Monik C. Jiménez, ScD, SM

Dr. Monik Jiménez is a cardiovascular epidemiologist whose work is focused on understanding the intersection of sex, race/ethnicity and socioeconomic factors in stroke and cardiovascular disease (CVD) inequities. Dr. Jiménez received her SM and her ScD, both in epidemiology, from the Harvard Chan School. She completed her post-doctoral research in cardiovascular epidemiology at BWH, prior to becoming faculty in 2013.


Over the years, Dr. Jiménez has been involved in teaching, both at HMS, Harvard Chan School, HSDM and externally, instructor of the Cardiovascular Disease Epidemiology and the Mass Incarceration and Health courses at Harvard Chan School. Dr. Jiménez served on the Dean’s Advisory Committee on Diversity and Inclusion, Harvard Chan School, for several years and is currently serving as a member of the Health Equity Committee in the Dept. of Medicine, BWH. She serves as the chair of the Epidemiology Council Early Career Committee for the American Heart Association (AHA) and in 2018, she was also elected as a Fellow of the AHA by the Council on Epidemiology and Prevention.


Dr. Jiménez’s research is focused on the epidemiology of stroke and CVD. Specifically, her projects have examined at factors including: social and biologic determinants, racial/ethnic and sex inequities, clinical and lifestyle risk factors, and other non-traditional risk factors. More recently, Dr. Jiménez has been examining the impact of past or current incarceration on CVD outcomes as well as health seeking behavior and experiences.


Also visit: The Liberation Lab

Brigham & Women’s Hospital
Associate Epidemiologist, Division of Women’s Health, Department of Medicine; Associate Epidemiologist, Division of Preventive Medicine, Department of Medicine
Harvard Medical School
Assistant Professor of Medicine
Other Appointments
Assistant Professor of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health

Areas of Expertise

Current Research

One focus of Dr. Jiménez’s work is quality of care and outcomes for patients currently incarcerated or with a history of incarceration. This research includes examining factors that impact the cardiovascular health of patients who have experienced incarceration, identifying ways to support respectful patient-clinician communication about such experiences and using the findings to inform future policy to support health care equity. She is using qualitative methods and surveys to interview patients to provide insight regarding patient preferences in discussing history of incarceration. Additionally, Dr. Jiménez will be collaborating with the Pregnancy in Prisons Statistics study to examine medical comorbidities of pregnant women experiencing incarceration.

 

Another research area of interest for Dr. Jiménez is in racial inequities of stroke and CVD. Her research uses data from three large cohort studies: Women’s Health Initiative, Southern Community Cohort Study, and Reasons for Geographic and Racial Differences in Stroke Study. Her focus is on evaluating the contribution of traditional and non-traditional cardiovascular risk factors for stroke among white and black populations. The performance of existing stroke prediction scores will be compared in blacks and whites, with a new score developed to optimize prediction in black individuals.

 

Funding

 

 

  • Examining Racial Disparities in Stroke (NHLBI, PI)
  • Engaging Patients and Health Care Providers in Communication Regarding History of Incarceration (BWH, PI)
  • Examining the Cardiovascular Implications of Incarceration (BWH, Nesson Fellowship)

Select Past Research

  • Assessing the Influence of Cardiovascular Risk Factors and Gender on Risk of Stroke Among Hypertensives (BWH, PI)
    Examined the role of clinical and lifestyle risk factors that influence stroke risk among both pre-hypertensive and hypertensive men and women of the Physicians’ Health Study II and the Women’s Health Study.
  • Diversity Supplement to Effect of Vitamin D and Omega-3 Fatty Acids on Blood Pressure and Hypertension (NHLBI, Investigator trainee)
    Examined racial/ethnic and sex disparities in HTN by testing their differential impact on the effects of randomized vitamin D and omega-3 fatty acid interventions on HTN incidence, 2-year changes in 24-hour ambulatory blood pressure and sex steroid hormones, and the validity of self-reported HTN measures.
  • Examining the Role of Social and Biologic Determinants of Sex and Racial/Ethnic Disparities in Stroke (BWH, PI)
    Examined the role of social and biologic determinants of sex and racial/ethnic disparities in stroke.

Select Publications

Jiménez MC, Manson JE, Cook NR, Kawachi I, Wassertheil-Smoller S, Haring B, Nassir R, Rhee JJ, Seally-Jefferson S, Rexrode KM. Racial variation in stroke risk among women by stroke risk factors. Stroke. 2019; 50: 797-804. PMID: 30869565.

 

Jiménez MC, Tucker KL, Rodriguez F, Porneala BC, Meigs JB, López L. Cardiovascular risk factors and dehydroepiandrosterone sulfate among Latinos in the Boston Puerto Rican Health Study. J Endo Society. 2018 Dec; 3(1):291-303. PMID: 30623167.

 

Jiménez MC, Wang L, Buring JE, Manson JE, Forman JP, Sesso HD. Association between sex hormones and ambulatory blood pressure. J Hypertens. J Hypertens. 2018 Nov; 36(11):2237-2244. PMID: 29927841.

 

Jiménez MC, Rexrode KM, Kotler G, Everett BM, Glynn RJ, Lee IM, Buring JE, Ridker PM, Sesso HD. Association between markers of inflammation and total stroke by hypertensive status among women. Am J Hypertens. 2016 Sep; 29(9):1117-1124. Epub ahead of print 2016 May 28. PMCID: 4978228.

 

Jiménez MC, Curhan G, Choi H, Forman J. Plasma Uric Acid Concentrations and Risk of Ischemic Stroke. Eur J Neurol. 2016 Jul; 23(7):1158-1164. PMCID: PMC4899277.

 

Jiménez MC, Rexrode KM, Glynn R, Ridker P, Gaziano JM, Sesso HD. Association between high sensitivity C-reactive protein and total stroke by hypertensive status among men. J Am Heart Assoc. 2015 Sep 21; 4(9):e002073. PMCID: PMC4599494.

 

Jiménez MC, Sanders AE, Mauriello SM, Kaste LM, Beck JD. Prevalence of periodontitis according to Hispanic or Latino background among study participants of the Hispanic Community Health Study/Study of Latinos. J Am Dent Assoc. 2014 Aug;145(8):805-16. PMID: 25082929.

 

Jiménez M, Sun Q, Schürks M, Hu FB, Manson JE, Rexrode KM. Circulating fetuin-A and risk of ischemic stroke in women. Clin Chem. 2014 Jan;60(1):165-73. PMCID: PMC3971644.

 

Jiménez M, Sun Q, Schürks M, Chiuve SE, Hu FB, Manson JE, Rexrode KM. Low dehydroepiandrosterone sulphate is associated with increased risk of ischemic stroke among women. Stroke. 2013; 44: 1770-74. PMCID: PMC3811081.

 

Jiménez M, Chiuve SE, Glynn RJ, Stampfer MJ, Camargo CA, Willett WC, Manson JE, Rexrode KM. Alcohol consumption and risk of stroke in women. Stroke. 2012;43(4):939-45. PMCID: PMC3350838.