UPCOMING EVENTS
Virtual Advanced Methods Workshop
Tuesday April 29, 2025
12:00 PM – 1:00 PM (EASTERN)
SPER’s inaugural virtual Advanced Methods Workshop will feature expertise from reproductive and perinatal epidemiologist Dr. Dana Goin. Using both a theoretical methods overview, Dr. Goin will outline use of difference-in-difference approach and other methodological considerations for use of causal inference methods in epidemiologic research. An applied example with sample code and data will follow, allowing attendees a real-world example of how this can be applied to assess a research question (and how it may be applied to evaluate their own research questions).
Presenter
Dana Goin, PhD, Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health
Dana Goin is an epidemiologist with research interests in reproductive and perinatal health outcomes. She received a MA in Biostatistics and PhD in Epidemiology from the University of California, Berkeley. She completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of California, San Francisco at the Program on Reproductive Health and the Environment. Her current work focuses on environmental exposures, particularly water contaminants, and indicators of social and economic hardship to better understand their joint and independent effects on reproductive health outcomes. She is also an applied methodologist who identifies and evaluates the limitations of study design and analysis approaches with the goals of better understanding and preventing threats to causal inference, which is notoriously challenging when studying the pregnancy period.
PAST EVENTS
Demystifying SPER Part 2: Awards
Tuesday November 12 ,2024
12:00 PM – 1:00 PM (EASTERN)
SPER gives out awards each year to recognize outstanding members and their contributions to pediatric and perinatal epidemiology. This year, SPER has updated all awards, including new rubrics to help guide applicants and reviewers. Join us for an engaging webinar where the new award descriptions and rubrics will be introduced. We will also have speakers and past recipients to talk about the Travel Award to Promote Equity, the Student Prize Award, and the Heinz Berendes International Travel Award. We will also cover the Rising Star Award and the Mentoring Award. All award recipients (except the mentoring award), receive travel and registration to the meeting. Questions and feedback from the audience will be welcome. The submission deadline for 2025 awards will be February 3, 2025.
Presenter
Stephanie Leonard, Stanford University
Presenter
Edwina Yeung, NICHD
Presenter
Safyer McKenzie-Sampson, Stanford University
Gender- and relationship-inclusive language in perinatal epidemiology: opportunities for increasing methodological and substantive precision
Tuesday May 21,2024
12:00 PM – 1:00 PM (EASTERN)
As non-normative family structures which have long existed become more societally visible, it is increasingly clear that experiences of the pregnancy and perinatal periods do not always occur within a simple model of two cisgender heterosexual parents raising their genetic children. Queer parents, transgender and gender non-conforming parents, and/or adoptive parents – and their children – may have gestational and neonatal periods that challenge traditional assumptions of reproductive and perinatal epidemiology: that gestational parents are women and mothers, that non-gestational parents are men and fathers, that “maternal” is a term specific to one parent in a household, and that primary caregivers during the neonatal period share genetic factors and/or gestational exposures in common with their infant children. Read more
2024 SPER Virtual Meeting
Symposium: Demystifying the Development of the SPER Program
November 28, 2023 | 12:00PM (Eastern)
Join us for an insightful webinar, where we unravel the intricacies of the SPER annual meeting program development, a collaborative effort involving dedicated members of the SPER community. We will navigate through various crucial aspects of program development, shedding light on what constitutes an exceptional abstract, abstract scoring, and the intricate process of assembling a captivating program. Our panel includes past members of the program committee, offering a wealth of knowledge and experience.
Izzuddin M Aris, PhD
Dr. Aris is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Population Medicine at the Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute and Harvard Medical School. Read more
Collette N Ncube, DrPH, MS, MPH
Dr. Ncube is an Assistant Professor of Epidemiology at the Boston School of Public Health. Read more
Audrey Gaskins, ScD
Dr. Gaskins is an Associate Professor in the Department of Epidemiology at the Emory Rollins School of Public Health. Read more
Kristen Rappazzo, PhD, MPH
Dr. Rappazzo is a researcher at the EPA who works on projects investigating potential links between health outcomes—including birth defects, preterm birth, and mortality—and environmental exposures.
Stefanie N. Hinkle, PhD
Dr. Hinkle is an Assistant Professor of Epidemiology at the University of Pennsylvania. Read more
Symposium: Smokers, Breastfeeding, and Growth During Infancy
September 19, 2023 | 12:00PM (Eastern)
Whether breastmilk can potentially promote optimal growth among infants exposed to nicotine is a clinically significant question. Given that breastfeeding during infancy promotes optimal growth, it is reasonable to ask whether this benefit of breastfeeding extends to infants breastfed by smokers. However, in the decades since the American Academy of Pediatrics published its original guidelines for breastfeeding by smokers, and through their subsequent revisions, only three population-based studies have examined the synergy between the feeding method, maternal smoking, and growth during infancy.
