W. Scott Comulada, DrPH

W. Scott Comulada, DrPH, is an Associate Professor-in-residence with the UCLA Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, a Core Scientist of the Methods Core for the Center for HIV Prevention, Identification, and Treatment Services (CHIPTS), and the Analytic Core Project Lead for an Adolescent Trials Network (ATN) U19. His research interests grew out of collaborations on behavioral intervention trials, beginning with his role as a statistician. Dr. Comulada has experience analyzing and developing methods for the analysis of longitudinal outcomes, including HIV, substance use, mental health, dietary intake, and exercise measures that are collected over time. His research also focuses on the design of mHealth studies that use mobile devices to collect data and support intervention delivery. Dr. Comulada’s expertise in longitudinal data analysis encompasses mHealth data that is collected on a frequent basis, sometimes through mobile phone-based assessments that are administered several times a day, resulting in what is referred to as “intensive longitudinal data”.

Contact: wcomulada@mednet.ucla.edu

FEATURED PUBLICATIONS:

1.  Comulada, W. S., Rotheram-Borus, M. J., Arnold, E. M., Norwood, P., Lee, S. J., Ocasio, M. A., Flynn, R., Nielsen-Saines, K., Bolan, R., Klausner, J. D., Swendeman, D., & Adolescent Medicine Trials Network (ATN) CARES Team (2023). Using Machine Learning to Identify Predictors of Sexually Transmitted Infections Over Time Among Young People Living With or at Risk for HIV Who Participated in ATN Protocols 147, 148, and 149. Sexually transmitted diseases, 50(11), 739–745. https://doi.org/10.1097/OLQ.0000000000001854

2. Blair, C. S., Javanbakht, M., Comulada, W. S., Bolan, R., Shoptaw, S., Gorbach, P. M., & Needleman, J. (2023). Comparing Factors Associated with Increased Stimulant Use in Relation to HIV Status Using a Machine Learning and Prediction Modeling Approach. Prevention science : the official journal of the Society for Prevention Research, 24(6), 1102–1114. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11121-023-01561-x

3. Braddock, W. R. T., Ocasio, M. A., Comulada, W. S., Mandani, J., & Fernandez, M. I. (2023). Increasing Participation in a TelePrEP Program for Sexual and Gender Minority Adolescents and Young Adults in Louisiana: Protocol for an SMS Text Messaging-Based Chatbot. JMIR research protocols, 12, e42983. https://doi.org/10.2196/42983