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Aaron
A. R.
Tobian
,
MD

Professor
Aaron Tobian

Departmental Affiliations

School of Medicine
Primary
Joint

Contact Info

Research Interests

Transfusion transmitted infections; HIV; human papillomavirus (HPV); sexually transmitted infections; transfusion medicine; SARS-CoV-2; COVID-19; Uganda
Experiences & Accomplishments
Education
MD
Case Western Reserve University
PhD
Overview
Aaron Tobian, MD, PhD, is a Professor of Pathology, Medicine, Oncology and Epidemiology at The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and Bloomberg School of Public Health. He is also Deputy Director for Clinical Affairs in the Department of Pathology and Director of Transfusion Medicine Division at Johns Hopkins Hospital. Dr. Tobian divides his time between research and clinical service.

Dr. Tobian has been highly involved with the transfusion medicine community. He currently serves on the AABB Board of Directors. He is an Associate Editor for the Journal of Clinical Apheresis, Section Editor for UpToDate, and sits on the Editorial Board for the journal TRANSFUSION. Dr. Tobian is the founding Editor-in-Chief of the website Transfusion News; a site which provides weekly updates on the latest studies within the transfusion community as well as interactive transfusion medicine questions three times a week.

Dr. Tobian also has an established global research program that studies HIV and other adverse events associated with transfusion. Over the past 15 years, Dr. Tobian has lived or worked in five developing countries. He has authored more than 250 peer-reviewed articles in journals including The New England Journal of Medicine, JAMA, Lancet, Blood and TRANSFUSION. His work has also been featured on the NBC Today Show, BBC World Service, National Public Radio, USA Today and other media outlets.
Select Publications
Select publications
  • Tobian AAR, Serwadda D, Quinn TC, Kigozi G, Gravitt PE, Laeyendecker O, Charvat B, Ssempijja V, Riesdel M, Oliver AE, Nowak RG, Moulton LH, Chen MZ, Reynolds SJ, Wawer MJ, Gray RH.  Male circumcision for the prevention of HSV-2 and HPV infections and syphilis.  N Engl J Med 2009; 360:1298-309.
  • Grabowski MK, Gray RH, Makumbi F, Kagaayi J, Redd AD, Kigozi G, Reynolds SJ, Nalugoda F, Lutalo T, Wawer MJ, Serwadda D, Quinn TC, Tobian AAR. Use of injectable hormonal contraception and women's risk for herpes simplex virus type 2 acquisition: a prospective study of couples in Rakai, Uganda. Lancet Global Health. 2015; 3:e478-86
  • Kaufman RM, Djulbegovic B, Gernsheimer T, Kleinman S, Tinmouth AT, Capocelli KE, Cipolle MD, Cohn CS, Fung MK, Grossman BJ, Mintz PD, OMalley BA, Sesok-Pizzini DA, Shander A, Stack GE, Webert KE, Weinstein R, Welch BG, Whitman GJ, Wong EC, and Tobian AAR. Platelet transfusion: a clinical practice guideline from the AABB. Annals of Internal Medicine. 2015; 162:205-213
  • Carson JL, Guyatt G, Heddle NM, Grossman BJ, Cohn CS, Fung MK, Gernsheimer T, Holcomb JB, Kaplan LJ, Katz LM, Peterson N, Ramsey G, Rao SV, Roback JD, Shander A, Tobian AAR. Clinical practice guidelines from AABB: red blood cell transfusion thresholds and storage. JAMA. 2016; 316:2025-2035
  • Goel R, Chappidi M, Patel EU, Ness PM, Cushing MM, Frank S, Tobian AAR. Trends in red blood cell, plasma and platelet transfusions in the United States, 1993-2014. JAMA. 2018; 319: 825-827
Projects
Oncogenic HPV, Mucosal Immune Response and Risk of HIV Acquisition
HIV and HSV-2 shedding and transmission in recently circumcised men.
Assessing Quality of Counseling and In-Service Communication Related to Voluntary Medical Male Circumcision (VMMC) Services for Adolescents