Determining sequalae of breastfeeding by smokers, is complicated by the possibly obesogenic properties of smokers’ breastmilk. Thus, at least three interrelated questions emerge: 1) Do infants breastfed by smokers experience suboptimal growth? 2) Is any such suboptimal growth attributable to ingesting breastmilk of a smoker? 3) If so, what are clinical ramifications of ingesting breastmilk of a smoker on growth during infancy? We answer these questions and detail solutions for promoting smoking cessation among postpartum mothers.
Edmond D. Shenassa, University of Maryland, College Park
Shenassa, a professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics and Maternal and Child Health, investigates Developmental Origins of Health and Disease.
Xiazhong Wen, State University of New York at Buffalo.
Wen, an associate professor of Behavioral Medicine, investigates smoking prevention and cessation, pediatric obesity prevention, and cardio-metabolic conditions, focusing on maternal and child health,.
Mary K. Shelley, University of Maryland, College Park.
Shelley is a data scientist investigating Developmental Origins of Health and Disease.
Andrew D. Williams, University of North Dakota
Williams, an assistant professor of population health, investigates structural inequalities and obstetric and pediatric health outcomes across the life span.
Thu Nguyen, University of Maryland, College Park
Nguyen, an associate professor of epidemiology and biostatistics, investigates modifiable social determinants of health among minority populations.
Webinar: Climate change and pregnancy and children's health
MAY 30, 2023 | 12:00 PM (Eastern Time)
Climate change is a global health crisis that is expected to have significant impacts on human health, while pregnant individuals and children are particularly vulnerable. Recent studies have suggested that extreme weather events, air pollution, and other climate-related factors may increase the risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes and childhood conditions. However, the field of air pollution, climate change, and children’s health is lacking robust evidence to inform air quality policy driven by EPA. In this webinar, existing evidence on climate change health effects on pregnancy and childhood will be presented and existing and new methods will be discussed. Possible ways to mitigate the health effects of climate change in the pregnant and pediatric populations will be analyzed with a particular focus on the role of clinicians and individuals.
PRESENTER
Blair Wylie
Columbia University, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
PRESENTER
Grace Chan
Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health, Boston Children’s Hospital
PANELIST
Tarik Benmarhnia
University of California San Diego
MODERATOR
Stefania Papatheodorou
Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health
Webinar: SPC Journal Club
MAY 16, 2023 | 12:00 PM (Eastern Time)
The Student/Post-Doc Committee (SPC) invites you to a discussion with Dr. Thwaites from University College London on postpartum contraception after in vitro fertilization (IVF). She will be discussing her recently published work “Contraception after in vitro fertilization (IVF): a qualitative study of the views of women who have had spontaneous pregnancies after successful IVF” published in Reproductive Health. There are many different reasons why women can have problems getting pregnant, and in a quarter of cases the cause is never found. Globally, over 8 million babies have been born using IVF. Some women, who have babies using IVF, get pregnant again afterward without fertility treatment. Getting pregnant again quickly, or when a woman isn’t ready, can have health consequences for the mother and the baby. Dr. Thwaites work aims to understand what contraception women need after IVF to plan and space their future pregnancies.
PRESENTER
Annette Thwaites
University College London
Presenter
MODERATOR
Menolly Kaufman, PhD MPH
Center for Health Systems Effectiveness, Oregon Health & Science University
MODERATOR
Bethany Rand, MS PhD Candidate
University of Tennessee Knoxville
MODERATOR
Sara Stephens, PhD student
University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston
Use of Acetaminophen during pregnancy and neurodevelopmental issues among offspring. Should we be worried? What are the policy and clinical implications?
April 18, 2023 | 12:00pm – 1:30pm (Eastern Time)
Over the past decade, there have been 25 prospective studies and the large majority have shown an association between acetaminophen use during pregnancy and a variety of neurodevelopmental issues among offspring that include attention deficit and autism spectrum disorders. A recent Consensus Statement published in Nature Reviews Endocrinology was supported by 91 scientists and summarized the findings concluding that acetaminophen use during pregnancy should be used “cautiously at the lowest effective dose for the shortest possible time”. There has been limited support by professional societies and governmental agencies to align with this decision suggesting the evidence may not be sufficient to warn mothers and clinical providers about this risk. The purpose of this symposium will be to review the epidemiological and biological evidence that supports this association, the limitations present in the existing research, and the conflict between wanting to ensure causality without continuing to bring harm to those exposed while doing so.
