World's Best Scientists 2026 revealed!
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Best Female Scientists
2025

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Best Female Scientists

D-Index
157
Citations
90697
World Ranking
115
National Ranking
66

Medicine

D-Index
160
Citations
93352
World Ranking
791
National Ranking
447

Research.com Recognitions

  • 2025 - Research.com Best Female Scientists Award
  • 2002 - Member of the National Academy of Medicine (NAM)

Overview

Karen A. Matthews is affiliated with the University of Pittsburgh in the United States. Their research spans the fields of Medicine, Social Sciences, and Health Professions, with a strong focus on topics related to health disparities and outcomes. Additional areas of study include public health policies and education, food security and health in diverse populations, and the impacts of COVID-19 on healthcare.

The scientist has contributed to a range of subfields such as General Health Professions, Health, Oncology, Sociology and Political Science, and Economics and Econometrics.

Frequent co-authors in their work include Anne H. Gaglioti, Kurt J. Greenlund, Lisa C. McGuire, Diane M. Hall, and Eva M. J. Jackson.

Karen A. Matthews has published multiple papers, notable recent works include:

  • "PLACES: Local Data for Better Health" (2022) in Preventing Chronic Disease
  • "Preventable Premature Deaths from the Five Leading Causes of Death in Nonmetropolitan and Metropolitan Counties, United States, 2010-2022" (2024) in MMWR Surveillance Summaries
  • "Nonmetropolitan COVID-19 Incidence and Mortality Rates Surpassed Metropolitan Rates Within the First 24 Weeks of the Pandemic Declaration: United States, March 1-October 18, 2020" (2021) in The Journal of Rural Health
  • "Multidimensional sleep health is not cross-sectionally or longitudinally associated with adiposity in the Study of Women's Health Across the Nation (SWAN)" (2020) in Sleep Health
  • "Crisis communication on social media - lessons from Covid-19" (2021) in Journal of Decision System

The most frequent publication venues for their research are:

  • Preventing Chronic Disease
  • The Journal of Rural Health
  • MMWR Surveillance Summaries
  • Sleep Health
  • Journal of Cardiopulmonary Rehabilitation and Prevention

The primary research topics covered by their work are:

  • Health disparities and outcomes
  • Public Health Policies and Education
  • Food Security and Health in Diverse Populations
  • COVID-19 and healthcare impacts
  • COVID-19 epidemiological studies
  • Dementia and Cognitive Impairment Research
  • Geriatric Care and Nursing Homes

Karen A. Matthews was named a Member of the National Academy of Medicine (NAM) in 2002.

Best Publications

  • Understanding the association between socioeconomic status and physical health: do negative emotions play a role?

    Linda C. Gallo;Karen A. Matthews

  • Dispositional optimism and recovery from coronary artery bypass surgery: the beneficial effects on physical and psychological well-being.

    MF Scheier;KA Matthews;JF Owens;GJ Magovern

  • Menopause and risk factors for coronary heart disease

    K.A. Matthews;E. Meilahn;L.H. Kuller;S.F. Kelsey

  • Lowering cholesterol concentrations and mortality: a quantitative review of primary prevention trials.

    M F Muldoon;S B Manuck;K A Matthews

  • Psychological perspectives on the type A behavior pattern.

    Karen A. Matthews

  • Relationships Between the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), Epworth Sleepiness Scale (ESS), and Clinical/Polysomnographic Measures in a Community Sample

    Daniel J. Buysse;Martica L. Hall;Patrick J. Strollo;Thomas W. Kamarck

  • Longitudinal Analysis of the Association Between Vasomotor Symptoms and Race/Ethnicity Across the Menopausal Transition: Study of Women’s Health Across the Nation

    Ellen B. Gold;Alicia Colvin;Nancy Avis;Joyce Bromberger

  • Socioeconomic differences in children's health: how and why do these relationships change with age?

    Edith Chen;Karen A. Matthews;W. Thomas Boyce

  • Health psychology: why do some people get sick and some stay well?

    Nancy Adler;Karen Matthews

  • Childhood socioeconomic status and adult health

    Sheldon Cohen;Denise Janicki-Deverts;Edith Chen;Karen A. Matthews

  • Psychological Perspectives on Pathways Linking Socioeconomic Status and Physical Health

    Karen A. Matthews;Linda C. Gallo

  • SWAN: A Multicenter, Multiethnic, Community-Based Cohort Study of Women and the Menopausal Transition

    Mary Fran R. Sowers;Sybil L. Crawford;Barbara Sternfeld;David Morganstein

  • Prevalence, Incidence and Correlates of Urinary Incontinence in Healthy, Middle-Aged Women

    Kathryn L. Burgio;Kathryn L. Burgio;Karen A. Matthews;Karen A. Matthews;Bernard T. Engel;Bernard T. Engel

  • Competitive drive, pattern a, and coronary heart disease: A further analysis of some data from the Western Collaborative Group Study

    Karen A. Matthews;David C. Glass;Ray H. Rosenman;Rayman W. Bortner

  • Are Changes in Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors in Midlife Women due to Chronological Aging or to the Menopausal Transition

    Karen A. Matthews;Sybil L. Crawford;Claudia U. Chae;Susan A. Everson-Rose

  • Stress and body shape: Stress-induced cortisol secretion is consistently greater among women with central fat.

    Elissa S. Epel;Bruce McEwen;Teresa Seeman;Karen Matthews

  • The Life Engagement Test: Assessing Purpose in Life

    Michael F. Scheier;Carsten Wrosch;Andrew Baum;Sheldon Cohen

  • Employment and women's health: Effects of paid employment on women's mental and physical health.

    Rena L. Repetti;Karen A. Matthews;Ingrid Waldron

  • Optimism, Cynical Hostility, and Incident Coronary Heart Disease and Mortality in the Women’s Health Initiative

    Hilary A. Tindle;Yue-Fang Chang;Lewis H. Kuller;JoAnn E. Manson

  • PRIOR TO USE OF ESTROGEN REPLACEMENT THERAPY, ARE USERS HEALTHIER THAN NONUSERS ?

    Karen A. Matthews;Lewis H. Kuller;Rena R. Wing;Elaine N. Meilahn

Frequent Co-Authors

Lewis H. Kuller
Lewis H. Kuller University of Pittsburgh
Kim Sutton-Tyrrell
Kim Sutton-Tyrrell University of Pittsburgh
Martica Hall
Martica Hall University of Pittsburgh
Daniel J. Buysse
Daniel J. Buysse University of Pittsburgh
Ellen B. Gold
Ellen B. Gold University of California, Davis
MaryFran Sowers
MaryFran Sowers University of Michigan–Ann Arbor
Ian Janssen
Ian Janssen Queen's University
Katri Räikkönen
Katri Räikkönen University of Helsinki
Stephen B. Manuck
Stephen B. Manuck University of Pittsburgh
Rena R. Wing
Rena R. Wing Brown University

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