Betty R. Vohr, M.D.
Neonatal Follow-up Symposium

Susan R. Hintz, MD, MS Epi., is the Robert L. Hess Family Professor in Neonatal and Developmental Medicine at Stanford University School of Medicine.  She is a neonatologist and perinatal epidemiologist, whose investigative work focuses on advancing complex multidisciplinary fetal-to-neonatal care, understanding and improving morbidities and post-discharge outcomes for high-risk infants, and evaluating challenges and barriers in services and resource access for children with special health care needs and their families.  She has served in leadership roles for multiple follow up studies to early childhood and school age nationally, including with the NICHD Neonatal Research Network.   Dr. Hintz is Medical Director for California statewide high-risk infant follow up in a collaboration between California Children’s Services and the California Perinatal Quality Care Collaborative (CPQCC).  Dr. Hintz also led creation of the Fetal and Pregnancy Health Program at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital Stanford, the interdisciplinary complex fetal care and treatment center at Stanford and serves as Director.

Sara B. DeMauro, MD, MSCE, is a Professor of Pediatrics in the Clinician Educator Track at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine. She serves as the Program Director for Neonatal Follow-up, Associate Director for Neonatal Clinical and Epidemiological Research, and is an attending neonatologist in the Division of Neonatology at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP). Dr. DeMauro is also appointed as an Associate Scholar in the University of Pennsylvania Center for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics (CCEB), where she earned a Master of Science in Clinical Epidemiology (MSCE) with a focus on clinical trials.

A neonatologist, epidemiologist, and physician-scientist, Dr. DeMauro conducts research focused on the medical and neurodevelopmental trajectories of children with prenatal or postnatal risk factors for long-term disability. She is the Principal Investigator (PI) for the Penn/CHOP Clinical Center of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver NICHD Neonatal Research Network (NRN), where she serves on multiple subcommittees, including as Vice Chair of the NRN Research Participants Subcommittee and Chair or Co-Chair of subcommittees overseeing three ongoing school-age follow-up studies.

Her research interests focus on the medical and developmental outcomes of infants with bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) and the early school-age functioning of high-risk infants. These interests shape an active research portfolio. She is independently funded by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) as PI for the Clinical Coordinating Centers (CCC) of the Hydrocortisone for BPD Developmental and Respiratory (HYBRiD) Outcomes Study, the Transfusion of Prematures 5-Year (TOP 5) Early School Age Study, and the Darbepoetin Kindergarten Development Study (Darbe KIDS), all of which include extensive assessments of functional developmental outcomes at early school age among children previously enrolled in NRN trials.

In addition to her work within the NRN, Dr. DeMauro is NIH-funded as site PI for the CHOP/Penn clinical site for several major longitudinal studies. These include the HEAL ACT NOW Longitudinal Study (also known as Outcomes of Babies with Opioid Exposure, or OBOE), the Optimal Treatment of Neonatal Opioid Withdrawal Study (Optimize NOWS), the HEALthy Brain and Child Development (HBCD) Study, and the Environmental Influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) cohort study. Each of these studies seeks to better understand and improve outcomes for infants exposed prenatally to potentially harmful substances and environments.

Thuy Mai Luu is a pediatrician at CHU Sainte-Justine in Montreal and a full professor in the Department of pediatrics at Université de Montréal. She received her MD from McGill University (’01) and pediatric degree from Université de Montréal (’06). She then pursued her training at Brown University under the guidance of Dr Betty Vohr to gain clinical and research knowledge in developmental follow-up of high-risk newborns. She also completed a master degree in epidemiology and biostatistics at McGill University. She leads the Foeto-maternal and neonatal pathology axis in the Azrieli Research Center of CHU Sainte-Justine. She is also the director of the Canadian Neonatal Follow-Up Network, a research network including the 26 neonatal follow-up programs across Canada. Her research focuses on long-term neurodevelopmental and physical health outcomes following preterm birth, from infancy to adulthood, looking at risk and resiliency factors along with best screening strategies to enhance clinical follow-up. 

Dr. Jane Brumbaugh is a neonatologist engaged in clinical and epidemiological research focused on neurodevelopmental outcomes of children born with perinatal risk factors for altered developmental trajectories. She has a background in neuropsychological assessment and brain imaging. Following her neonatal-perinatal medicine fellowship at the University of Minnesota, she joined the faculty at the University of Iowa in 2012. She served as the University of Iowa site Follow-up Principal Investigator for the NICHD Neonatal Research Network through 2016. Through collaborations within the Neonatal Research Network, Dr. Brumbaugh’s path crossed with giants, including Dr. Betty Vohr. In 2017, she joined the faculty at Mayo Clinic where she currently is an Associate Professor of Pediatrics. She continues to collaborate with the NICHD Neonatal Research Network, and her research interests include social drivers of health in children born prematurely.

Dr. Vincent C. Smith, MD, MPH is Division Chief of Newborn Medicine at Boston Medical Center (BMC) and Professor of Pediatrics at Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine. Dr. Smith is a graduate of Texas A&M University, Stanford University School of Medicine, and the Harvard School of Public Health. He trained in pediatrics at Children’s Hospital and Boston Medical Center in the Boston Combined Pediatric Residency Program. He then completed a fellowship in neonatal-perinatal medicine through the Harvard wide program, a collaboration of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Massachusetts General Hospital, and Boston Children’s Hospital. He also completed a fellowship in health services research at Children’s Hospital. He is an active member of the Massachusetts Medical Society and Society for Pediatric Research. Dr. Smith served as the medical director for the American Academy of Pediatrics’ Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders Program from 2015-2024. He is also a former member of the National Perinatal Association and the Fenway Community Health Boards of Directors. In addition to parental NICU discharge readiness, his professional interests also include families affected by substance use and medical care for LGBTQIA+-headed families.

Dina El-Metwally, MD, Ph.D., is an Endowed Professor of Pediatrics and Division Chief of Neonatology, at University of Maryland School of Medicine. Dr. El-Metwally led the redesign of the Drs. Rouben and JiJi Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at University of Maryland Children's Hospital. Dr. El-Metwally completed a Pediatrics residency and Perinatal-Neonatal fellowship at Warren Alpert Brown University School of Medicine. Under the mentorship of Professor Betty Vohr, she completed a Ph.D. in Neurodevelopment of ELBW with brain hemorrhage. Dr. El-Metwally's research focus is on neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome (NOWS). She is the Co-Director of the University of Maryland Center of Excellence for Substance Use in Pregnancy. She collaborates with various departments studying SNP arrays and small RNAs and using AI for development of biomarkers for withdrawal severity, precision therapy and impact on healthcare recourse utilization. Dr. El-Metwally holds workshops to raise awareness and advocate for babies with NOWS.