A customized bed based stand alone array of optically pumped magnetometers for fetal magnetocardiography measurements (2025)

6 citations DOI OpenAlex
Comparison of non-invasive magnetomyography to Brink score for assessment of pelvic floor muscle strength (2024)

1 citation DOI OpenAlex
Correlating maternal and cord-blood inflammatory markers and BDNF with human fetal brain activity recorded by magnetoencephalography: An exploratory study (2024)

3 citations DOI OpenAlex
Fetal magnetocardiographic recordings with a prototype bed-based array system of optically-pumped magnetometers (2024)

8 citations DOI OpenAlex
Feasibility of magnetoencephalography in fetuses with cyanotic congenital heart disease (2024)

1 citation DOI OpenAlex
Correlation of fetal heart rate dynamics to inflammatory markers and brain-derived neurotrophic factor during pregnancy (2024)

2 citations DOI OpenAlex
Exploring the Influence of Fetal Sex on Heart Rate Dynamics Using Fetal Magnetocardiographic Recordings (2023)

2 citations DOI OpenAlex
Reduced osteoprotegerin expression by osteocytes may contribute to rebound resorption after denosumab discontinuation (2023)

45 citations DOI OpenAlex
Assessing uterine electrophysiology prior to elective term induction of labor (2023)

1 citation DOI OpenAlex
The effect of maternal pregestational diabetes on fetal autonomic nervous system (2023)

7 citations DOI OpenAlex