The work of the Division of Epidemiology spans many areas of research. Below are some of our active projects. Please contact Elizabeth Clancy at Elizabeth.Clancy@NYULangone.org for more information.

Chronic Disease Epidemiology

Asian American Community Cohort of the New York Metropolitan Area

PI: Jiyoung Ahn, PhD and Yu Chen, PhD, MPH

Type: UG3 (NIH/NHLBI)

Description: The Asian American Community Cohort- New York will be a state-of-the-art cohort research infrastructure to serve as the platform to collaborate and implement innovative research in Asian Americans, particularly focusing on Korean and Chinese Americans.

Coronary Atherosclerotic Burden in AsA-NHPI: The Role of the Gut Microbiome

PI: Jiyoung Ahn, PhD and Yu Chen, PhD, MPH

Type: R01 (NIH/NHLBI)

Description: This study is investigating the relationship between the gut microbiome and coronary artery calcium (CAC), a validated measure of coronary atherosclerotic burden. The finding may provide evidence to support early intervention strategies that target the gut microbiome to prevent and treat cardiovascular disease in AsA=NHPI populations.

A Prospective Study of Circulating Autoantibodies and Breast Cancer Risk in the NYU Women’s Health Study

PI: Yu Chen, PhD, MPH

Type: U01 (NIH/NCI)

Description: The goal of this study is to identify a panel of circulating autoantibodies that are associated with breast cancer risk in a prospective study. We expect that the investigation of autoantibodies in relation to breast cancer will discover an array of autoantibodies as new biomarkers that will provide new insights into risk assessment and underlying mechanism in breast cancer development.

NYU Langone Health Coordinating Center for CASSIDY

PIs: Jasmin Divers, PhD and Lorna Thorpe, MPH, PhD

Type: U18 (CDC/NCCDPHP)

Description: Narrative diabetes and its related complications are major causes of morbidity among youth and young adults in the US. The CASSIDY network was designed to apply robust and modern diabetes surveillance methods to better use available electronic health record data.

Environmental and Occupational Epidemiology

Exposure to Metal-Mixtures and Coronary Heart Disease Across Diverse Populations

PIs: Yu Chen, PhD, MPH, Habibul Ahsan, MD, MMedSc, and Ana Navas-Acien, MD, PhD, MPH

Type: R01 (NIH/NIEHS)

Description: This project aims to 1) evaluate the role of metals and metal mixtures in the risk of coronary heart disease (CHD); 2) assess the genetic susceptibility to the effect of metals and metal mixtures on the risk of CHD; and 3) identify the potential urinary metabolites that are associated with both CHD risk and metals/metal mixtures. We will pool data from three prospective cohorts consisting of diverse populations. This study can provide insight into the relationship between metal exposures and CHD risk, with implications for preventing and controlling exposures in the US and abroad.

Variations in Long-Term Fine Particulate Matter Air Pollution Associations with Mortality by Particle Size, Source and Composition

PIs: George Thurston, PhD and Richard Hayes, PhD, DDS

Type: R01 (NIH/NIEHS)

Description: Using a robust study design in a large, well characterized human cohort, we will evaluate the effect of PM2.5 mass, size distribution, source, and composition on the PM2.5- mortality relationship. With the new information, the benefits and uncertainties of public health policies to protect the public from the adverse effects of environmental change will be more fully assessed, providing improved guidance for future mitigative efforts aimed at protecting health, including during climate policy and regarding the most vulnerable populations.

Identifying Disparities in Air Pollution-Attributable Cardiovascular Health Outcomes Within a Quasi-Experimental Framework

PI: Andrea Titus, PhD

Type: K01 Career Development Award (NIH/NHLBI)

Description: This project integrates modeled PM2.5 estimates with electronic health record (EHR) data from a large, national cohort of U.S. Veterans to explore associations between long-term air pollution exposure and a range of cardiovascular outcomes. Using detailed residential history information, we will explore how changes in particulate matter exposure — stemming from residential mobility -- impact blood pressure, as well as the likelihood of experiencing cardiovascular-related hospitalizations or mortality.