SESSION CHAIR & PRESENTER
Bernard Harlow Professor, Boston University, School of Public Health
“Overview of Seminar, Policy and Societal Implications”
BIO
PRESENTER
David Kristensen, Professor of Molecular Physiology, University of Copenhagen
“Biological rationale for the association between acetaminophen and neurodevelopmental disorders”
BIO
PRESENTER
Mollie E Wood, Assistant Professor
“Understanding potential bias in epidemiologic studies of prenatal acetaminophen using a target trial framework”
BIO
Webinar: SPER Student & Post-Doc Research Talks
February 28, 2023 | 12:00 PM – 1:00PM (Eastern Time)
The SPER Student & Post-Doc Committee (SPC) invites you to four rapid talks from trainees in pediatric and perinatal epidemiology. Join us on February 28 at noon (eastern time) to hear novel research presentations that will not be represented at the 2023 annual meeting this June in Portland.
Lauren Tailor, University of Toronto
“Validating aspirin (ASA) use for preeclampsia prevention: a chart validation study”
Sara Stephens, University of Texas
“Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Pediatric Cardiac Arrest: A Population-Based Study of Houston, Texas”
Olivia Halabicky, University of Michigan
“Early Life Lead Exposure and Adolescent Biological Aging”
Julia Wilson-Peltier, University of North Dakota
“Examining systemic maternal child health inequities through an Indigenous lens using the social-ecological model”
Menolly Kaufman, PhD MPH
Center for Health Systems Effectiveness, Oregon Health & Science University
Webinar: SPER Open Listening Session
February 7, 2023 | 3:00 PM – 4:30PM (Eastern Time)
Please join the SPER Equity Advisory Board for an Open Listening Session. We would love to hear feedback, questions, or suggestions on any topic related to equity, inclusion, and diversity related to SPER. This will be a listening session, with all voices welcome – please join us if you are current, past, or potential SPER member. We will establish ground rules for respectful conversation at the beginning of the meeting.
Webinar: "Hypothetical interventions to reduce racial and ethnic disparities in phthalate exposure and the impact on preterm birth."
November 15, 2022 | 1:00 PM – 2PM (Eastern time)
The Pooled Phthalate and Preterm Birth Study is a collaboration between 16 U.S. cohorts to better understand the relationship between phthalates and preterm birth. In this webinar, we will describe the group’s work using this unique resource to understand the potential benefits of hypothetical interventions to reduce phthalate exposures during pregnancy. We will take an in-depth look at the critical role that racial and ethnic disparities in phthalate exposure may play on preterm birth in the U.S.
Webinar: "Reproductive Health Research Post-Dobbs Decision"
October 18, 2022 | 1:00 PM – 2PM (Eastern time)
This will be a panel discussion that addresses questions such as:
- How are reproductive health data collected through research potentially legal evidence?
- What level of security and privacy can researchers give to their participants, whether the data are collected through a targeted research study or a menstrual cycle tracking app?
- How will IRBs assess risk/benefits of research participation in this context?
- How is clinical practice changing and what are the implications for data collection?
If you would like to add to this list, click here (https://forms.gle/pqFfZ1DiiytgQ6XS6) to submit a question for the panel in advance.
Moderator
Sonia Grandi
Moderator
Luther-King Fasehun
Webinar: "Describing Prenatal Exposures, and Evaluating Maternal and Infant Outcomes in Sentinel"
September 13, 2022 | 12:00PM – 1:00PM (EASTERN TIME)
Identifying and describing pregnancies in claims-based data sources presents logistical and inferential challenges. Read more
Webinar: “The imperative for including pregnant women in vaccine trials: successes, challenges, and future avenues for vaccine trials in Africa ”
May 10, 2022, 10:00AM – 11:45AM (EASTERN TIME)
SPEAKERS:
Kristin Wall, PhD, Department of Epidemiology, Emory University, USA
Overview of the history, rationale, and prior work in vaccine studies for pregnant populations
Etienne Karita, MD, Center for Family Health Research, Rwanda
Evaluating safety and immunogenicity of an Ebola vaccine for pregnant women: considerations for trial design
Sara Healy, MD, MPH, NIH/ National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), Laboratory of Malaria Immunology and Vaccinology, USA
Advancements toward development and testing a malaria vaccine for pregnant women in Africa: a path for a more inclusive vaccine R&D agenda
Sonali Kochhar, MD, University of Washington, USA, Global Healthcare Consulting, India
Lessons learned from COVID-19 vaccines for pregnant women: Safety, efficacy, and effectiveness assessments
Carleigh Krubiner, PhD, Center for Global Development, USA
Ethical issues with vaccine studies during pregnancy in Africa: COVID-19, Ebola, malaria, and other infections
Jodie Dionne, MD, MSPH, Department of Medicine, University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB), USA
A call to action to include pregnant persons in vaccine studies
Recommended Readings:
- Gomes et al. Protected to death: systematic exclusion of pregnant women from Ebola virus disease trials. Reprod Health.2017; 14(Suppl 3): 172.
- Healy et al. Malaria vaccine trials in pregnant women: An imperative without precedent. Vaccine 2019. 37(6): 763-770.
- Krubiner et al. Pregnant women & vaccines against emerging epidemic threats: Ethics guidance for preparedness, research, and response. Vaccine 2021. 39: 85-120.
