Resident Education and Research

• Multidisciplinary Complicated Gynecologic Oncology Conference: Fridays, 10am
• Grand Rounds: Fridays, 8am
• Gynecology Conference: Fridays, 10am
• Resident Lecture Series: Fridays, 9am & 11am
• Journal Club: Monthly, 9am (sub-specialty journal clubs are hosted 1x a month)
• Morbidity & Mortality Conference: Monthly
• Multidisciplinary Best Practices in Obstetrics Conference: Monthly
• Intern's Club: Monthly
• Urogynecology Conference: Fridays, 10am

• Grand Rounds
• Obstetrics Case Conference
• Gynecologic Oncology Conference
• Urogynecology Conference 
• Pelvic Pain and MIS Conference

• Breech vaginal delivery
• Informed consent
• LEEP
• Laceration repair
• Laparoscopy/endoscopy/DaVinci robotic training
• Operative vaginal delivery
• Gynecologic surgery
• Fundamentals of Laparoscopic Surgery (FLS)

• Maternal cardiopulmonary resuscitation
• Maternal postpartum hemorrhage
• Shoulder dystocia

Joseph Araj, MD: Among pregnant PLHIV, is the use of bicetegravir, versus other preferred INSTIs, associated with adverse HIV-related, obstetric and perinatal health outcomes?

Jessyca Judge, MD: For patients undergoing second trimester medication abortions, does the simultaneous administration of mifepristone with misoprostol compared to mifepristone 24h before misoprostol result in comparable induction times and doses of misoprostol required?

Sanaa Nakad Borrego, MD: Among individuals with recurrent implantation failure due to chronic endometritis, does the use of antibiotics, versus no antibiotics, improve IVF-related outcomes?

Malavika Perinchery, MD: Among people with low-grade endometroid endometrial cancer who undergo fertility-sparing therapy, is molecular classification associated with a complete response rate?

Neha Reddy, MD: Among patients who are seeking labor analgesia as an alternative to neuraxial anesthesia, how does remifentanil affect maternal pain and neonatal respiratory outcomes?

Wendy Shwe, MD: Among individuals with a uterus, is serum vitamin D level associated with fibroid growth or degeneration? 

Wei Tang, MD: In perimenopausal patients undergoing benign hysterectomy, does performing bilateral salpingo-oophorectomy, compared to ovarian preservation, affect ovarian cancer risk, cardiovascular outcomes and overall quality of life?

Camara Anderson, MD: Among people with OASIS injury, does immediate vs delayed repair (>8 hours) lead to increased risks of short term and long term health outcomes?

Stephanie Asdell, MD: Among people with endometriosis, does acupuncture improve dysmenorrhea compared to standard of care?

Sandhya Chandrasekaran, MD: Do serial cervical length measurements in singleton, low-risk pregnancies with normal cervical length on initial screen decrease the risk of spontaneous preterm birth?

Jessica Klugman, MD: In Rh negative pregnant patients less than 12 weeks undergoing abortion, does receiving Rhogam decrease the risk of Rh alloimmunization compared to patients who do not receive Rhogam?

Nicole Michael, MD: Among people undergoing a caesarean section by transverse suprapubic incision, does suture material during skin closure or closure of subcutaneous fascia reduce postoperative cesarean wound complications?

Courtney Sullivan, MD: In patients with suspected placenta accreta spectrum (PAS) who undergo hysterectomy, how do long-term health and quality of life outcomes compare with patients with suspected PAS who do not undergo hysterectomy?

Briana Tolbert, MD: Among Black women diagnosed with peripartum cardiomyopathy, is there a genetic basis that would explain the higher prevalence of peripartum cardiomyopathy when compared to other races?

Meagan Brockman, MD: Does paracervical block in nulliparous women decrease pain at the time of insertion in comparison to no block?

Nicole Byl, MD: Does double layer uterine closure decrease the risk of uterine rupture during trial of labor compared to single layer closure?

Alexis Hood, MD: Are ovarian reserve biomarkers reasonable predictors of future fertility in women with unknown fertility?

Erika Hripko, MD: For antepartum patients presenting to Labor & Delivery at the time of delivery, does stratification into a high-risk postpartum hemorrhage group reliably predict the incidence of postpartum hemorrhage, as compared to patients who are stratified into a low-risk postpartum hemorrhage group?

