Pediatric Developmental Behavioral Fellowship Faculty

Areas of Expertise: Population surveillance; living with genetic or pediatric onset conditions; autonomic function and symptom exacerbation; self-determination and emotional well-being; congenital heart disease; Ehlers Danlos syndrome

Community organizations: Pima County Juvenile Court Appointed Special Advocate; Congenital Heart Public Health Consortium; University of Arizona Early Childhood Research Initiative; Alliance for Adult Research in Congenital Cardiology, Sarver Heart Center; Undergraduate Research Task Force; Department of Pediatrics Peer Review and Space Committees.

Research Interests: Dr. Andrews teaches students and professionals of all levels who are interested in performing research activities; serves on dissertation committees and assists in translational research that links public health, basic science and clinical science approaches to research in novel and trending research areas.

Dr. Andrews collaborates with Steele Center physician-scientists in the areas of developmental and behavioral pediatrics, pediatric and adult congenital heart defects, Duchenne and Becker muscular dystrophy, adolescent medicine, and health disparities. She also collaborates with the Arizona Department of Health Services, New York Muscular Dystrophy Surveillance Tracking and Research Network, Northern Arizona University, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and numerous Colleges on the UArizona campus on a variety of projects.

Her research interests lie in interdisciplinary translational research, taking clinical information backwards to bench science to describe and identify endophenotypic markers for developmental, congenital and behavioral conditions. This can include understanding genotype-phenotype relationships, determining various endogenous approaches to measuring phenotypes and severity; and improving the quality of life of individuals with pediatric-onset or congenital conditions throughout their lives.

Current funded projects: NU53DD001162 Arizona Developmental Disabilities Surveillance Program (ADDSP) 1/1/2019 – 4/1/2023; NU50DD000055 Surveillance of Congenital Heart Defects Among Children, Adolescents, and Adults 10/1/2019 – 9/30/2024; NU58IP000005 Tracking the burden, distribution, and impact of Post COVID-19 conditions in diverse populations for children, adolescents, and adults (Track PCC) 9/1/2022 – 8/31/2027; Milton and Tamar Maltz Family Foundation hypermobile Ehlers Danlos Syndrome (Multiple Projects) 1/1/21 – 12/31/23: Autonomic Dysfunction; Whole genome sequencing  to find genetic etiology and evaluate TNXB Gene; Omics evaluation: Metabolomics in serum; single cell RNA in skin, bulk RNA in skin; fibroblast culturing and bulk RNA from skin; Deep Phenotyping of individuals with hEDS; Patient-Facing Non-Pharmaceutical Symptom Management Book; Expanding the Pool of Diagnostic Providers; Natural History EDS Registry; ADHS18-201484 Transition QI Course for clinics to create formal transition program in their practice.  I am still a NY MD STARnet co-I and I am Co-I/Co-PI on other people’s grants in another department.