Harvard Catalyst Profiles

Dr. De Gruttola's research activities focus on developments of statistical methods required for appropriate public health response to the AIDS epidemic. The aspects of the epidemic on which he has worked include transmission of the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), natural history of infection with HIV, and clinical research on AIDS therapies.

This work involves not only statistical methodology, but also public health surveillance systems, medical issues surrounding HIV infection, and concerns of communities most affected by the epidemic. The goals include forecasting future AIDS incidence, developing strategies for clinical research on HIV infection, and evaluating the public health impact of antiviral treatment. The statistical issues on which Dr. De Gruttola has been engaged include evaluating the degree to which the treatment response of markers of HIV infection constitute adequate evidence for clinical efficacy. He has also worked on projections of AIDS incidence using data from the New York City Health Department. A special focus of this work was estimation of the risk that children of HIV-infected mothers would develop AIDS in the first 10 years of life using data combined from a variety of sources.