• George Lynn Cross Research Professor

The University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center
801 Northeast 13th Street, Room 301
Post Office Box 26901
Oklahoma City, Oklahoma 73190
Tel: (405) 271-2229 x48066

E-mail: Linda-Cowan@ouhsc.edu

RESEARCH INTERESTS:

• Epidemiology of the epilepsies in children
• Epidemiology of cardiovascular diseases, especially in women
• Natural history of and risk factors for neurocysticercosis
• Development of valid field methods for studies of epilepsy and neurocysticercosis in resource-poor countries

Current major research projects:

• Cardiovascular Disease in American Indians (Strong Heart Study – strongheart.ouhsc.edu) - A multi-center longitudinal study (on-going since 1988) of cardiovascular diseases and their risk factors in 13 American Indian tribes and communities, funded by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) . Role: Co-Investigator
• Epidemiology and burden of cysticercosis in Burkina Faso - A pilot study to estimate the prevalence of epilepsy and of neurocysticercosis among people with seizures and epilepsy in Burkina Faso. Also estimate the prevalence of human and porcine cysticercosis in three villages of Burkina Faso. Funded by the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) and the Fogarty International Center (FIC) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Role: Co-Investigator
• Development and Critical Assessment of Standardized Criteria for Introducing New Vaccines – A Case-Study With Aerosolized Measles Vaccine. By using a panel of expert and a systematic literature review, the research will establish a list of criteria to be used by the WHO and R&D departments of companies to determine the need for new vaccine delivery systems or new vaccine formulations. Funded by the Division of Vaccines and Biologicals, World Health Organization. Role: Co-PI
• Estimating the non-monetary and monetary burden of Taenia solium cysticercosis in Mexico. A pilot study to estimate the DALYs and monetary losses associated with neurocysticercosis in Mexico City and Uruapan. Funded by CONACyT. Role: Consultant

EDUCATION AND TRAINING:

• M.S., Nursing, University of Maryland
• MPH, Epidemiology, The Johns Hopkins University
• Ph.D., Epidemiology, The Johns Hopkins University
• Post-Doctoral Fellow, Neuroepidemiology, Children’s Hospital Medical Center (Boston) and Harvard University School of Public Health

• George Lynn Cross Professor, Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, 1993-present.
• Vice Chair of Epidemiology and Research, Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, 1998-2000.
• Visiting Associate Professor, Department of Pediatrics, New York University Medical Center, 1991-1992.
• Associate Professor, Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, 1989-1994.
• Visiting Assistant Professor of Neurology, Harvard Medical School and Research Fellow, Children's Hospital, Boston, 1987-1988.
• Assistant Professor, Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, 1983-1989.

RECENT ADVISORY PANELS:

• Institute of Medicine,  Board of the Medical Follow-up Agency. (member) Institute of Medicine, The National Academies, April, 2002- March, 2006.
• Institute of Medicine Committee on Transmissible Spongiform Encephalopathies: Assessment of Relevant Science. Liaison member from the Board of the Medical Follow-up Agency. January-June, 2003.
• National Research Council. Committee on Toxicological Assessment of Perchlorate Injestion. (member) The National Academies, July, 2003-August, 2004.
• Institute of Medicine. Board on Military and Veterans Health. Member. 2006-2009.
• National Research Council. Standing Committee on Risk Analysis Issues and Reviews. (member) The National Academies.  September, 2006-August, 2009.

Recent Publications:

• Cowan LD, Leviton A, Dammann O. New research directions in neuroepidemiology. Epidem Rev 2000;22(1):18-23
• Cowan LD. The epidemiology of childhood epilepsy. In press: Mental Retardation & Developmental Disabilities Research Reviews 2002; 8:171-181.
• Leviton A, Cowan L. A review of the literature relating caffeine consumption by women to their risk of reproductive hazards. Food and Chem Toxicol 2002;40:1271-1310
• Zhang Y, Howard BV, Welty TK, Schaefer CF, Cowan LD, Wang W, Yeh JL, Lee E T.   The Relationship of Postmenopausal Hormone Therapy and Markers of Hemostasis and Inflammation in Diabetic and Non-diabetic American Indian Women: The Strong Heart Study.  Journal of Women's Health 2004;13(2):155-163
• Carabin H, Cowan LD, Beebe LA, Skaggs VJ, Thompson D, Agbangla C. Does participation in a nurse visitation program reduce the frequency of adverse perinatal outcomes in first-time mothers? J Pediatr Perinatal Epidemiol 2005;19:194-205
• Best LG, Zhang Y, Lee ET, Yeh JL, Cowan L, Palmieri V, Roman M, Devereux RB, Fabsitz RR, Tracy RP, Robbins D, Davidson M, Ahmed A, Howard BV. C-reactive protein as a predictor of cardiovascular risk in a population with a high prevalence of diabetes: the Strong Heart Study. Circulation 2005;112 (9):1289-1295
• Carabin H, Budke C, Cowan LD, Willingham AL, Torgerson PR.  Assessing the infection burden of cysticercosis and echinococcosis.  Trends in Parasitology 2005; 21: 327-33
• Carabin H, Krecek RC, Cowan LD, Michael L, Foyaca-Sibat H, Nash T, Willingham AL Estimation of the monetary burden of Taenia solium cysticercosis in the Eastern Cape, South Africa. Tropical Medicine and International Health 2006; 11:906-16.