Faculty

Catherine Karr

Adjunct Professor, Epidemiology
Professor, Pediatrics - General Pediatrics
Professor, Env. and Occ. Health Sciences
Director of the Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Unit, Env. and Occ. Health Sciences

206-616-4355

Education

PhD Epidemiology, University of Washington, 2004
MD Medicine, University of Washington, 1999
MS Toxicology, University of Washington, 1989

Contact

206-616-4355

UW DEOHS, 4225 Roosevelt Way NE, Suite 301
Seattle, WA 98105

Bio

Catherine Karr MD PhD (she/her) is an environmental epidemiologist and pediatric environmental medicine specialist. She has a primary appointment in the University of Washington Department of Pediatrics, Joint in Environmental & Occupational Health Sciences, and Adjunct in Epidemiology. Her studies focus largely on low resourced communities in the U.S. as well as other low and middle income nations (Kenya). Her work represents methods comprising merging of large datasets on environmental factors and pediatric health outcomes as well as small in depth research using community engaged research practice. Indoor and outdoor air pollution, lead and pesticide exposures are focus areas of her expertise. She also maintains a general pediatric practice at the UW Pediatric Clinic at Roosevelt and directs a UW based regional outreach and consultation service, the NW Pediatric Environmental Health Specialty Unit (PEHSU).

Research Areas

Research Interests

Clean Air, Clean Water, Sustainable Communities, Agricultural health and safety, Chemical hazards, Children's Health, Community-engaged Research, Environmental Health, Environmental Justice, Pesticides, Pollution, Wildfires

DEOHS Biography

Recent Publications (PubMed)

Residential Mobility During Pregnancy and Birth Outcomes in the United States: The Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) Cohort (2010-2019).
(2026 Jan 17)
Ann Epidemiol
D'Adamo A, Kress AM, Habre R, Towe-Goodman N, Desjardins MR, Alshawabkeh A, Aris IM, Camargo CA Jr, Carroll KN, Cassidy-Bushrow AE, Chu SH, Civil Y, Craft AL, Croen LA, Deoni S, Dsa V, Dunlop AL, Elliot AJ, Ferrara A, Ganiban JM, Ghassabian A, Hartert T, Watts DJ, Karagas MR, Karr CJ, Koinis-Mitchell D, Kramer M, McEvoy CT, Mirzakhani H, O'Connor TG, Perng W, Schmidt RJ, Shah U, Tung I, Wright RJ, Knapp EA
Urinary cotinine cut-offs for tobacco smoke exposure in pregnancy and associations with child intelligence quotient: A multi-cohort analysis.
(2026 Jan 10)
Int J Hyg Environ Health 272(): 114744
Ni Y, Dearborn LC, Szpiro AA, Loftus CT, Zhao Q, Bush NR, LeWinn KZ, Hazlehurst MF, Northrup TF, Quintana PJE, Hoh E, Matt G, Karr CJ
Pre- and postnatal exposure to PM(2.5) and NO(2) and blood pressure in children: Results from the ECHO Cohort.
(2026 Mar 1)
Environ Res 292(): 123529
Ni Y, Law A, Gao X, Szpiro AA, Loftus CT, Jones M, Dearborn LC, Hazlehurst MF, Sherris AR, Ilango S, LeWinn KZ, Bush NR, Zhao Q, Trasande L, Flynn JT, Enquobahrie DA, Nguyen RHN, O'Connor T, Vyas AK, Zhang M, Mirzakhani H, Hipwell A, Starling A, Peterson AK, Ghassabian A, Ferrara A, Aschner J, Collingwood S, Karagas MR, Katzow M, Stroustrup A, Haktnair M, Hartert TV, Snyder BM, Jan S, Singh AM, Dabelea D, Malek AM, Straughen JK, Camargo CA Jr, Buxton MA, Wright R, Carroll K, Sanderson K, Mitchell DK, D'Sa V, Hockett C, Dunlop AL, Farzen SF, Mumford SL, Alshawabkeh AN, Santos HP Jr, Zhang X, Niu Z, Ji N, Breton C, Liang D, Karr CJ, ECHO Cohort Consortium
Gestational fine particulate matter exposure and perinatal outcomes in the ECHO cohort: Associations across pregnancy windows.
(2026 Mar 1)
Environ Res 292(): 123587
Nzegwu AW, Dickerson AS, Miller K, Szpiro A, Hipwell AE, Elliot AJ, Padula AM, Dunlop AL, Starling AP, Ferrara A, Breton CV, Loftus CT, McEvoy CT, Dabelea D, Koinis-Mitchell D, Liang D, Oken E, Barrett ES, Volk H, Gern JE, Stanford JB, Herbstman JB, Wu J, Lyall K, Trasande L, Leve LD, Karagas MR, Pini N, Wright RJ, Nguyen RHN, Schantz SL, O'Connor TG, Sathyanarayana S, Karr CJ, Enquobahrie DA, ECHO Cohort Consortium
Educational attainment and self-reported environmental exposures of pregnant women living in Nairobi, Kenya.
(2025)
PLOS Glob Public Health 5(11): e0005453
Zuidema C, Edemba PW, Riederer AM, Kipter VK, Sherris AR, Olweywe L, Adhiambo J, Isavwa B, Wetzler EA, Richardson BA, Kinuthia J, Gatari MJ, Maleche-Obimbo E, Seto E, Karr CJ, Benki-Nugent S, Were FH
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