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David Wesley Dowdy

David Wesley Dowdy, MD, PhD

Internal Medicine

Johns Hopkins Affiliations:
  • Johns Hopkins School of Medicine Faculty

Languages

  • English

Gender

Male

About David Wesley Dowdy

Professional Titles

  • B. Frank and Kathleen Polk Professor

Background

Dr. David Dowdy holds a joint appointment in medicine at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. He is an associate professor of epidemiology with a joint appointment in international health at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health. His area of clinical expertise is internal medicine. 

He is the inaugural holder of the B. Frank and Kathleen Polk Professorship. 

Dr. Dowdy received his B.S. from Duke University and earned his Sc.M. and M.D.-Ph.D. from Johns Hopkins. He performed his residency at the University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine. 

His research focuses on the diagnosis and treatment of tuberculosis.

Dr. Dowdy’s work has been recognized with several awards, including the 2015 Excellence in Mentoring Award and the 2014 Golden Apple Teaching Award.

Centers and Institutes

Recent News Articles and Media Coverage

  • “This Disease Could Kill 75 Million People By 2050,” Huffington Post, Oct. 23, 2015

Additional Academic Titles

Joint Appointment in Medicine

Research Interests

Epidemiology, Health economics, HIV, ICU, Tuberculosis

Lab Website

David Dowdy Lab

  • The David Dowdy Lab conducts research in the field of infectious disease epidemiology. We use an interdisciplinary approach that involves infectious disease modeling, health economics, classical epidemiology, and operational and implementation science. Much of our work explores the diagnosis and treatment of tuberculosis. We also have a longstanding interest in "translational epidemiology," with a goal of developing methods to help medical professionals who use epidemiological data make decisions that are in the best interest of patients and public health.

Research Summary

Dr. Dowdy’s research explores questions related to the diagnosis and treatment of tuberculosis. His unique approach involves using epidemiology, mathematical modeling, health economics and operational/implementation research. He has a special interest in "translational epidemiology," which involves constructing methods for helping decision-makers who use epidemiological data act in the best interest of their patients and public health.

Selected Publications

  • Arinaminpathy N, Dowdy D. “Understanding the incremental value of novel diagnostic tests for tuberculosis.” Nature. 2015 Dec 3;528(7580):S60-7.

  • Kasaie P, Mathema B, Kelton WD, Azman AS, Pennington J, Dowdy DW. “A novel tool improves existing estimates of recent tuberculosis transmission in settings of sparse data collection.” PLoS One. 2015 Dec 17;10(12):e014437.

  • Kendall EA, Fofana MO, Dowdy DW. “Burden of transmitted multidrug resistance in epidemics of tuberculosis: A transmission modelling analysis.” Lancet Respir Med.  2015 Dec;3(12):963-72. 

  • Knight GM, Dharan NJ, Fox GJ, Stennis N, Zwerling A, Khurana R, Dowdy DW. “Bridging the gap between evidence and policy for infectious diseases: How models can aid public health decision-making.” Int J Infect Dis. 2016 Jan;42:17-23.

  • Theron G, Jenkins HE, Cobelens F, Abubakar I, Khan AJ, Cohen T, Dowdy DW. “Data for action: collection and use of local data to end tuberculosis.” Lancet. 2015 Dec 5;386(10010):2324-33.

Courses & Syllabi

Epidemiologic Methods 3, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 340.753.01, 1/1/16

Honors

  • Excellence in Mentoring Award, 1/1/15
  • Golden Apple Teaching Award (large class), 1/1/14
  • Advising, Mentoring and Teaching Recognition Award (AMTRA), Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 1/1/13
  • Young Investigator Prize, International Union Against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease, 1/1/12
  • Tom Evans Teaching Award, Internal Medicine Residency Program, UCSF, 1/1/11
  • Diane Becker Award in Clinical Epidemiology and Prevention, Johns Hopkins GIM Housestaff Research Award, 1/1/10

Expertise

Education

Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

M.D., 2008

Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

Ph.D., 2008

Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

Sc.M., 2002

Duke University

B.S., 1999