Faculty
Julie Magno Zito, PhD
 | Professor |
Pharmacoepidemiology of psychiatric disorders: our research group examines patterns of psychotropic medication use with data from usual practice settings, e.g., psychiatric inpatients, ambulatory Medicaid and HMO populations, for the treatment of mental disorders. Research spans more than 75 studies and publications covering topics such as: national patterns of child and adolescent psychotropic medications; and, more specifically, methylphenidate (Ritalin) for the treatment of Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), a dramatically increasing pediatric problem; adult recommendations for the treatment of schizophrenia based upon Patient Outcomes Research Team (PORT) research findings.
Funding of more than 4 million dollars from public sources includes the National Institute of Mental Health, National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD), the Mathers Foundation, and state mental health administration. Research Buzz Words community-based prevalence and practice patterns; outcome studies; variation in utilization; pharmacoepidemiology; effectiveness studies.
Since the NICHD was mandated by the Best Pharmaceuticals for Children Act (2002), our group has been analyzing Medicaid and commercial insurance data to produce a national estimate of the frequency of use of pediatric medications both for medical and psychiatric use. This will enable empirical data to be used to prioritize marketed drugs in need of additional research to establish their efficacy and safety in children.