Robert W. Frenck Jr., MD
- Director, Vaccine Research Center
- Executive Chair, Institutional Review Board (IRB)
- Professor, UC Department of Pediatrics
- robert.frenck@cchmc.org
- Board Certified
About
Biography
The research that I’m most interested in is developing vaccines to prevent infections. Vaccines are the most impressive public health measure to reduce the rates of disease. I was inspired to pursue this area of pediatric patient care because infections are still the leading cause of death among children worldwide. I believe that finding methods to reduce infections among children will greatly enhance children's lives and help them grow up into healthy, happy adults.
Vaccines have saved more lives and averted more diseases than any other remedy that exists in medicine. Distributing vaccines around the globe has eliminated smallpox and has nearly eliminated polio. Furthermore, new vaccines are likely to prevent new infections, such as Ebola and COVID-19.
I am Director of the Gamble Center for Clinical Research, where my colleagues and I assess new vaccines and agents designed to prevent infections. I’m also the principal investigator of the Vaccine Treatment and Evaluation Unit (VTEU), which is funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH).
At the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, we are one of nine VTEU sites that exist in the United States. Our hospital was selected as a VTEU site due to our extensive history of excellence in vaccine testing.
My research has been published in various journals, including Clinical Infectious Diseases, Open Forum Infectious Diseases, Lancet Infectious Diseases, and the Journal of Clinical Rheumatology: Practical Reports on Rheumatic and Musculoskeletal Disease. I’m an acknowledged authority in infectious diseases and have authored more than 125 articles and book chapters.
BA: University of California at San Diego, San Diego, CA, 1977.
MD: University of Texas Medical School at Houston, Houston, TX, 1981.
Internship and Residency: US Naval Hospital, Bethesda, MD, 1981-1984.
Fellowship: Pediatric Infectious Diseases, University of Texas Medical School at Houston, Houston, TX, 1987-1990.
Interests
Vaccine research; enteric diseases; travel medicine
Services and Specialties
Interests
Enteric diseases; vaccinology
Research Areas
Locations (2)
Insurance Information
Cincinnati Children's strives to accept a wide variety of health plans. Please contact your health insurance carrier to verify coverage for your specific benefit plan.
Publications
Putative correlates of protection against shigellosis assessing immunomarkers across responses to S. sonnei investigational vaccine. npj Vaccines. 2024; 9:56.
Recommendations for Prevention and Control of Influenza in Children, 2024-2025: Technical Report. Pediatrics. 2024; 154:e2024068508.
Use of Antibiotics in Animal Agriculture: Implications for Pediatrics: Technical Report. Pediatrics. 2024; 154:e2024068467.
Recommendations for Prevention and Control of Influenza in Children, 2024-2025: Policy Statement. Pediatrics. 2024; 154:e2024068507.
Factors Associated With Racially and Ethnically Diverse Sample of Adolescents, Young Adults, and Parents' Intention to Receive a COVID-19 Vaccine. American Journal of Health Promotion. 2024; 38:672-682.
SARS-CoV-2 Viral Load in the Nasopharynx at Time of First Infection Among Unvaccinated Individuals: A Secondary Cross-Protocol Analysis of 4 Randomized Trials. JAMA network open. 2024; 7:e2412835.
COVID-19 Vaccination in Patients with Inborn Errors of Immunity Reduces Hospitalization and Critical Care Needs Related to COVID-19: a USIDNET Report. Journal of Clinical Immunology. 2024; 44:86.
Strategies for Improving Vaccine Communication and Uptake. Pediatrics. 2024; 153:e2023065483.
Safety and Immunogenicity of a Delayed Heterologous Avian Influenza A(H7N9) Vaccine Boost Following Different Priming Regimens: A Randomized Clinical Trial. The Journal of Infectious Diseases. 2024; 229:327-340.
Recommended Childhood and Adolescent Immunization Schedule: United States, 2024. Pediatrics. 2024; 153:e2023065044.
From the Blog
Brady, Frenck Among Co-Authors of Study on COVID Vax Effectiveness Against Omicron Variant
Robert W. Frenck Jr., MD, Rebecca C. Brady, MD7/21/2022
Cincinnati Children’s Plays Central Role in COVID-19 Vaccine Clinical Trials
Robert W. Frenck Jr., MD, Paul Spearman, MD5/22/2022
Brady, Frenck Among Co-Authors of COVID Vax ‘Mix-and-Match’ Study in NEJM
Robert W. Frenck Jr., MD, Rebecca C. Brady, MD1/26/2022
3333 Burnet Avenue, Cincinnati, Ohio 45229-3026
© 1999-2025 Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center. All rights reserved.
Patient Ratings and Comments
All patient satisfaction ratings and comments are submitted by actual patients and verified by a leading independent patient satisfaction company, NRC Health. Patient identities are withheld to ensure confidentiality and privacy. Only those providers whose satisfaction surveys are administered through Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center are displayed. Click here to learn more about our survey