Pediatric Research In Progress
Research in Progress
Greg Barretto
As the Med/Peds Program Coordinator for the Pediatrics Residency Program, Dr. Barretto’s research focus incorporates elements of resident and fellow education, particularly related to simulation-based training and assessment. He is currently incorporating the Simulation Lab at WVU as a venue to assess communication skills of fellows during end-of-life care and prenatal consultations at the limits of viability. He is also working on a survey WV pediatricians and family practice physicians can use to attend delivery of newborns focusing on what they believe are the essential skills to learn during residency. Finally, Dr. Barretto is developing a new research program involving use of pulmonary graphics monitoring in the ventiliation of infants.
Lesley Cottrell
Dr. Cottrell is the Vice Chair of Research for Pediatrics and a Director of the Obesity and Metabolic Disease Program for the WV Prevention Research Center. Her overarching research interests examine parent and family environment influences that may impact children’s and adolescents’ decisions to engage in healthy behaviors. Her current research projects include the National Children’s Study in Marion County, WV. This is intended to be the largest longitudinal study in the United States (with 108 other sites nationwide) looking at environmental exposures and child development. Dr. Cottrell is also maintaining two separate, yet related, research projects: The first project is designed to examine parental factors and child health behaviors that may impact the association between childhood asthma and obesity throughout childhood and into adolescence. Dr. Cottrell has also continued her research focus on parent monitoring, parent-adolescent communication, and adolescent risk behaviors.
Mathew W. Lively
As the Medical Director of the Exercise Physiology Department at West Virginia University, Dr. Lively is involved in research for which he provides muscle biopsies. Dr. Lively is also interested in the role of Vitamin D levels in athlete stress fractures. He is currently partnering with Orthopedics and team physicians from WVU and UPMC on this project.
Sanjay Mitra
Dr. Mitra is currently working on a QI research project designed to improve the nutrition of very low birth weight AGA premature infants. Dr. Mitra and colleagues have evaluated current nutritional practice within the neonatal unit at West Virginia University for this particular group of children over a six-month period. Findings from this initial stage have already been used to implement modified nutritional guidelines. Dr. Mitra has also conducted research on necrotic cell death in mammalian cells.
Martha Mullett
Dr. Mullett is the Medical Director of the Birth Score Program at West Virginia University. Her research focuses on birth-related factors that are associated with intrauterine growth and future health risks.
Pamela Murray
Pamela J. Murray, MD, MHP is a Professor of Pediatrics, Chief of Adolescent Medicine, and Co-directs the Section of General Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine. She has recognized expertise in prevention interventions that also includes smoking cessation, depression, sexually transmitted infections (STI) and pregnancy prevention in adolescents. Current interests include individual and community-based interventions to decrease pregnancies, STIs, driving risks, smoking and obesity. Her research team is involved with projects evaluating calorie consumption in cars, and parents’ perceptions of research with adolescents. She is developing additional clinical research in the treatment of polycystic ovarian syndrome in adolescent and young adult females and pediatric gynecologic conditions. She has been a Co-PI and site-PI on several NIH and federally-funded studies evaluating STI, pregnancy and other prevention interventions for teens in primary care settings. She has been a member of an NICHD Pediatric Study Section. Her interest in adolescent health, community and clinic-based interventions for obesity and its morbidities continues in her new work setting at WVU.
William Neal
Dr. Neal is a pediatric cardiologist whose research interests include genetic and environmental determinants of diabetes and premature heart disease. He is interested in evaluating national guidelines for blood cholesterol screening in children and is the Director of the Coronary Artery Risk Detection In Appalachian Communities (CARDIAC) Project (www.cardiacwv.org). CARDIAC information strongly suggests that universal screening is necessary to determine children with genetic dyslipidemias and those with metabolic syndrome. Dr. Neal also investigates response to treatment of hypercholesterolemia with lipid lowering medication.