- Kochhar S, et al. Introduction of New Vaccines for Immunization in Pregnancy- Programmatic, Regulatory and Safety Considerations. Vaccine 2019, 37:25, 3267-3277.
- Kochhar S, et al. Immunization in pregnancy clinical research in low- and middle-income countries – Study design, regulatory and safety considerations. Vaccine. 2017;35(48 Pt A):6575-6581.
- Relevant Op-Eds: http://vax.pregnancyethics.org/publications
Journal Club: “Chlamydia trachomatis Is Associated With Medically Indicated Preterm Birth and Preeclampsia in Young Pregnant Women”
April 20, 2022, 12:00PM – 1:00PM (EASTERN TIME)
Dr. Ashley Hill is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health at the University of Pittsburgh. Her research focuses on reproductive epidemiology, health disparities and the co-occurrence of social, environmental and biological factors that contribute to sexually transmitted infections and adverse pregnancy outcomes.
This event is sponsored by the SPER Student Committee and SER-SPC.
“Quantitative Bias Analysis: A fireside chat with Candice Johnson and Matthew Fox”
February 22, 2022, 12:00PM – 1:00PM (EASTERN TIME)
Settle down with a warm beverage and listen to our presenters discuss questions like: should quantitative bias analysis be required in (most?) epi studies? Should journals require it? Should peer reviewers ask for it? Should SPER emphasize it as a professional society? In what situations does it absolutely make a difference? This power point-free discussion will be open to questions from the audience.
Panelist
Matthew Fox
Professor
Boston University
Panelist
Candice Johnson
Assistant Professor
Duke University
“Careers & Networking Session for SPER Students & Post-Docs”
January 18, 2022, 12:00PM – 1:00PM (EASTERN TIME)
Most trainees (students and post-docs) in the fields of reproductive, perinatal, and pediatric epidemiology are usually excited about the variety of career opportunities available to them upon the completion of their training. However, very few have had the opportunity to discuss those career opportunities with a vast array of experts practicing in a variety of fields, at the same time. For some trainees, they struggle to find experts in the fields they are curious and/or excited about, who they can connect with, and who share similar academic and/or social backgrounds as them. In this Careers & Networking Session, SPER’s Students & Post-Doc Committee provides a rare opportunity for students and post-docs to meet a vast range of experts applying their epidemiology training to various aspects of women’s and children’s health. All are welcome to register to attend, regardless of SPER membership.
Panelist
Justin Graves, MPH
Senior Technical Advisor
Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI)
Panelist
Irene Headen, PhD, MS
Assistant Professor at Drexel University Dornsife School of Public Health
Panelist
Zhiwen Liu, MD, MS, PhD
Director of Real World Research
The Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson
Panelist
Purnima Madhivanan, MBBS, MPH, PhD
Associate Professor at Mel & Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health at the University of Arizona
Panelist
Baker N. Maggwa, MD, MS
Senior Fellow/Advisor, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID)
Moderator
Luther-King O. Fasehun, MD, MSc
Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics,
Temple University
“How to peer review: an open Q & A with journal editors”
November 16, 2021, 12:00PM – 1:00PM (EASTERN TIME)
The peer review process can seem like a black box. As a reviewer, you may receive an invitation, give a review and even see the decision without getting any feedback on the utility of the review you provided. Are there components you absolutely should or should not include in your peer review? This panel includes editors from three top epidemiology journals. They will give their perspectives on how to give the most useful peer review, and address other issues in the peer review process including fairness, equity, and inclusion. Almost half of this webinar will be dedicated to YOUR questions and discussion, please come and share your questions about the peer review process.
Virtual Speed-Networking
June 17, 2021 – 3:00pm – 4:00pm (Eastern Time)
Network and connect virtually with your SPER experts and colleagues at this speed-networking event! Join us in small group virtual breakout rooms as we connect with leaders in the field. You’ll have the opportunity to ask questions and hear advice from mentors at various career levels, as they discuss their career and professional development experiences.
Creating an online presence
May 25, 2021 – 12:00pm – 1:00pm (Eastern Time)
Our world is becoming more virtual, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, when physical presence is restricted. As epidemiologists, online platforms such as LinkedIn, Google scholar, and other social media e.g. twitter, may present an opportunity for us to share our work and ideas. However, how can we establish a strong presence online and use it to communicate effectively? Our panel of speakers will discuss and share their personal experiences on creating an online presence as epidemiologists.
