Greetings!

Please find highlights of our 2nd quarter

(FY24) below.



In addition, our 3rd Annual Chair’s Report for FY23 is linked.

With gratitude,

Dineo Khabele, MD, FACOG, FACS (she/her)

Mitchell & Elaine Yanow Professor and Chair

Left to right: Kim Snyder, REI Clinical Nurse; Tori Whelan, Assistant Professor; Bridget Huysman, MFM Fellow; Dineo Khabele, Dept Chair; LaShanda Jackson, W&I Women's Health Educator and Outreach Coordinator; Darius Whitaker, IDEA2s Program Manager; and Bisiayo Fashemi, Research Associate (not pictured) On November 4, 2023 the Department of OBGYN at Washington University in St.

Dr. Ebony Carter, Maternal-Fetal Medicine specialist, speaks with First Alert 4′s Taylor Holt on the maternal crisis in the United States. Black women in the United States are nearly three times more likely to die during pregnancy or delivery than any other race. [We have] different community events that are commenting moms and babies to [...]

Reproductive biologist Sarah K. England, PhD, and two others from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, have been elected to the National Academy of Medicine, a part of the National Academy of Sciences. Membership in the organization is one of the highest honors in the fields of health and medicine in the United [...]

Premal H. Thaker, MD, MS, an accomplished clinician investigator and Director of Gynecologic Oncology Clinical Trials, has been named the David & Lynn Mutch Distinguished Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. "We are truly fortunate to have Dr. Thaker as a valued member of our faculty.

Sarah England, PhD, Alan A. and Edith L. Wolff Professor of Medicine, Vice Chair of Research for the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, and Director of the Center for Reproductive Health Sciences at Washington University School of Medicine, recently received distinctive recognition of her exceptional research accomplishments and service in the field of obstetrics and [...]

In September, Dr. Dineo Khabele, Professor and Chair of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, delivered the Keynote address at Meharry Research Week at Meharry Medical College in Nashville, TN. Khabele spoke on the topic of OB/GYN related cancers. Every summer, the Office of Medical Student Research hosts the WUSM Meharry Summer Research Program (Meharry [...]

Dr. Ebony Carter, former division chief, and associate professor of MFM, is leaving the department, "I am writing to share bittersweet news that Dr. Ebony B. Carter, Maternal-Fetal Medicine, will be leaving our Department at the end of October 2023.

The holidays are upon us, and we couldn't be more thankful to celebrate our awesome team!

It takes a village, and we love our ultrasound team!

Dr. Nardhy Gomez-Lopez's paper "Blockade of IL-6R prevents preterm birth and adverse neonatal outcomes" was published in eBioMedicine. Evidence before this study Prematurity remains as the leading cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality before five years of age globally. One in every three preterm infants is born to a pregnant individual with inflammation of the [...]

The Center for Reproductive Health Sciences (CRepHS) and the Center for Women's Health Engineering (CWHE) hosted an open house event on December 5, 2023. At this collaborative event held on the Medical Campus, more than 70 attendees from the McKelvey School of Engineering and the School of Medicine were able to network and learn about reproductive health research, education [...]

Researchers and clinicians at Washington University in St. Louis developed a new imaging method to better diagnose lesions in ovaries and fallopian tubes that may help to avoid unnecessary surgeries.

Dr. Celia Santi, MD, PhD, an internationally renowned and respected leader in the field of Reproductive Biology, has been named the James P. Crane Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. "We are exceedingly fortunate to count Dr. Santi among our esteemed faculty."

Dr. Nandini Raghuraman has been named Chief of the Division of Clinical Research in the Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology effective October 1, 2023. Building upon the legacy of our previous directors, Raghuraman will oversee the Division of Clinical Research, which provides specialized facilities and services to support clinical research in women's reproductive health.

Farners Amargant i Riera, PhD, was awarded an R00 for her project titled, "Mechanotransduction mechanisms of ovarian aging." Dr. Amargant i Riera will examine how the increase in the biomechanical properties of the ovary with age are spatially and hormonally regulated and how they influence follicle transcriptome through the YAP1 pathway.

Congratulations to Peinan Zhao, PhD, Assistant Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, on receiving a new five year R01 grant from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) with co-principal investigator Molly Stout, MD, MS, Associate Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Michigan.

The Michael D. Nelson Society Board is delighted to announce Dr. Melissa "Missy" Cantave and Dr. Halley Staples, as the inaugural awardees of the David G. Mutch Residency Research Scholarship Award. This honor is given to support and enhance the scholarly research activity of residents while at this level of their professional journey.

Congratulations to the latest recipients of the Department of OB/GYN's Lucy, Anarcha, and Betsey (L.A.B.) Award named in honor of Lucy, Anarcha, and Betsey-the enslaved women whose sacrifice, without consent, nearly 200 years ago allows surgical repair for women with vesicovaginal fistulas today.

Every fall we recruit our residents, fellows, and faculty to lead various hands-on stations for a three-hour period. We recently hosted this event to great success! Thank you to everyone who joined us. A big thank you to our residents and fellows who helped teach!

On Wednesday, 11/8/23, the Washington University in St. Louis Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology had the privilege of learning from Dr. Chemen Neal, who is both an Associate Professor of Clinical Obstetrics & Gynecology and Executive Associate Dean for Equity & Inclusion, and Chief Diversity Officer at Indiana University School of Medicine.

The Nelson Society met for a holiday happy hour! We were thrilled to catch up with Jennifer Smith - residency class of 2003, and Denise Meckler - residency class of 1996!

The Exemplary Educator Award, established in 2022, recognizes current Washington University faculty members with at least six years of service as faculty in an academic teaching setting who are actively building a legacy as an educator through contributions in one or more domains of education and mentorship. Congratulations to Dr. Sonn!