Biography

Professor Karen M. Puopolo, MD, PhD, is Professor of Pediatrics at the University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, a neonatologist in the Division of Neonatology at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, and Chief of the Section on Newborn Medicine at Pennsylvania Hospital.

Professor Puopolo's research focuses on the epidemiology of neonatal infections, with particular emphasis on early-onset sepsis, risk assessment, and antimicrobial stewardship. She began her research career at Harvard Medical School investigating the mechanisms of virulence in Group B Streptococcus and has since become an internationally recognized leader in neonatal infection research. In collaboration with Dr. Gabriel Escobar, she co-developed the Neonatal Early-Onset Sepsis Calculator, a widely adopted clinical decision support tool for assessing sepsis risk in term newborns.

Professor Puopolo has also led the development of clinical practice guidance on neonatal sepsis, Group B Streptococcusprevention, perinatal COVID-19, and congenital cytomegalovirus infection on behalf of the American Academy of Pediatrics. As a member of the Steering Committee of the International Newborn Sepsis Society, she contributes to advancing evidence-based clinical practice and international collaboration to improve the prevention, diagnosis, and management of neonatal sepsis.