Latha Palaniappan, M.D., M.S.

Associate Investigator, Health Policy Research

Latha Palaniappan, M.D., M.S., has received grants from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, the National Institutes of Health, the American Heart Association, and most recently, the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases to explore gender and ethnic differences in insulin metabolism as it affects the incidence of metabolic syndrome, diabetes, and coronary heart disease.

Dr. Palaniappan led the organization-wide initiative at PAMF to collect patient race/ethnicity and language information, significantly enriching the value of PAMF's electronic health record data for research. Using self-identified patient race/ethnicity data, her research seeks to address the gap in knowledge of health and health-related outcomes for Asian ethnic minorities. Specifically, her current research projects examine racial/ethnic disparities in type 2 diabetes and the comparative effectiveness of oral medications for type 2 diabetes in Asian subgroups (Asian Indian, Chinese, Filipino, Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese).

In the News

Shared Medical Appointments Help Promote Weight Loss, PAMF Research Shows, January 24, 2011

More research needed on cardiovascular disease in Asian-Americans; data lags because studies have often counted Asian subgroups as one, American Heart Association Scientific Statement, August 23, 2010

Cardiovascular Disease the Leading Cause of Death for California’s South Asians, PAMF Research Shows, June 2, 2010

PAMF Receives $2.5 Million Grant for Groundbreaking Asian-American Diabetes Study

"Healthcare IT News" article


Research Studies

Shared Medical Appointments: Promoting Weight Loss in a Clinical Setting

Race/Ethnicity/Ancestry and Preferred Language Project