Matthew Fox,
Ugochinyere Vivian Ukah,The role of wealth accumulation in Black-White preterm delivery disparities: a causal mediation analysis approach
May 18, 2021 – 1:00pm (Eastern Time)
Speaker
Collette Ncube
Assistant Professor, Department of Health Sciences
Northeastern University
Moderator
Jessie Buckley
Associate Professor
Department of Environmental Health & Engineering
Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
The U.S. has the highest rate of preterm birth of all industrialized nations, as well as striking racial/ethnic disparities. I adopt the perspective that a racial group is defined through the social construction of race in the context of a hierarchical, racialized historical and contemporary context. The U.S. racial classification system is powerful and can define generational experiences of advantage or disadvantage for those groups, shaping multiple aspects of their lived experience. During this talk we will discuss the design and findings of our recent study estimating the potential effect of Child Development Accounts (an intervention to change the distribution of family wealth) on racial disparities in preterm delivery. Additionally, we will discuss opportunities and challenges to examining structural racism in epidemiology studies.
Suggested readings
Bailey ZD, Krieger N, Agénor M, Graves J, Linos N, Bassett MT. Structural racism and health inequities in the USA: evidence and interventions. Lancet. 2017 Apr 8;389(10077):1453-1463. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(17)30569-X
VanderWeele, Tyler J.; Robinson, Whitney R. On the Causal Interpretation of Race in Regressions Adjusting for Confounding and Mediating Variables, Epidemiology: July 2014 – Volume 25 – Issue 4 – p 473-484 https://doi.org/10.1097/EDE.0000000000000105
New insights into environmental exposures and uterine leiomyomata
May 11, 2021 – 12:00pm-1:30pm (Eastern Time)
Ami Zota
Amelia Wesselink
Birgit Claus Henn
Traci N. BetheaIdentifying cardiovascular severe maternal morbidity in epidemiologic studies
April 21, 2021 – 12:00pm-1:00pm (Eastern Time)
Speaker
Isabelle Malhamé
Assistant Professor, McGill University
Physician, Obstetric Medicine and General Internal Medicine
Department of Medicine
McGill University Health Centre
This event is co-sponsored by the Society of Epidemiologic Research (SER).
Obesity in Pregnancy
December 8, 2020 – 12:30pm-1:30pm (Eastern Time)
This session will explore the implications of maternal body mass index or obesity on pregnancy and offspring health. The presentations were selected from abstracts submitted to the SPER 2020 annual meeting.
Session Chair:
Elizabeth Widen
University of Texas at Austin
Presenters:
Taniqua Ingol
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
“Maternal Weight Trajectories from Pre-Pregnancy through Postpartum and Childhood Obesity Risk: A Latent Class Analysis Using a Large US Pregnancy Cohort”
Kimberly Glazer, PhD, MPH
“Term labor induction and cesarean delivery among obese women: Generalizability of evidence from low-risk populations”
Amy Nichols, MS, RD
University of Texas at Austin
“Increasing Prepregnancy Obesity Class in Twin Pregnancy is Associated with Decreased Gestational Weight Gain”
Ke Pan, MPH
Tulane University
“BMI-associated metabolic profiles and pathways in the 1st trimester serum”
Speed Poster Session - Obstetric Health
December 4, 2020 – 12pm-1pm (Eastern Time)
Susannah Leisher
“Prenatal exposure to maternal stress and leukocyte telomere length in newborns”
Erin Hetherington
“Birth outcomes and pregnancy complications after the 2013 Calgary flood: a difference in difference analysis”
Ellen Caniglia
“Policies mandating priority access to opioid use disorder treatment during pregnancy and buprenorphine prescriptions to women of childbearing age in the United States”
Mekhala Dissanayake
“Postpartum hospital encounters and complications among women with hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, California 2008-2012”
Diane Putnick
“Trajectories of depressive symptoms from four months to three years postpartum: Relations with demographic and perinatal factors”
Social and structural determinants of pregnancy health
December 2, 2020 – 2pm-3pm Eastern Time
The goal of this session is to explore the impact of social and structural factors on pregnancy health. The presentations were selected from abstracts submitted to the SPER 2020 annual meeting.
Session Chair:
Anne Marie Jukic
NIEHS
Presenters:
Brittany Rosen
University of Massachusetts
“The Association Between Neighborhood Poverty and Adverse Birth Outcomes in Hispanic Women”
Jaime Slaughter-Acey
University of Minnesota
“Ignoring the Cost of Color on Black Maternal Health: The Influence of Skin Color, Gendered Skin Tone Bias and Prepregnancy Body Mass Index.”
Liying Zhang
Wayne State University
“Intimate Partner Violence, Perceived Stress, and Substance Use among Pregnant Black Women”
Irene Headen
Drexel University
“Housing type and preconception health care utilization: Baseline associations prior to public housing redevelopment in San Francisco”
Stillbirths Count: Parent, provider, and epidemiological perspectives on stillbirth research
December 1, 2020 – 12:00pm-1:30pm (Eastern Time)
Stillbirth is a devastating and all-too-common outcome of pregnancy; worldwide around 2 million families lose a baby before birth, including 23,000 in the US, each year. Families often experience isolation and a lack of support, leading to substantial mental health burdens in the time following the stillbirth and in subsequent pregnancies. Despite the enormous burden of stillbirth, which falls disproportionately on Black families, the investment in research to identify causes and best care practices has only recently started to increase; large knowledge gaps remain.