Ayesha Kar-Kasal, MD: What is the post-void residual (PVR) threshold to straight catheterize or replace a foley catheter if a patient is experiencing post-operative urinary retention (POUR) after a hysterectomy?

Alexandra Lamacki, MD: For patients desiring postpartum sterilization, does bilateral salpingectomy confer greater surgical risk than bilateral tubal ligation?

Zhana Smith, MD: In patients undergoing cervical ripening for induction of labor, what effect on time of delivery does foley catheter traction have compared to not placing the foley catheter on traction?

Ellen Bechtold, MD: Does blunt versus sharp fascial expansion during cesarean section decrease postoperative pain?

Jayme Castillo, MD: Do fetal pillows reduce maternal morbidity?

Brittany Cline, MD: Does removal of cervical ripening double-balloon catheter after 6 hours in patients with unfavorable cervices decrease the time to delivery?

Sydney Dautel, MD: Does administration of diphenhydramine improve headache treatment efficacy?

Camille Johnson, MD: Is the levonorgestrel IUD effective as emergency contraception compared to the copper IUD?

Lateia Taylor, MD: Is oral Nifedipine or Labetalol more effective in the management of women with postpartum hypertension?

Nora Torres Yordan, MD: Late Preterm PPROM: Is it a waiting game?

Katherine Zhu, MD: In patients undergoing trial of labor after cesarean section, does amnioinfusion increase the rate of uterine rupture?

Mara Dubnow, MD: Does use of misoprostol for induction of labor have negative outcomes for fetuses with IUGR?

Alessandra Hirsch, MD: In nulliparous women undergoing induction of labor, does a “Pitocin break” of one hour or more decrease the rate of Cesarean section?

Whitney Lewandowski, MD: In women undergoing manual extraction of the placenta during the third stage of labor, does antibiotic prophylaxis prevent postpartum endometritis?

Blair Mitchell-Handley, MD:  In women with postpartum depression, is treatment with medication (SSRIs) superior to expectant management for self-reported symptom improvement?

Kristen Pascoe, MD: In patients undergoing blood transfusion, how long after transfusion should a CBC be drawn that accurately (defined as Hgb stable over 24h) reflects the true patient’s Hgb?

Robyn Power, MD: Does reverse breech extraction of an impacted fetal head during Caesarean section increase maternal morbidity?

Naima Ross, MD: Does prophylactic misoprostol prevent postpartum hemorrhage?

Jocelyn Wascher, MD: Does self-administration of depo provera increase compliance?

Taylor L, Hood A, Mancuso F, Horan S, Walker Z. Effects of assisted reproductive technology on genetics, obstetrics, and neonatal outcomes. Neoreviews. 2025 Feb 1; 26(2):e89–e99. PMID: 39889767

Chandrasekaran S, Azzi M, Potchileev S, Patel E, Bisson C, Mueller A, Duncan C, Rana S. Effect of postpartum oral furosemide use on postpartum readmissions and blood pressure trends. Pregnancy Hypertens. 2025 Mar; 39:101199. Epub 2025 Jan 29. PMID: 39884048

Zhu KH, Lewandowski WL, Bisson CM, Suresh SC, Patel E, Mueller A, Silasi M, Rana S. Discharge medication delivery location and postpartum outcomes in patients with hypertensive disorders of pregnancy. Pregnancy Hypertens. 2024. PMID: 38669913

Patel E, Suresh SC, Mueller A, Bisson CM, Zhu KH, Verlohren S, von Dadelszen P, Magee LA, Rana S. sFlt1/PlGF among patients with suspected preeclampsia when considering hypertensive status. AJOG Glob Rep. 2023. PMID: 39005612

Lamacki, A.J., Montag, C., Kertowidjojo, E., Yamada, S.D., & Kurnit, K.C.. (2024, Mar). Primary Gynecologic Lymphoma when Diagnosed by a Gynecologist: A Case Series. Gynecologic Oncology Reports. PMID: 38757117

Lamacki, A.J., Spychalska, S., Maga, T., Balay, L., Lugo Santiago, N., Hoskins, K., Class, Q.A., and MacLaughlan David, S. (2024, Feb). Risk reducing salpingo-oophorectomy among diverse patients with BRCA mutations at an urban public hospital: A mixed methods study. BMJ Open. PMID 38889943

Kar, A., Mills, K. (2023). Severe Methotrexate Hypersensitivity during Treatment for Gestational Trophoblastic Neoplasia: Case Report and Considerations for Management. Gynecologic Oncology Reports. 2024 Mar;52:101364. PMID: 38495802.