Public Health Surveillance and Epidemiologic Methods

Health Dashboard Initiatives

PIs: Marc Gourevitch, MD and Lorna Thorpe, PhD

Type: Robert Wood Johnson Foundation award

Description: The Health Dashboard Initiatives is a national platform to assist communities, policymakers, and advocates across the U.S. leverage the power of data to improve health. The program provides rigorous, non-partisan data on health and the conditions that affect health hosted on free, easy-to-use, and interactive websites.

Real-Time Detection of Staphylococcus aureus Transmission in Hospital Settings

PIs: Bo Shopsin, Audrey Renson

Type: R01 (NIH/NIAID)

Description: Hospital-acquired infections from Staphylococcus aureus, especially methicillin-resistant (MRSA) strains, pose substantial health risks, leading to high morbidity and mortality rates. This research will establish real-time genomic surveillance by optimizing the application of advanced sequencing techniques through longitudinal colonization sampling.

Substance Use and Psychiatric Epidemiology

Estimating the Impact of Alternative Crisis Response Models on Community Violence

PIs: Bennett Allen, PhD

Type: R01 (CDC)

Description: This project is evaluating the potential of community-centered safety models to prevent community violence through a rigorous study design that integrates implementation science, econometrics, and machine learning.

Community-Based Evaluation of a Novel, System-Wide Harm Reduction Strategic Plan for People Experiencing Homelessness in New York City

PIs: Bennett Allen, PhD and Kelly Doran, MD

Type: R01 (CDC)

Description: This project is using advanced epidemiological and data science methods together with qualitative interviews to rigorously examine the implementation and effectiveness of a novel, systemwide Harm Reduction Strategic Plan suite of interventions administered across homeless shelters in New York city. The study will produce new practice- and policy-relevant evidence to inform local and national programmatic and policy interventions.

A Comparative Evaluation of Overdose Prevention Programs in New York City and Rhode Island

PI: Magdalena Cerdá, DrPH, MPH and Brandon Marshall, PhD

Type: R01 (NIH/NIDA)

Description: The objectives of this study are to 1) determine the individual- and neighborhood-level outcomes associated with implementation of overdose prevention centers (OPCs) in New York City and Rhode Island; and 2) to examine the role that the local context, operating procedures and costs play in shaping the impact of OPCs.

Large Data Spatiotemporal Modeling of Optimal Combinations of Interventions to Reduce Opioid Harm in the United States

PI: Magdalena Cerdá, DrPH, MPH and Charles DiMaggio, PhD

Type: R01 (NIH/NIDA)

Description: This study will provide the largest, most comprehensive and publicly available dashboard to easily access data on US state and local laws regulating overdose and infectious disease prevention services, availability of overdose and infectious disease prevention services, and overdose morbidity and mortality statistics.

Understanding the Short- and Long-Term Effects of Disasters and other Big Events on the Overdose Crisis

PI: Magdalena Cerdá, DrPH, MPH and Samuel Friedman, PhD

Type: R01 (NIH/NIDA)

Description: This study will identify policies with the greatest potential to buffer people who use drugs from the effects of current and future societal crises, including excess overdose incidence and mortality.

Characterizing Complex OUD Care Trajectories, Outcomes, and Disparities Following Acute Service Utilization: A Population-Based Data Linkage Study

PI: Noa Krawczyk, PhD and Arthur Williams, MD, MBE

Type: R01 (NIH/NIDA)

Description: Through a unique partnership between academic researchers, the nation’s largest public hospital system, and government leaders in New York City, this proposal will advance knowledge on complex and heterogeneous OUD (opioid use disorder) care trajectories and help shed evidence on health-system and treatment interventions that have the greatest potential to reduce overdose death and improve population health.

NY MOVES: Evaluating the Impact of New York’s Methadone Outreach VEhicleS

PIs: Noa Krawczyk, PhD and Ashly E. Jordan, PhD, MPH

Type: R01 (NIH/NIDA)

Description: Using New York State as a case study of the first statewide effort to expand mobile methadone units, we propose a mixed-methods study to evaluate the impact of the mobile methadone program on health outcomes, patient and provider experiences, and cost considerations that would inform long-term sustainability.

Social Policies to Prevent Firearm Assault

PI: Ellie Matthay, PhD

Type: R01 (CDC)

Description: This study evaluates the impact of county-level economic support and alcohol control policies adopted in response to the COVID-19 pandemic on trends in firearm assault injuries. Findings from this study will point to promising local policies that could be used to prevent firearm violence during future crises.