ABBEY BERENSON B., M.D.

Director, Clinical Studies Core
Professor, Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology and Pediatrics
Chief, Division of Pediatric & Adolescent Gynecology
Director, Division of Family Planning
Director, Center for Disciplinary Research in Women's Health

Affiliations: Department of Pharmacology & Toxicology, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences

Email: abberens@utmb.edu

RESEARCH ACCOMPLISHMENTS

Dr. Berenson has developed an international reputation for the quality of her clinical studies of female children, adolescents, and young adults. The first area in which she developed expertise was the morphology of the hymen in prepubertal girls. When she entered academic medicine in 1989, little was known about the development of the hymen and how its appearance changed as a result of sexual abuse. This topic became clinically important because of increases in the request for genital examinations to determine if sexual abuse had occurred. Dr. Berenson designed and conducted both cross-sectional and longitudinal studies to address this issue. The results of these landmark studies have been published in top-tier journals for ob/gyn and pediatric specialists, and are frequently cited in the sexual abuse literature as the standard in the field.

Concurrent with the research program on hymenal anatomy, Dr. Berenson conducted large-scale clinical studies on hormonal contraception among adolescents and young adults. She has published 23 papers in this area, a number of which have appeared in prestigious journals. These studies have used a variety of study designs, from cross-sectional surveys to longitudinal clinical trials. In 2000, she was awarded an R01 grant from NICHD to investigate the effects of 20 µg birth control pills and DMPA on bone mineral density in women 16–33 years of age. Over 700 women have been recruited for this longitudinal study. Subjects will be followed for 2 years. Dr. Berenson has also published in the areas of domestic violence, substance use, and mood disorders.

RESEARCH INTERSTS

Dr. Berenson’s future research will expand upon the multifactorial data being gathered in the current study of hormonal contraceptive effect on bone mineral density. The additional data on health behaviors, social issues, and mental health status in reproductive-aged women will also generate much needed information for development of culturally competent practices of gynecological care among underserved women. Dr. Berenson will expand research training opportunities for minority researchers by writing minority supplement applications for her ongoing contraceptive studies.

RELEVANCE TO THE WRHR CAREER DEVELOPMENT CENTER

As both a Mentor and Clinical Core Director, Dr. Berenson brings to the WRHR Career Development Center multiple possibilities for training obstetrician/gynecologists in patient-oriented research. WRHR trainees are assured a broad experience because of her extended internal activity at the divisional, departmental, and institutional levels, as well as external activity within regional sites.

As an Ob/Gyn faculty researcher, Dr. Berenson’s work on contraception and the hymen have contributed new information to traditional domains of pediatricians and gynecologists. Her interest in a broader range of women’s health issues, including family violence, substance use, dietary intake, and mental health, will continue to contribute to the needs of ob/gyns who are also providing primary care to a majority of women, especially those who are poor.

As Medical Director of the UTMB-affiliated Regional Maternal & Child Health clinics in southeast Texas, Dr. Berenson enjoys an ongoing collaborative relationship with Clinic Director Carolyn Nelson-Becker and her staff. The more than 30 Title X clinics serve African American, Hispanic, Asian, and white women with low incomes. The sites are also economically diverse, some with an industrial metropolitan base, while others are more rural or suburban in nature. This mix provides an ideal venue for investigation of lifestyle and contraceptive practices among underserved women. These clinics also contribute to the development of culturally competent researchers in reproductive health.

As Director of UTMB’s Center for Interdisciplinary Research in Women’s Health, Dr. Berenson anticipates a continuing reciprocal and synergestic relationship with the WRHR Career Development Center and its trainees. Both Centers share a number of faculty Mentors, as well as resources and training components. The direct connection between the two Centers affords WRHR trainees potential interaction with women’s health researchers from several disciplines.

DEMONSTRATED RECORD OF MENTORING

Dr. Berenson has mentored medical students, residents, and junior faculty throughout her academic career. She has coauthored 40 papers with previous mentees. All of the junior faculty that she has mentored have gone on to secure their own funding, and the medical students have received numerous awards and recognition. The NIH recognized her status as an established mentor in 2003, when she was awarded 5 years of funding under a K24, a career development mechanism that allows her protected time to focus on training young investigators in patient-oriented research.