Leffelman, A., Chill, H., Kar, A., Gilani, S., Chang, C., Goldberg, R., Rostaminia, G. (2023). Assessment of urinary dysfunction following midurethral sling placement: a comparison of two voiding trial methods. Journal of Minimally Invasive Gynecology. 2024 Apr. PMID: 38582258

Somasegar S, Hoppenot C, Kuchta K, Sereika A, Khandekar J, Rodriguez G, Moore E, Hurteau J, Vogel TJ. Outcomes after targeted treatment based on somatic tumor genetic testing for women with gynecologic cancers. Gynecologic Oncology. 2021 Online ahead of print; PMID: 34511240

Somasegar S, Weiss AS, Norquist BM, Khasnavis N, Radke M, Manhardt E, Pennil C, Pennington KP, Eckert MA, Chryplewicz A, Lengyel E, Swisher, EM. Germline mutations in Black patients with ovarian, fallopian tube and primary peritoneal carcinomas. Gynecologic Oncology. 2021 Oct; (1) 130-133. PMID: 34452747

Njoroge S, Kuriloff M, Mueller A, Perdigao JL, Dhir R, Rana S. The interval between births and the risk of recurrent preeclampsia among predominantly high risk women in urban tertiary care center. Pregnancy Hypertens. 2021 May 14; 25: 7-11. PMID: 34020331

Arenas GA, Tang NY, Mueller A, Perdigao JL, Kaur H, Abramowicz JS, Mussatt K, Yeo KJ, Rana A. Use of the angiogenic biomarker profile to risk stratify patients with intrauterine growth restriction. Am J Obstet Gynecol MFM. 2021 May 12; 3(4). PMID: 33991706

Somasegar S, Han L, Miller A, Wanjari P, Wang P, Bennett JA, Yamada SD. Phyllodes tumor of the vulva: A case report and literature review highlighting a novel manifestation of Cowden syndrome. Gynecol Oncol Rep. 2021 Mar 23; 36:100752. PMID: 33850997

Ayesha Kar-Kasal. "Incidence of Endometrial Cancer by Preoperative Sampling Method in Endometrial Intraepithelial Neoplasia and Impact on Surgical Management." SGO. February 2025. Whistler, BC, Canada.

Sandhya Chandrasekaran. "Exposure To Male Sex in Twin Gestation and Chronic Inflammation In the Placenta." SRI 2025 Annual Meeting. March 2025. Charlotte, SC.

Sandhya Chandrasekaran. "Predicting gestational latency using serial monitoring among nulliparous patients with singleton pregnancies diagnosed with low-normal cervical lengths in the mid-trimester." SMFM 2025 Pregnancy Meeting. January 2025. Aurora, CO.

Alexis Hood. "Black Fertility Matters Too: Community Centered Seminars improve black fertility knowledge." American Society of Reproductive Medicine Annual Meeting. October 2023. New Orleans, LA.

Pooja Vyas. "Fibroids As a Risk Factor for Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT) at an Urban Academic Institution: A Retrospective Observational Study." AAGL. November 2021. Austin, TX. 

Ellen Bechtold. "Limited Differences in the Incidence of Endometriosis and Adenomyosis in Black Versus White Women with Pelvic Pain." ASRM. October 2021. Baltimore, MD. 

Robyn Power. "Relationship Between Length of Gonadotropin Stimulation for In Vitro Fertilization and Embryonic Aneuploidy of Maternal Origin." ASRM. October 2021. Baltimore, MD. *Second Place Poster Prize

Jocelyn Wascher. "The Egg Factor: Does Maternal Age Impact the Risk of Embryonic Aneuploidy of Paternal Chromosomes?" ASRM. October 2021. Baltimore, MD.

Lindsey Eastman. “The association of postpartum glucose values and persistent impaired glucose tolerance in women with gestational diabetes.” SMFM. January 28, 2021. Virtual.