Linda S. Nield
Dr. Nield is interested three areas of research: pediatric resident education, academic medicine, and ambulatory pediatrics. With regards to pediatric resident education, her work best represents the following areas: methods to maximize pediatric resident education in light of the new duty hour restrictions; teaching and assessing all of the medical competencies; best methods to prepare for the pediatric certifying board exam; and formats for teaching in the outpatient setting in a busy acute care clinic. Her academic medicine interests include: methods to improve residents’ role as teachers of medical students and their development as supervisors for more junior residents; methods to motivate faculty to continually improve their teaching skills and desire to publish; and case report publications. Finally, Dr. Nield is interested in issues of ambulatory pediatrics specifically: approaches for improving the clinical experience for patients, parents, residents, attendings, nurses, and all staff within a teaching clinic.
Paola Pergami
Dr. Pergami’s research interests are in the areas of stroke, brain plasticity, rehabilitation and effective patient recovery approaches. Over the past year, she has developed a pediatric spasticity clinic at West Virginia University that provides care to children and young adults suffering from spasticity following perinatal brain ischemic lesions or stroke. She has also developed an Institutional Pediatric Stroke Database that will facilitate the selection/inclusion of patients for future studies on brain plasticity in children affected by stroke.
John Phillips
Department of Pediatrics residents are involved in a variety of academic activities related to research. Monthly journal clubs highlight recently published studies, presented for critical review. In addition, one grand rounds presentation each month focuses on research. Involvement in clinical and basic science research is recognized as a valuable component of resident training in the Department of Pediatrics. Opportunity for elective time to be devoted to research efforts is provided, and the inclusion of research related activity is encouraged. Residents are strongly encouraged to submit abstracts to regional and national conferences. The department has a Scholarly Activity Support Policy which promotes the academic endeavors of all pediatric residents.
Giovanni Piedimonte
Dr. Piedimonte’s primary area of research is airway disease with a particular focus on asthma, specifically early life viral infections and their effect on long-term pediatric pulmonary disease. His research projects include acute airway inflammatory injury, lung injury and respiratory function, and airway remodeling. He has expertise in cytokine pathobiology, early lung development and neurogenic inflammation due to early life viral infections.
Judi Polak
Dr. Polak’s research interests are focused on the assessment and treatment of neonatal pain, particularly procedural pain experiences. She has recently completed a project entitled, “Evaluation of a Practice Change: Implementing Premedication Prior to Intubation in the NICU”. A future project she is developing is designed to introduce new standardized programs for parent education within the NICU. She also intends to evaluation nurse and physician perceptions of parent involvement in patient care.
Brian Riedel
Dr. Riedel’s clinical research interests are chiefly focused on eosinophilic esophagitis, and global health. He is currently developing two industry-sponsored trials for GERD and IBD and collaborating with physicians throughout West Virginia to develop a cohort sample of eosinophilic esophagitis patients statewide for future research initiatives. Dr. Riedel also sees the value of utilizing telemedicine to provide training and care across the rural areas of the state. Related to these interests, he plans to develop materials via podcasts and downloadable audio-video formats for primary care physicians to self-manage patients who have been referred to West Virginia University.
Larry Rhodes
Dr. Larry Rhodes is a Pediatric Cardiologist and the Director of Institute for Community and Rural Health at West Virginia University Health Sciences Center. His research is two-fold focusing on the lifestyle choices and behaviors faced by individuals who were diagnosed, and received treatment for, congenital disease as infants or young children and are now adults. Through this research, Dr. Rhodes has built a registry of adults with congenital disease who have received treatment at WVU over the past four decades. Dr. Rhodes is also interested in evaluating the social and emotional impact of children’s experiences participating in Bob Hartley’s Camp Mountain Heart, an annual summer camp for children with congenital heart defects and disease.
Suzy Walters
Department of Pediatrics residents are involved in a variety of academic activities related to research. Monthly journal clubs highlight recently published studies, presented for critical review. In addition, one grand rounds presentation each month focuses on research. Involvement in clinical and basic science research is recognized as a valuable component of resident training in the Department of Pediatrics. Opportunity for elective time to be devoted to research efforts is provided, and the inclusion of research related activity is encouraged. Residents are strongly encouraged to submit abstracts to regional and national conferences. The department has a Scholarly Activity Support Policy which promotes the academic endeavors of all pediatric residents.