Research Scientist, Kenyatta National Hospital
Affiliate Assistant Professor, Global Health, University of Washington
Dr. Irene Njuguna, MBChB, MSc, MPH, PhD, is a Study Physician/Study Coordinator for multiple University of Nairobi-University of Washington collaborative studies focused on pediatric HIV. She has been responsible for developing study materials, managing clinical activities, preparing DSMB reports, and ensuring data quality. Dr. Njuguna was competitively selected as a 2011-2012 Fogarty International Clinical Research Scholar (FICRS) for mentored clinical research training. Her FICRS project focused on the implementation of a clinical trial evaluating the optimal timing of antiretroviral therapy in HIV-infected children. In the last 10 years, she has worked in clinical
research settings in Kenya in pediatric and adolescent HIV where she has led the implementation of four
randomized controlled trials (PEDVAC 002 [NCT00981695] Principal Investigator [PI] Tomas Hanke, Pediatric
Urgent Start of HAART [NCT02063880] PI John-Stewart, Financial Incentives to increase Pediatric HIV testing
[NCT03049917] PI Njuguna, and Adolescent Transition to Adult HIV Care [NCT03574129] PI John-Stewart) and
several observational studies focusing on pediatric HIV diagnosis, linkage to care, treatment, treatment
outcomes, and retention. Her early work was in pediatric HIV treatment studies, which focused on downstream
interventions for children who were critically ill, many of whom died. Her experiences witnessing high rates of
mortality in these studies inspired new “upstream” research interests to improve early pediatric HIV case
detection prior to symptomatic disease, and broader interests to improve survival and quality of life in HIV-infected
children growing to adolescence and adulthood. More recently, her work has focused on HIV-exposed
uninfected children to understand differences in growth, neurodevelopment, hearing and virologic and
microbiome differences that may explain high morbidity and mortality in this population.
research settings in Kenya in pediatric and adolescent HIV where she has led the implementation of four
randomized controlled trials (PEDVAC 002 [NCT00981695] Principal Investigator [PI] Tomas Hanke, Pediatric
Urgent Start of HAART [NCT02063880] PI John-Stewart, Financial Incentives to increase Pediatric HIV testing
[NCT03049917] PI Njuguna, and Adolescent Transition to Adult HIV Care [NCT03574129] PI John-Stewart) and
several observational studies focusing on pediatric HIV diagnosis, linkage to care, treatment, treatment
outcomes, and retention. Her early work was in pediatric HIV treatment studies, which focused on downstream
interventions for children who were critically ill, many of whom died. Her experiences witnessing high rates of
mortality in these studies inspired new “upstream” research interests to improve early pediatric HIV case
detection prior to symptomatic disease, and broader interests to improve survival and quality of life in HIV-infected
children growing to adolescence and adulthood. More recently, her work has focused on HIV-exposed
uninfected children to understand differences in growth, neurodevelopment, hearing and virologic and
microbiome differences that may explain high morbidity and mortality in this population.
Publications
- Neary, J, Njuguna, I, Wagner, AD, Richardson, BA, Chebet, D, Langat, A et al.. Brief Report: Group-Based Trajectory Modeling to Determine Long-Term HIV Viral Load Trends Among Children With HIV in Kenya. J Acquir Immune Defic Syndr. 2024;96 (4):311-317. doi: 10.1097/QAI.0000000000003439. PubMed PMID:39287566 PubMed Central PMC11408750.
- Neary, J, Chebet, D, Benki-Nugent, S, Moraa, H, Richardson, BA, Njuguna, I et al.. Association between HIV and cytomegalovirus and neurocognitive outcomes among children with HIV. AIDS. 2024;38 (14):1972-1977. doi: 10.1097/QAD.0000000000004000. PubMed PMID:39206927 PubMed Central PMC11524778.
- Njuguna, IN, King'e, M, Moraa, H, Kumar, M, Benki-Nugent, S, Wagner, AD et al.. Cohort profile: longitudinal and population comparison of children who are HIV-exposed uninfected and children who are HIV unexposed in Kenya (HOPE study). BMJ Open. 2024;14 (6):e081975. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2023-081975. PubMed PMID:38844397 PubMed Central PMC11163661.
- Njuguna, I, Saidi, F, Joseph Davey, D, Chi, BH, Pintye, J. Editorial: Improving the delivery of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) to eliminate vertical HIV transmission. Front Reprod Health. 2024;6 :1382548. doi: 10.3389/frph.2024.1382548. PubMed PMID:38689754 PubMed Central PMC11058988.
- Wandika, B, Nyapara, F, Aballa, C, Richardson, BA, Wamalwa, D, John-Stewart, G et al.. Lower self-reported ART adherence among adolescents in boarding schools compared to day schools. J Acquir Immune Defic Syndr. 2024; :. doi: 10.1097/QAI.0000000000003400. PubMed PMID:38346421 PubMed Central PMC11317543.