Camara Anderson, MD: Factors Associated with Cystoscopy at the time of Hysterectomy

Stephanie Asdell, MD: Prescription of Skeletal Muscle Relaxers & Pelvic Floor Physical Therapy Initiation

Sandhya Chandrasekaran, MD: Evaluating outcomes among nulliparous patients with singleton pregnancies diagnosed with low-normal cervical lengths in the mid-trimester

Jessica Klugman, MD: Assessing Complex Family Planning Fellowship Ethics Training: A Survey of Fellowship Program Directors

Courtney Sullivan, MD: Racialized Disparities in Adverse Health Outcomes During Second Trimester Medication Abortion

Briana Tolbert, MD: Interventions and perinatal outcomes associated with recipient twin cardiomyopathy in the setting of twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome: a systematic review

Meagan Brockman, MD: Prenatal Care and Patient Support Systems in Transgender and Gender Diverse Pregnancies

Alexis Hood, MD: Black Fertility Matters Too: Community Centered Seminars Improve Fertility Knowledge

Erika Hripko, MD: Evaluation and Assessment of a Risk Stratification Model for Postpartum Hemorrhage Risk in the UCMC Family Birth Center

Ayesha Kar, MD: Molecular correlates of response to immunotherapy in advanced recurrent endometrial cancer: A pilot study

Alexandra Lamacki, MD: Trauma-informed care in gynecologic oncology: Knowledge, attitudes, and practices of gynecologic oncology providers

Zhana Smith, MD: Patient Provider Communication during Obstetric Emergencies on Labor and Delivery

Sydney Dautel, M.D: The treatment of an acute headache in pregnant and postpartum people

Ellen Bechtold, M.D.:  Limited Differences in the Incidence of Endometriosis and Adenomyosis in Black Versus White Women with Pelvic Pain

Jayme Castillo, M.D.:  An Initial Analysis of Hyperemesis Management in the Emergency Department

Brittany Cline, M.D.:  Availability of Fertility Treatments at OB/GYN Residency Programs

Camille Johnson, M.D:  Misoprostol use for induction-terminations among patients with prior cesarean sections: Part 2 of a retrospective chart review

Blair Mitchell-Handley, M.D.:  What patients call gynecological conditions: A qualitative study

Lateia Taylor, M.D.:  Bridging the gap: Accessing medical provider knowledge of infertility among Black women

Nora Torres Yordan, M.D.:  Patient and Provider Acceptability of a Colposcopy Patient Education Video

Katherine Zhu, M.D.:  Implementation of an Outpatient Cervical Ripening Program: Outcomes and Provider and Patient Perspectives

• Watch the recording of Resident Research Day 2023 with keynote speaker & UChicago ObGyn residency graduate Dr. Christina Lewicky-Guapp, MD, FACOG, FACS here. 
  
   

Jocelyn Wascher, MD: Restrictions on Reproductive Care at Catholic Hospitals: A Qualitative Study of Patient Experiences and Perspectives

Mara Dubnow, MD: It Takes Two: A Multidisciplinary Approach to Improving Outcomes in Diabetes in Pregnancy

Alessandra Hirsch, MD: Voter Registration at Contraceptive & Abortion Clinics

Kristin Pascoe, MD: Pelvic exam under anesthesia by learners at the time of abortion: Who accepts and who declines?

Whitney Lewandowski, MD: Relationship between discharge medication delivery location and postpartum outcomes in patients with hypertensive disorders of pregnancy

Robyn Power, MD: The Lived Experience of Recurrent Pregnancy Loss Assessed by Photo-elicitation Interview

Naima Ross, MD: Understanding patient experiences of control during the induction process: Implementation of the labor agentry scale

• Watch the recording of Resident Research Day 2022 with keynote speaker & UChicago ObGyn residency graduate Dr. Chesney Thompson here.

Gabriel Arenas, MD: Use of the Angiogenic Biomarker Profile to Risk Stratify Patients with Fetal Growth Restriction

Caroline Boerwinkle, MD: Misoprostol use for induction-abortions among women with prior cesarean sections: A retrospective chart review

Lindsay Eastman, MD: The association of postpartum glucose values with persistent insulin resistance in patients with gestational diabetes

Alyssa Kahan, MD: Impact of a Trauma Center and Surgical Priority Classification on Gynecologic Emergency Surgery (GynES) Quality Measures

Sahana Somasegar, MD: Outcomes After Targeted Treatment Based on Somatic Tumor Genetic Testing for Women with Gynecologic Cancers

Kylie Steenbergh, MD: A Missed Opportunity? Sexual Activity Screening and Referral to Gynecology Services among Adolescent Women with Chronic Disease in the Pediatric Subspecialist Setting

Pooja Vyas, MD: National Obstetrics and Gynecology Residency Survey to Understand Management of Pregnancy of Unknown Location (PUL)