Virginia Howard Ph.D.

Virginia Howard is a stroke epidemiologist with experience in multicenter stroke clinical trials and observational cohort studies. She received a master's degree in biostatistics from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a PhD in epidemiology from the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston. Her research interests include stroke symptoms and associated risk factors, life-course exposure to the stroke belt geographic region, and risk factors for outcomes following carotid endarterectomy and carotid stenting. Her teaching activities focus on cardiovascular and cerebrovascular disease epidemiology.

Research Projects

Carotid Revascularization Endarterectomy vs. Stenting Trial (CREST) (Virginia Howard, PI of the Statistical and Data Management Center):

CREST is a multicenter, secondary stroke prevention clinical trial funded by the NINDS. The major goal of this trial is to contrast the relative efficacy of carotid angioplasty stenting versus carotid endarterectomy in preventing stroke, myocardial infarction, or death during a 30-day peri-procedural period, or stroke ipsilateral to the study artery over the follow-up period. UAB's role is to provide overall clinical trial management, statistical collaboration and analyses, and design and maintenance of systems to receive and manage data from participating clinics and core labs across North America.

REasons for Geographic And Racial Differences in Stroke (REGARDS) (Virginia Howard, co-PI)

We are collaborating with the Department of Biostatistics and the Center for Health Promotion Survey Research Unit on a national, population-based longitudinal study of African-Americans and whites to determine risk factors that will help explain the excess stroke mortality in the Southeastern United States and among African-Americans across the entire US.

Publications

Howard VJ, Cushman M, Pulley L, et al. The REasons for Geographic And Racial Differences in Stroke (REGARDS) Study:  Objectives and Design.  Neuroepidemiology 2005;25:135–143. [PubMed link PMID 17030827]

Howard VJ, McClure LA, Meschia JF, Pulley L, Orr SC, Friday GH. The high prevalence of stroke symptoms among persons without a diagnosis of stroke or TIA in a general population: The REasons for Geographic And Racial Differences in Stroke (REGARDS) Study.  Arch Int Med 2006;166:1952–1958. [PubMed link PMID 17030827]

Barnes RW, Toole JF, Nelson JJ, Howard VJ.  Neural networks for ischemic stroke.  J Stroke Cerebro Dis 2006;15:223–227.

Howard VJ, Furie KL, Wang C, Sides EG, Toole JF.  The changing risk factor profile of participants enrolled in a secondary stroke prevention trial.  The Vitamin Intervention for Stroke Prevention (VISP) Trial.  Neuroepidemiology 2006;27(4):222–9.

Wadley V, McClure LA, Howard VJ, et al.  Cognitive status, stroke symptom reports, and modifiable risk factors among individuals with no diagnosis of stroke or TIA in the REasons for Geographic and Racial Differences in Stroke (REGARDS) Study.  Stroke 2007;38:1143–47.  [PubMed link PMID 17322077]

Howard G, Safford MM, Meschia JF, Moy CS, Howard VJ, Pulley L, Gomez CR, Crowther M.  Stroke symptoms in individuals reporting no prior stroke or transient ischemic attack are associated with a decrease in indices of mental and physical functioning.  Stroke 2007;38:2446–2452. [PubMed link PMID 17673720]

Howard VJ.  From sea to shining sea: what is it about where you live and your stroke risk?  Stroke 2007;38:2210–2 (invited editorial.)

Howard G, Labarthe DR, Hu J, Yoon S, Howard VJ.  Regional differences in African Americans' high risk for stroke:  The remarkable burden of stroke for southern African Americans.  Annals of Epidemiology 2007;17(9):689–696.
             [PubMed link PMID 17719482]

Howard VJ, Lackland DT, Lichtman JH, McClure LA, Howard G, Wagner L, Pulley L, Gomez CR.  Care seeking after stroke symptoms. Annals of Neurology 2008;63(4):466-72. [PubMed link PMID 18360830]