A photo of Stephanie Merhar.

Stephanie L. Merhar, MD, MS

  • Attending Neonatologist, Perinatal Institute, Neonatology and Pulmonary Biology
  • Research Director, NICU Follow Up Clinic
  • Follow Up Principal Investigator, Cincinnati site, NICHD Neonatal Research Network
  • Associate Professor, UC Department of Pediatrics
In my practice, I listen carefully to families. I know that I don't have all of the answers and that parents know their child best.

About

Biography

Since I was 12 years old, I knew that I wanted to be a pediatrician. What could be better than being a doctor who gets to work with kids? During my pediatric residency at Cincinnati Children’s, I was drawn to neonatology because it offered me the opportunity to care for acutely ill babies and build long-term relationships with families through the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) follow-up clinic.

As a neonatologist who cares for sick and preterm babies, I have a special interest in babies with brain injury and those exposed to substances such as opioids.

In my practice, I listen carefully to families. I know that I don't have all of the answers and that parents know their child best. In the NICU and our follow-up clinic, we collaborate with families and other care providers, such as neurologists, pulmonologists, therapists, nutritionists and nurses.

The research I do focuses on how the newborn brain can bounce back from insults including brain injury and substance exposure. I am also interested in using MRI as a tool to predict and improve the outcomes of term and preterm babies with brain injury. I am honored every time someone is interested in the research my team is doing.

MD: University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 2005.

Residency: Pediatrics, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, 2005-2008.

Fellowship: Neonatology, Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center, 2008-2011.

Certification: Pediatrics, 2008.

Interests

Infants with perinatal brain injury; neonatal follow up.

Services and Specialties

Newborn Intensive Care NICU, Perinatal, Fetal Care, Neonatology

Interests

Follow-up outcomes; advanced neuroimaging to predict outcomes in infants with brain injury.

Research Areas

Neonatology

Additional Languages

French

Location

Insurance Information

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Publications

Early micro- and macrostructure of sensorimotor tracts and development of cerebral palsy in high risk infants. Chandwani, R; Kline, JE; Harpster, K; Tkach, J; Parikh, NA; Altaye, M; Arnsperger, A; Beiersdorfer, T; Bridgewater, K; Cahill, T; et al. Human Brain Mapping. 2021; 42:4708-4721.

Effects of prenatal opioid exposure on functional networks in infancy. Merhar, SL; Jiang, W; Parikh, NA; Yin, W; Zhou, Z; Tkach, JA; Wang, L; Kline-Fath, BM; He, L; Braimah, A; et al. Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience. 2021; 51.

Functional Hyperconnectivity during a Stories Listening Task in Magnetoencephalography Is Associated with Language Gains for Children Born Extremely Preterm. Barnes-Davis, ME; Fujiwara, H; Drury, G; Merhar, SL; Parikh, NA; Kadis, DS. Brain Sciences. 2021; 11.

Neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome: a review of the science and a look toward the use of buprenorphine for affected infants. Devlin, LA; Young, LW; Kraft, WK; Wachman, EM; Czynski, A; Merhar, SL; Winhusen, T; Jones, HE; Poindexter, BB; Wakschlag, LS; et al. Journal of Perinatology. 2021.

Prenatal opioid exposure is associated with smaller brain volumes in multiple regions. Merhar, SL; Kline, JE; Braimah, A; Kline-Fath, BM; Tkach, JA; Altaye, M; He, L; Parikh, NA. Pediatric Research. 2021; 90:397-402.

Neurodevelopmental outcome of preterm infants enrolled in myo-inositol randomized controlled trial. Adams-Chapman, I; Watterberg, KL; Nolen, TL; Hirsch, S; Cole, CA; Cotten, CM; Oh, W; Poindexter, BB; Zaterka-Baxter, KM; Das, A; et al. Journal of Perinatology. 2021; 41:2072-2087.

Venovenous versus venoarterial extracorporeal membrane oxygenation among infants with hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy: is there a difference in outcome?. Agarwal, P; Rintoul, N; Zaniletti, I; Keene, S; Mietzsch, U; Massaro, AN; Billimoria, Z; Dirnberger, D; Hamrick, S; Seabrook, RB; et al. Journal of Perinatology. 2021; 41:1916-1923.

Perinatal Risk and Protective Factors in the Development of Diffuse White Matter Abnormality on Term-Equivalent Age Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Infants Born Very Preterm. Parikh, NA; Sharma, P; He, L; Li, H; Altaye, M; Priyanka Illapani, VS; Arnsperger, A; Beiersdorfer, T; Bridgewater, K; Cahill, T; et al. Journal of Pediatrics. 2021; 233:58-65.e3.

Associations Between Early Structural Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Hammersmith Infant Neurological Examination, and General Movements Assessment in Infants Born Very Preterm. Harpster, K; Merhar, S; Priyanka Illapani, VS; Peyton, C; Kline-Fath, B; Parikh, NA. Journal of Pediatrics. 2021; 232:80-86.e2.

Umbilical Cord Milking vs Delayed Cord Clamping and Associations with In-Hospital Outcomes among Extremely Premature Infants. Kumbhat, N; Eggleston, B; Davis, AS; DeMauro, SB; Van Meurs, KP; Foglia, EE; Lakshminrusimha, S; Walsh, MC; Watterberg, KL; Wyckoff, MH; et al. Journal of Pediatrics. 2021; 232:87-94.e4.

From the Blog


$8M Grant Funds Long-Term Opioid Exposure Study
Perinatal

$8M Grant Funds Long-Term Opioid Exposure Study

Stephanie L. Merhar, MD, MS10/6/2021

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