Pascal Geldsetzer | Assistant Professor of Medicine
Stanford University

Pascal Geldsetzer is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Stanford University and a Chan Zuckerberg Biohub Investigator. He has won an NIH New Innovator Award to investigate the feasibility of applying causal effect estimation techniques from the social sciences to clinical research questions. As part of this work, he has led quasi-randomization studies that have consistently and repeatedly shown a protective effect of shingles vaccination for mild cognitive impairment, dementia, and dementia progression. By taking advantage of specific date of birth-based eligibility rules that divided individuals who differed in their age by only a week into being eligible or ineligible for shingles vaccination, his group has been able to provide evidence that is far more robust to confounding than standard observational analyses. Given the potential significance of these findings for population health, his group is entirely focused on furthering their research on the potential link between shingles vaccination and dementia. Dr. Geldsetzer has earned a PhD and MPH in epidemiology and statistics from Harvard University and a medical degree from the University of Edinburgh. He is currently the Principal Investigator for two NIH R01 grants, a Chan Zuckerberg Biohub investigatorship, as well as an NIH (NIAID) New Innovator Award.