Research directed at fundamental and practical, clinical, and translational questions are incorporated into the very essence of the Montefiore Einstein Division of Pulmonary Medicine. Full-time faculty members are actively engaged in basic, translational, and clinical research endeavors, ranging from studies of functional and population genetics and epigenetics, to respiratory, and vascular physiology to clinical investigations on pathophysiology and treatment.
Clinical Research
Airway
- Emergency Airway Management During the COVID-19 Pandemic (PI: Daniel Fein, MD)
Retrospective cohort study examining outcomes and practice variation of emergency airway management during the COVID-19 pandemic as compared to a historical control of the 7 months preceding the pandemic.
Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS)
- TREAT ECARDS: Translating Evidence into Action-Electronic Clinical Decision Support in ARDS (PI: Michelle Ng Gong, MD, MS)
The overall goal of this proposed project is to improve care delivered to ARDS patients by promoting accurate identification of patients with ARDS and increasing adoption of evidence-based interventions shown to improve outcomes in ARDS.
- Prevention of Severe Acute Respiratory Failure in Patients with PROOFcheck - an Electronic Checklist to Prevent Organ Failure (PI:Michelle Ng Gong, MD, MS)
The overall goal of this project is to improve the outcomes of patients at high risk for developing severe ARF and prolonged mechanical ventilation in and outside of the ICU. The project aims to intervene early in high risk patients with an electronic medical records (EMR)-based, patient-centered checklist of common critical care practices aimed at preventing lung injury and hospital acquired adverse events that commonly lead to organ failure (Prevention of Organ Failure checklist -PROOFcheck).
- Clinical Trials Research Network for the Prevention and Early Treatment of Acute Lung Injury (PETAL Network) – Clinical Center (PI: Michelle Ng Gong, MD, MS)
The overall aim of this project is to establish the Einstein-PETAL under the Albert Einstein College of Medicine as a Clinical Center in the PETAL Network.
- Digital Implementation Intervention Trials in Acute Lung Care (DIGITAL-C) Network Planning (PI: Michelle Ng Gong, MD, MS)
This research project DIGITAL-C is a planning grant for a hybrid implementation-effectiveness aimed at evaluating the clinical outcomes from the implementation of evidence based best practices in acute respiratory failure and the effectiveness of electronic alerts and clinical decision support tools to increase compliance to evidence-based practices.
Sepsis
- CLOVERS-STEM: CLOVERS-Study of Treatment’s Echocardiographic Mechanisms (PI: Michelle Ng Gong, MD, MS)
The overall goal of this study is to understand cardiovascular mechanisms in early sepsis by studying patients enrolled in a randomized, controlled trial of early fluids vs. early vasopressors for septic shock.
- Crystalloid Liberal or Vasopressors Early Resuscitation in Sepsis (CLOVERS) (PI: Michelle Ng Gong, MD, MS)
To determine the impact of a restrictive fluids strategy (vasopressors first followed by rescue fluids) as compared to a liberal fluid strategy (fluids first followed by rescue vasopressors) on 90-day in-hospital mortality in patients with sepsis-induced hypotension.
Asthma
- Severe Asthma at Montefiore (PI: Krystal Cleven, MD)
Characterizing patients seen at the Montefiore asthma center. Our goal is to identify phenotypes of severe asthma patients seen in the Bronx at Montefiore.
Occupation Lung Diseases
- Respiratory Symptoms and Diseases in FDNY Emergency Rescue Workers (PI: David Prezant, MD)
Determining the mechanisms responsible for inhalational injury and accelerated decline in respiratory health among WTC firefighters and EMC workers.
- Sarcoidosis in World Trade Center Cohorts (PI: Krystal Cleven, MD)
Assessing Sarcoidosis (incidence, risk factors, clinical features, etc,) as a disease within the various WTC cohorts
Cough
- Management of Chronic Cough (PI: Peter Dicpinigaitis, MD)
Investigation of cough reflex sensitivity using the capsaicin challenge model to examine differences between patients and the effects of medications and other interventions
COVID-19
- BLUE CORAL: Biology and Longitudinal Epidemiology of COVID-19: Observational Study (PI: Michelle Ng Gong, MD, MS)
The purpose of the BLUE CORAL study is to identify acute and critically ill COVID-19 patients who will undergo detailed clinical and biologic phenotyping with systematic assessment during and after hospitalization, in order to inform biology, epidemiology, and resource utilization.