In the first part of this symposium, we will provide an overview of stillbirth and current research efforts to better understand the causes of stillbirth in the US. We will then discuss the challenges of stillbirth epidemiology. Next, parents will share their experience with stillbirth.
Following presentations (20 minutes) on these topics, we will have a 60-minute moderated panel discussion on the current state of stillbirth care, research, and policy, including the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on stillbirth risk and care, followed by an audience Q&A.
Suggested Readings:
Stillbirth is more common than you think — and we’re doing little about it. Sarah Muthler, Washington Post.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/posteverything/wp/2016/05/16/stillbirth-is-more-common-than-you-think-and-were-doing-little-about-it/
Pruitt SM, Hoyert DL, Anderson KN, et al. Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Fetal Deaths — United States, 2015–2017. MMWR Morb Mortal Wkly Rep 2020;69:1277–1282. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm6937a1
SPEAKERS AND PANEL MEMBERS:
Jodi Abbott, MD
Maternal Fetal Medicine Specialist
Boston Medical Center and Associate Professor
Read more
Lauren Christensen-Lindquist, PhD
Assistant Professor
Emory Rollins School of Public Health
Wes Duke, MD, MPH
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Medical Officer
National Center for Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities
Ruth Fretts, MD
Obstretician
Atrius Health and Assistant Professor
Harvard Medical School
Nneka Hall
Dominique Heinke, ScD 
Wendy Nembhard, PhD MODERATORS:
Sarah Muthler, MPH
Program Coordinator
North Carolina Division of Public Health
Read more
Mahsa Yazdy, PhD, Director
Center for Birth Defects Research and Prevention
Massachusetts Department of Public Health
Speed Poster Session - Pregnancy Health and Development
November 20, 2020 – 1pm-2pm (Eastern Time)
Ginna Doss
“Comparing Methods to Estimate Gestational Age and Assessing Predictors of Embryonic Growth in the Time to Conceive (TTC) Study”
Kathryn Wagner
“The Impact of a Lifestyle Intervention on Physical Activity among Latinas with a History of Abnormal Glucose Tolerance in Pregnancy: Estudio PARTO”
Jennifer Yland
“A prospective study of preconception asthma and spontaneous abortion”
Andrew Williams
“Joint effects of ethnic enclave residence and air pollution exposure on risk of gestational diabetes mellitus among Asian/Pacific Islander women in the United States”
Colleen Reynolds
“Unintended pregnancy among racial/ethnic and sexual minority college women: An application of a quantitative intersectional analysis”
Cesarean birth and maternal morbidity among Black women and White women after implementation of a blended payment policy
November 18, 2020 – 12pm-1pm (Eastern Time)
Jonathan M Snowden
Associate Professor
School of Public Health, Oregon Health & Science University/Portland State University
Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Oregon Health & Science University
Article:
Cesarean birth and maternal morbidity among Black women and White women after implementation of a blended payment policy
Sarah Osmundson, MD MS
Assistant Professor
Maternal-Fetal Medicine
Vanderbilt University Medical Center
Article:
Cesarean Delivery Rates and Costs of Childbirth in a State Medicaid Program After Implementation of a Blended Payment Policy
Infectious Diseases and Pregnancy: old and new
November 17, 2020 – 1pm-2pm (Eastern Time)
Moderators:
Catherine L. Haggerty, MPH, PhD
Associate Professor, Graduate School of Public Health, University of Pittsburgh
Brandie DePaoli Taylor, MPH, PhD
Associate Professor, College of Public Health, Temple University
Presenters:
Deshayne Fell, PhD
Associate Professor
School of Epidemiology and Public Health
University of Ottawa Scientist
CHEO Research Institute
Ashley V. Hill, MPH, DrPH
Postdoctoral Scholar
Division of Adolescent and Young Adult Health
UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh
Annette Regan, PhD
Assistant Professor
School of Nursing and Health Professionals
University of San Francisco
Pregnancy-induced physiological changes can make pregnant women more susceptible to severe complications due to infections compared to non-pregnant populations. Furthermore, infections disrupt the receptive immunological state at the maternal-fetal interface. For example, viral infections can prime innate immune receptors leading to an excessive influx of pro-inflammatory cytokines in response to pathogenic and non-pathogenic bacteria in the genital tract. Read more
Register for the 2020 Advanced Methods Workshop
November 10, 2020 – 12pm-2pm (Eastern Time)
“Semi-competing risks: Accounting for death as a competing risk in public health research when the the outcome of interest is non-terminal.”
The workshop will provide an overview of semi-competing risks data analysis. Briefly, semi-competing risks corresponds to the setting where primary interest lies in some non-terminal event, the occurrence of which is subject to a terminal event. Although not as well-known as standard competing risks, semi-competing risks arise in any study of any event that is not mortality but where the force of mortality is strong. Read more
Sebastien Haneuse, PhD
Assistant Professor of Biostatistics
Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
Harrison Reeder
PhD Student
Biostatistics Department
Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
Speed Poster Session - Maternal Health
November 12, 2020 – 1pm-2pm (Eastern Time)
William Gardner
“Global, Regional, and National Coverage of Maternal Care Interventions: An Analysis from the 2019 Global Burden of Disease Study”
Laura Schummers
“Travel time to delivery facility and adverse maternal and perinatal outcomes”
Susitha Wanigaratne
“Severe maternal morbidity among asylum seekers in Ontario, Canada: a population-based study”
Diane Korb
“Risk of severe maternal morbidity in women with twin pregnancy according to the mode of conception”
Marit L. Bovbjerg
“Risk of perineal trauma by maternal birth position: a comparison of data from the US and the Republic of Ireland (RoI) for birth years 2012-2016”
Isabel Morgan
“Social Determinants of Health and Prevalence of Postpartum Visit Attendance – Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System, 2010-2017”
Speed Poster Session - Pediatric Health
November 12, 2020 – 2pm-3pm (Eastern Time)
Deshayne Fell
“Obstetric, perinatal and early childhood health outcomes following pertussis immunization during pregnancy in Ontario, Canada”
Izzuddin Aris
“Childhood Patterns of Overweight and Wheeze and Subsequent Risk of Current Asthma and Obesity in Adolescence: A comparison of Latent Class Growth Models and Inverse Probability Weighting of Marginal Structural Models.”
Julie Petersen
“Support for Nutritional Depletion in the Relation between Short Interpregnancy Intervals and Increased Birth Defect Risk”
Hannah E. Laue
“Prospective associations of the infant gut microbiome and microbial function with social behaviors related to autism at age three years”
Kristin Sznajder
“Prenatal Stress is Associated with Sleep and Attention Problems at 36 Months”
Speed Poster Session - Methods and Design
November 4, 2020 – 3pm-4pm (Eastern Time)
Lauren Rossen
“Rural-urban differences in maternal mortality trends in the US, 1999-2017: Accounting for the impact of the pregnancy checkbox”
Safyer McKenzie-Sampson
“Maternal nativity and risk of adverse perinatal outcomes in Black Women”
Michelle Dimitris
“Increased Risk of Gestational Diabetes in Twin Pregnancies is Not Primarily Mediated by Gestational Weight Gain”
Eugene Wong
“Residual Dried Blood Spots for Epidemiologic Studies of Birth Defects: Participation and Research Implications”
Megan Harvey
“Predictors of Postpartum Loss to Follow-up among At-Risk Latinas enrolled in a Pregnancy Lifestyle Intervention”
September 10, 2020 – 12pm-1pm (Eastern Time)
“Improving health communication: now, more than ever before”
Lee Badgett, PhD
Professor
Department of Economics
University of Massachusetts at Amherst
Author of The Public Professor: How to Use Your Research to Change the World
Julia Marcus, PhD MPH
Assistant Professor
Department of Population Medicine
Harvard Medical School
Charlotte Sutton
Asst. Managing Editor for Business
Health and Built Environment
The Philadelphia Inquirer
SESSION MODERATORS:
Luther-King Fasehun, MD, MSc
Sonia Grandi, PhD
The evolving COVID-19 pandemic and its accompanied unique vulnerabilities for mothers and children presents an opportunity to reexamine the important issue of health communication. How should we, as epidemiologists, better communicate our science to a mosaic of audience types? As stakeholders in pediatric and perinatal health, what are the important issues to be aware of and how can we improve the feedback loop of health communication. Our panel of speakers will explore these issues and present their personal experiences in health communication.
May 12, 2020 – 12pm Eastern Time
Online Journal Club
#SPER_ONLINE presents: “Father matters: Paternal effects on reproductive, perinatal, and pediatric outcomes”
Presenter
Dr. Jens Peter Bonde, Professor
Department of Occupational and Environmental Medicine, University of Aarhus, Denmark
Presenter
Dr. Sunni Mumford, Earl Stadtman Investigator, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, United States
Presenter
Dr. Bola Grace, Research Fellow
Institute for Women’s Health, Faculty of Population Health Sciences, University College London, London, United Kingdom
Moderator
Dr. Lauren Wise, Professor,
Department of Epidemiology, Boston University, United States
Please join us for a one-hour SPER webinar entitled “Father matters: Paternal influences on reproductive, perinatal, and pediatric outcomes.” The webinar will feature three expert panelists who will summarize the scientific evidence on the extent to which paternal exposures affect reproductive and offspring health outcomes. The panelists will also discuss ideas for increasing male engagement and participation in epidemiologic studies on reproductive health. Specifically, Dr. Jens Peter Bonde will present on “Paternal environmental exposure and offspring health,” Dr. Sunni Mumford will speak on “Paternal exposures and reproductive outcomes,” and Dr. Bola Grace will speak on “Male participation in reproductive health research: how can we better engage men in our studies?” The webinar will be moderated by Dr. Lauren Wise. Each speaker will present for about 12-15 minutes, and the final 15-20 minutes will be devoted to discussing challenges and controversies in the field, including recommendations for future research.
