The Kaiser Permanente Division of Research conducts, publishes, and disseminates epidemiologic and health services research to improve the health and medical care of Kaiser Permanente members and society at large. We seek to understand the determinants of illness and well-being, and to improve the quality and cost-effectiveness of health care. Currently, DOR’s 550-plus staff is working on more than 350 epidemiological and health services research projects.
Pregnant patients surveyed by Kaiser Permanente researchers early in the COVID-19 pandemic reported more severe mental health symptoms when they were distressed about changes in prenatal care, childcare challenges, and food insecurity. A second study found disparities in how Black and Hispanic pregnant individuals experienced pandemic stressors compared with white patients.
A study of 11,321 patients treated for gestational diabetes with insulin or the medication glyburide did not find a difference in cesarean section rates or outcomes for the patients’ infants, suggesting many people with gestational diabetes could forego insulin injections in favor of taking a pill.
A Kaiser Permanente analysis of pregnant patients who tested positive for the coronavirus found more than double the risk of poor outcomes including preterm birth, venous thromboembolism (blood clot), and severe maternal morbidity, which includes conditions such as acute respiratory distress syndrome and sepsis.
Kaiser Permanente research suggests blood pressure patterns seen during the first 20 weeks of pregnancy may offer critical clues to identify the patients most likely to develop high blood pressure complications later in their pregnancies.
In a new KP Research Radio podcast, investigators studying use of cannabis during pregnancy discuss common misconceptions about prenatal cannabis use, their future research plans, and more.
A Kaiser Permanente analysis of more than 100,000 pregnancies in Northern California finds a 25% increase in the rate of cannabis use early in pregnancy after the pandemic began in spring 2020.
KP Research Radio talks to Ai Kubo, PhD, MPH, about her research into why girls are starting puberty earlier than they have in the past, risks associated with early puberty — and potential interventions.
Kaiser Permanente researchers are surveying pregnant women during the pandemic and the first findings from the survey show a low percentage of COVID-19 infections, with higher prevalence among younger women, Hispanic women, and those living in neighborhoods with greater economic deprivation.
Mothers with psychiatric conditions such as depression and anxiety were more likely to have a child with autism than mothers without such conditions, new research led by Kaiser Permanente investigators finds. But the analysis found no association between use of common antidepressants by pregnant women and likelihood of autism in their children.
A combination of 3 healthy lifestyle factors is associated with a 70% lower risk of preterm birth, according to an analysis of data from a Kaiser Permanente study involving nearly 2,500 pregnant women in Northern California.
