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Katherine O'Brien, MD

Katherine O'Brien
  • Professor

Departmental Affiliations

Center & Institute Affiliations

Contact Information

415 N. Washington Street
Room 563
Baltimore, Maryland 21231

443-287-6701
410-955-2010

International Vaccine Access Center

View Current Courses

Education

MPH, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 1994
MD, McGill University, 1988

Overview

My interests center around the clinical, epidemiological, and policy aspects of vaccine preventable bacterial and viral infections of children. My primary research focus has been on the control of childhood respiratory diseases including with specific emphasis on the nasopharyngeal colonization, disease rates, serotype distribution and vaccine prevention of Streptococcus pneumoniae both domestically and internationally. In addition to my focus on pneumococcal disease control, is an interest in the epidemiology and control efforts (through vaccination of infants and mothers, use of biologics and risk factor reduction) for pneumonia, acute lower respiratory infections, meningitis and sepsis.  Pathogens of particular interest for me include RSV, influenza, group A Streptococcus and group B Streptococcus. Vaccine access to HPV and the policies supporting that access are an area of new interest.

My field work has focused on conducting large phase III IND trials of novel vaccines to control the above mentioned diseases, as well as phase IV studies of vaccine impact both domestically and globally.  I work with American Indian tribes to identify and assess interventions to reduce the disproportionate morbidity from infectious diseases in these populations.  Globally I work with researchers and public health officials in low-income countries of south Asia and Africa to assure that life-saving interventions are available and optimally implemented.  In addition to field based studies, my work has also included modeling of global burden of disease for these pathogens, strategic analyses that move research findings into the policy arena on the optimal use of vaccines, and more basic epidemiologic work on the role of pathogens and risk factors in the development of pneumonia.  

I serve as the Executive Director of the International Vaccine Access Center and as a Senior Advisor for the Center for American Indian Health.  Presently I am a member of the Strategic Advisory Group of Experts (SAGE) advising the World Health Organization on global vaccine policy and serve on the Gavi Board representing the Technical and Research constituency.

Honors and Awards

2015: Maryland Women's Hall of Fame Inducte.

2013: Robert Austrian Award and Lectureship.

2011:  President's Early Career Award for Science and Engineering.

2008: Sabin Vaccine Institute, Young Investigator Award.

2001: CDC, Honor Award for outstanding scientific contributions to public health, Group B Streptococcal Prevention Team

1999: CDC, 1999 Nakano Citation, for the Haiti diethylene glycol poisoning investigation.

1998: Secretary’s Distinguished Service Award, Department of Health and Human Services

1997: CDC Mackel Award epidemic investigation which best combines epidemiology and laboratory work. 1997: CDC Group Honor Award for The Haiti Emergency Response Team

1997: Food and Drug Administration Group Recognition Award.For meritorious service in the investigation of an international public health crisis which was associated with the contamination of pharmaceuticals by diethylene glycol.

  • pneumococcus
  • Streptococcus pneumoniae
  • clinical trials
  • American Indian
  • vaccines
  • RSV
  • respiratory syncytial virus
  • Hib
  • Haemophilus influenzae
  • pediatric infectious disease
  • child survival
  • pneumonia
  • vaccine
  • vaccine policy
  • modeling

Selected from recent publications

  • O’Brien KL, Baggett HC, Brooks WA, Feikin DR, Hammitt LL, Howie SRC, Deloria Knoll M, Kotloff KL, Levine OS, Madhi SA, Murdoch DR, Scott JAG, Thea DM, Zeger SL. Introduction to the Epidemiologic Considerations, Analytic Methods, and Foundational Results From the Pneumonia Etiology Research for Child Health Study. Clin Infect Dis 2017; 64(suppl 3):S179–84.
  • Shi T, McAllister D, O’Brien KL, et al. Global, regional and national disease burden estimates of acute lower respiratory infections due to respiratory syncytial virus in youngchildren in 2015. Lancet. 2017 Jul 6. pii: S0140-6736(17)30938-8. PMID: 28689664.Selected recent publications
  • Gibson DG, Ochieng B, Kagucia EW, Were J, Hayford K, Moulton LH, Levine OS, Odhiambo F, O’Brien KL, Feikin DR. Mobile phone delivered reminders and incentives to improve childhood immunisation coverage and timeliness in Kenya (M-SIMU): a cluster randomised controlled trial. Lancet Global Health 2017;5:e428-38.
  • Barger-Kamate B, Deloria-Knoll M, Kagucia EW, Baggett HC, Brooks WA, Feikin DR, Hammitt LL, Howie SRC, Levine OS, Madhi SA, Scott JAG, Thea DM, Amornintapichet R, Anderson TP, Awori JO, Baillie VL, Chipeta J, DeLuca AN, Driscoll AJ, Goswami D, Higdon MM, Hossain L, Karron RA, Maloney S, Moore DP, Morpeth SC, Mwananyanda L, Ofordile O, Olutunde E, Park DE, Prosperi C, Sow SO, Tapia MD, Murdoch DR, O’Brien KL, Kotloff KL, PERCH Study Group. Pertussis-associated pneumonia in infants and children from low- and middle-income countries participating in the PERCH study. Clin Infect Dis. 2016 Dec 1;63(suppl 4):S187-S196
  • Grant LR, Hammitt LL, O’Brien SE, Jacobs MR, Weatherholtz RC, Reid R, Santosham M, O’Brien KL. Impact of the 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine on carriage among American Indians. Pediatr Infect Dis J 2016 Aug;35(8):907-14

See all publications by Katherine O'Brien

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