- PETAL Repository of Electronic Data COVID-19 Observational Study (PI: Michelle Ng Gong, MD, MS)
The purpose of the RED CORAL study is to identify acute and critically ill patients with COVID-19 and collect detailed data from their hospital stay in order to inform epidemiology and resource utilization through data collection and creation of a data repository.
- Outcomes Related to COVID-19 Treated with Hydroxychloroquine among Inpatients with Symptomatic Disease (PI: Michelle Ng Gong, MD, MS).
An investigator-initiated, multicenter, blinded, placebo-controlled, randomized clinical trial evaluating hydroxychloroquine for the treatment of adults hospitalized with COVID-19.
- Prospective Observational Data from Frontline US Healthcare Workers in the COVID-19 Pandemic (PI: Michelle Ng Gong, MD, MS)
CDC has requested data on COVID-19 and severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the virus that causes COVID-19, from the Influenza Vaccine Effectiveness in the Critically Ill (IVY) Network as soon as possible to assist with pandemic management.
- An Adaptive Phase 2/3, Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo Controlled Study Assessing Efficacy and Safety of Sarilumab for Hospitalized Patients with COVID-19 (PI: Michelle Ng Gong, MD, MS)
The primary objective of the study is to evaluate the clinical efficacy of sarilumab relative to the control arm in adult patients hospitalized with COVID-19 regardless of severity strata.
- Inflammatory markers and COVID-19 (PIs: Manish Ramesh, MBBS, PhD; Chirag Shah, MD)
Studying the effects and temporal relationships of inflammatory cascade derangements with morbidity and mortality in the COVID19 population at Montefiore Medical Center.
- COVID-19 outcomes in patients with underlying lung diseases (PI: Divya Reddy, MBBS, MPH)
Retrospective chart review study assessing outcomes such as duration of mechanical ventilation, ICU length of stay and 28-day in-hospital mortality in patients with underlying lung disease
Influenza
- Influenza Vaccine Effectiveness for Preventing Laboratory-Confirmed Severe Influenza-Associated Illness in US Adults (PI: Michelle Ng Gong, MD, MS)
The Influenza Vaccine Effectiveness in the Critically Ill (IVY) study is a multicenter prospective observational study designed to evaluate the effectiveness of influenza vaccination for preventing the most severe manifestations of influenza infection, including intensive care unit (ICU) admission, organ failure, and death.
HIV
- HIV and smoking cessation (PI: Krystal Cleven, MD)
Randomized control trial of an internet cessation program plus online social network for HIV+ smokers. The major goal of this trial is to conduct a randomized controlled trial to test the efficacy of Positively Smoke Free on the Web plus an integrated online social network in promoting tobacco abstinence in HIV-infected smokers. We are also evaluated their use of e-cigs
- HIV and cardiopulmonary disease (PI:Divya Reddy, MBBS, MPH)
Assessing lung diseases such as ILD, Emphysema, COPD and pulmonary Hypertension within the Womens Interagency HIV Study (WIHS) cohort
Nontuberculous Mycobacteria
- Evaluation of the natural history, clinical outcomes and immune responses in patients with nontuberculous mycobacterial (NTM) infections (PIs: Divya Reddy, MBBS, MPH; Uzma Sarwar, MD)
Development of a patient registry at the bronchiectasis center with the goal of assessing the natural history of nontubercuous mycobacterial infections
Tuberculosis
- Association between Biomass Fuel usage and Pulmonary Tuberculosis Severity (PI: Divya Reddy, MBBS, MPH)
Assessing the impact of biomass fuel use on pulmonary TB severity within the Regional Prospective Observational Research for Tuberculosis (RePORT-India) cohort in Puducherry, India
- Association of Biomass Fuel Usage with Prevalence of Latent Tuberculosis Infection among Household Contacts of Pulmonary Tuberculosis Cases (PI: Divya Reddy, MBBS, MPH)
Assessing the association of biomass fuel use with prevalence of latent tuberculosis infection among household contacts of pulmonary TB cases within the Regional Prospective Observational Research for Tuberculosis (RePORT-India) cohort in Puducherry, India
Translational Research
Lung Cancer
- Epigenetic regulation of lung cell gene expression in vitro and in humans (PI: Simon Spivack, MD, MPH; Spivack Lab)
- Exploration of functional genetic and epigenetic phenotypes in the airway to identify susceptibility markers of lung cancer in individual candidates (PI: Simon Spivack, MD, MPH; Spivack Lab)
- Development of human lung cancer biomarkers in non-invasively obtained specimens such as brush-exfoliated buccal mucosa and exhaled breath condensate (PI: Simon Spivack, MD, MPH; Spivack Lab)
COVID-19: