Louise Sigfrid
Louise Sigfrid
MD, PhD, FFPH
Senior Clinical Research Fellow
- International Severe Acute Respiratory and emerging Infection Consortium (ISARIC)
- Global Research Collaboration for Infectious Disease Preparedness (GloPID-R)
Work and Interests
- Senior Clinical Research Fellow
- Honorary Clinical Academic Public Health Consultant, UKHSA
- Visiting Senior Lecturer Brighton & Sussex Medical School
Louise main focus is to strengthen preparedness for coordinated, effective research responses to epidemics and pandemics, to reduce morbidity and improve outcomes through clinical research, capacity strengthening and policy work. Further, with a focus and passion for reducing health inequalities and inequity in all aspects of work.
Louise research focus includes observational clinical, public health and social studies with a focus on new and (re-) emerging infections with epidemic potential, including acute respiratory infections (ARI), central nervous system (CNS), arbovirus and viral haemorrhagic fever (VHF) syndromes. She is managing a project exploring availability, inclusivity, scope and quality of clinical management guidelines (CMGs) for high consequence infectious diseases (HCIDs), and factors impacting on implementation of Chikungunya CMGs in Indonesia, and Ebola, Marburg and Covid-19 CMGs in Liberia, Sierra Leone and Uganda.
Louise is leading a team of systematic reviewers using different review methodologies, including rapid research needs appraisals and ‘living’ reviews, to generate evidence proactively and reactively in response to outbreaks to inform clinical and public health policies and research prioritisation.
She co-chairs the GloPID-R Clinical Trial Network & Funders (CTN&F) working group, bringing global research funders and CTNs together to address challenges to epidemic research responses globally.
As part of her work supporting ISARICs mission, Louise has developed harmonised, open-access clinical research tools for characterization of emerging infections, including Zika and COVID-19, and provides scientific and technical support to facilitate implementation in different resourced settings and leads collaborative analysis. Louise formed and co-chairs the ISARIC Global Covid-19 Follow Up working groups for adults and children, bringing international scientists, clinicians and patient group representatives together to characterise long term SARS-CoV-2 outcomes in different populations, with an aim to improve long term Covid-19 outcomes through research, engagement and advocacy.
Recent publications
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Quantifying neutralising antibody responses against SARS-CoV-2 in dried blood spots (DBS) and paired sera
Journal article
Roper KJ. et al, (2023), Scientific Reports, 13
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A review of new challenges and solutions to the timely and effective implementation of clinical research responses to high priority diseases of epidemic and pandemic potential: A scoping review protocol
Journal article
Kadri-Alabi Z. et al, (2023), Open Research Europe, 3, 139 - 139
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Effects of sleep disturbance on dyspnoea and impaired lung function following hospital admission due to COVID-19 in the UK: a prospective multicentre cohort study
Journal article
Jackson C. et al, (2023), The Lancet Respiratory Medicine, 11, 673 - 684
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Author Correction: GWAS and meta-analysis identifies 49 genetic variants underlying critical COVID-19.
Journal article
Pairo-Castineira E. et al, (2023), Nature, 619
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How funders can support improved clinical trial practice for outbreaks.
Journal article
Foster I. et al, (2023), Lancet (London, England), 402