Laura B. Harrington, PhD, MPH

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“My research aims to improve our understanding of modifiable risk factors for cardiovascular events and sequelae and outcomes relevant to brain health, especially among women.”

Laura B. Harrington, PhD, MPH

Associate Investigator, Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute
Affiliate Associate Professor, Department of Epidemiology, University of Washington School of Public Health
Associate Professor, Department of Health Systems Science, Kaiser Permanente Bernard J. Tyson School of Medicine

Biography

Laura B. Harrington, PhD, MPH, is an epidemiologist with expertise in cardiovascular epidemiology, the epidemiology of aging, and women’s health. As an Associate Investigator at the Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute (KPWHRI), her work leverages pharmacologic, medical-record based, lifestyle-based, and sex-specific exposure data to better understand associations between modifiable risk factors and cardiovascular and aging-related outcomes. She has particular interest and expertise in risk factors for incident and recurrent venous thromboembolism, in cardiovascular associations with brain health, and in sex-specific risk factors (e.g. endogenous sex hormone levels, vasomotor symptoms, hormone therapy use, characteristics of the menopause transition). She leads studies set in Kaiser Permanente Washington-based populations and existing epidemiologic cohort studies including the Women’s Health Initiative (WHI), the Adult Change in Thought (ACT) study, the Cardiovascular Health Study (CHS), the Nurses’ Health Studies (NHS) I and II, the Health Professionals Follow-up Study, and the Heart and Vascular Health (HVH) case-control study. Dr. Harrington is actively leading a new National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute-funded inception cohort study of venous thromboembolism sequelae, the After Venous Thromboembolism Research (AFTER) Study.

Prior to joining KPWHRI in 2018, Dr. Harrington completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, earned her PhD in Epidemiology from the University of Washington, and her MPH in Epidemiology from the University of Michigan.

In addition to her role at KPWHRI, Dr. Harrington enjoys mentoring students and guest lecturing in her roles as Affiliate Associate Professor of Epidemiology at the University of Washington School of Public Health and Assistant Professor of Health Systems Science at the Kaiser Permanente Bernard J. Tyson School of Medicine.

RESEARCH INTERESTS AND EXPERIENCE

  • Cardiovascular Health

    Venous thromboembolism; lifestyle-based risk factors (e.g., physical activity, sedentary behavior); pharmacologic risk factors; women’s cardiovascular health

  • Women's Health

    Endogenous sex hormones; oral contraceptive and hormone therapy use; characteristics of the menopause transition; adverse pregnancy outcomes and long-term women’s health outcomes

  • Aging & Geriatrics

    Cardiovascular risk factors and events in relation to brain health

  • Medication Use & Patient Safety

    Comparative safety studies; pharmacoepidemiology; prescription use in relation to cardiovascular and aging-related outcomes; oral contraceptive and hormone therapy use

Recent publications

Harrington LB, Tom SE, Krakauer C, Wartko PD, Chau K, Muiruri R, Micks E, McEvoy LK, LaCroix AZ, Miller EC. Adverse pregnancy outcomes and cognitive change in older women. J Womens Health (Larchmt). 2025 Sep 29. doi: 10.1177/15409996251383009 [Epub ahead of print] PubMed

Rossouw JE, Aragaki AK, Manson JE, Szmuilowicz ED, Harrington LB, Johnson KC, Allison M, Haring B, Saquib N, Shadyab AH, Rexrode KM, Liu L, Mouton CP, LaCroix AZ. Menopausal hormone therapy and cardiovascular diseases in women with vasomotor symptoms: A secondary analysis of the Women's Health Initiative randomized clinical trials. JAMA Intern Med. 2025 Sep 15:e254510. doi: 10.1001/jamainternmed.2025.4510 [Epub ahead of print] PubMed

Frauenheim AC, Wiggins KL, Lemaitre RN, Smith NL, Harrington LB. Physical activity before venous thromboembolism and risk of recurrence in a population-based inception cohort. J Thromb Thrombolysis. 2025 Sep 4. doi: 10.1007/s11239-025-03127-w [Epub ahead of print] PubMed

Munsch G, Thibord F, Bezerra OC, Brody JA, van Hylckama Vlieg A, Gourhant L, Chen MH, Samaria F, Germain M, Caro I, Suchon P, Olaso R, Wiggins KL, Saut N, Besse C, Goumidi L, Bacq D, Harrington LB, Boland A, Emmerich J, Smadja DM, Lemarie CA, Danckwardt S, Debette S, Deleuze JF, Jacqmin-Gadda H, Rodger MA, Gagnon F, Rosendaal FR, Johnson AD, Smith NL, Couturaud F, Morange PE, Tregouet DA. Molecular determinants of thrombosis recurrence risk across venous thromboembolism subtypes. Blood. 2025 Aug 14:blood.2024027879. doi: 10.1182/blood.2024027879 [Epub ahead of print] PubMed

Greenwood-Hickman MA, Zhu W, Idu A, Harrington LB, McCurry SM, LaCroix AZ, Shaw PA, Rosenberg DE. Associations between 10-year physical performance and activities of daily living trajectories with physical behaviors in older adults. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2025 Apr 29;22(5):704. doi: 10.3390/ijerph22050704. PubMed

 

Research

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Study links sitting for longer stretches to risk of blood clots in older women

Taking more breaks from sitting could potentially lower the risk.

Research

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COVID risks not meaningfully greater with estrogen-containing medications

Oral contraceptives, hormone therapy not linked to more severe COVID outcomes.

Research

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Study finds bariatric surgery linked to substantially lower risk of blood clots long-term

Largest study to date helps patients weigh risks and benefits of surgery.

Healthy findings blog

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New grant boosts research on cardiovascular disease

Epidemiologist Laura B. Harrington, PhD, MPH, speaks about working in cardiovascular and aging research.