April 15, 2020 – 12pm EDT
Online Journal Club
“Estimating the obstetric co‐morbidity burden using administrative data: The impact of the pregnancy‐related assessment window”
This event is co-sponsored by the Society for Epidemiologic research.
February 25, 2020 – 12pm EDT
A Tweet is worth a thousand words: using Twitter for epidemiologic research, a joint webinar from two research groups
Part 1: Twitter-derived measures of sentiment towards minorities and birth outcomes.
Quynh Nguyen, PhD, MSPH is an Assistant Professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the University of Maryland School of Public Health. Twitter handle: @quynhcnguyen
Interpersonal and structural racial bias are leading explanations for the continuing racial disparities in birth outcomes but research to confirm the role of racism has been hampered by challenges in both measuring racial bias and evaluating its impact. We use Twitter data to characterize area-level racial hostility and examine the associations with birth weight and preterm birth. In this webinar, we cover Twitter data collection and processing, sentiment analysis, and use of machine learning to classify tweets for racist content. Use of nontraditional data sources like Twitter has the potential to lead to greater tracking of area-level racial bias and to provide essential information needed to develop interventions to reduce the impact of racial bias on health.
Part 2: Discussions of Miscarriage and Preterm Birth on Twitter.
Nina Cesare is a Postdoctoral Associate at Boston University School of Public Health. Twitter handle: @nlcesare
Studies suggest that there is a trend towards expressing disenfranchised grief on social media. However, no large studies have investigated trends and discussions around miscarriages and preterm births on Twitter. Our presentation will review findings from a study analyzing disclosure of miscarriage and preterm birth on Twitter. First, we will show that there are multiple conversation topics related to miscarriages and preterm births. Second, we demonstrate that specific events usually drive surges in discussions. Lastly, in addition to grief, we illustrate that women who have experienced a miscarriage may use social media to share feelings towards insensitive comments by clinicians, friends and family; healthcare costs; legislatures affecting women’s health etc. Our findings are intended to inform both researchers utilizing digital data for healthcare experience research, as well as clinicians seeking to guide conversations about miscarriage and preterm birth and improve patient care.
SUGGESTED READINGS:
December 11, 2019 – 12:00-1:00pm EDT
Dr. Jeanette A Stingone
Incorporating machine learning approaches into perinatal and pediatric epidemiology: opportunities and challenges
The use of machine learning, broadly defined as analytic techniques that fit models algorithmically by adapting to patterns in data, is growing in use across many areas within public health and epidemiology. This talk will provide attendees with broad exposure to the elements of machine learning and its practical applications within perinatal and pediatric epidemiology. The talk will include discussion of technical aspects of machine learning, as well as important ethical and scientific considerations of using data-driven methods for epidemiologic research. A number of examples from the scientific literature will be presented and a general listing of resources for additional information and training will be provided.
Jeanette A Stingone PhD MPH
Assistant Professor, Department of Epidemiology
Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University
Dr. Jeanette Stingone is an environmental epidemiologist with a focus on perinatal and pediatric health. She received her BS in Biomedical Engineering from Boston University, an MPH from the Mount Sinai School of Medicine and a PhD in Epidemiology from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill. Now an Assistant Professor in the Department of Epidemiology at Columbia University’s Mailman School of Public Health, she conducts research that couples data science techniques with epidemiologic methods to address research questions in children’s environmental health. Supported by an NIEHS-funded career development award, her current research seeks to uncover the combinations of air pollutants associated with adverse child health outcomes within high dimensional public health data. Read more
Recommended Readings:
It is recommended to read the overview by Bi et al and then skimming the others, as Dr. Stingone will refer to these in the talk when providing examples.
1. Overview of ML approaches: Bi Q, Goodman KE, Kaminsky J, Lessler J. What is machine learning? A Primer for the epidemiologist. AJE 2019; https://doi.org/10.1093/1je/kwz189 [epub ahead of print]
2. Examples of implementation:
a. Pan I, Nolan LB, Brown RR, Khan R et al Machine learning for social services: a study of prenatal case management in Illinois. AJPH 2017; 107:938-944.
b. Chiavegatto Filho ADP, Dos Santos HG, do Nasciemento CF, Massa K, Kawachi I Overachieving municipalities in public health: a machine learning approach. Epidemiology 2018; 29:836-840.
c. Das LT, Abramson EL, Stone AE, Kondrich JE, Kern LM, Grinspan ZM. Predicting frequent emergency department visits among children with asthma using HER data. Pediatr Pulmonol 2017; 52:880-890.