Research
Association between prenatal alcohol exposure and child socio-emotional development
Appointments
- Director, UCLA Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders Clinic
- Professor, Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences
- Program Director, ABC Child Partial Outpatient Program
- Training Director, Tarjan Center for Developmental Disabilities
Biography
Dr. O’Connor’s current work examines psychosocial and psychiatric risk due to prenatal alcohol exposure. Dr. O’Connor has conducted research on the prevention of alcohol consumption in pregnant women, intervention with children with prenatal alcohol exposure, and medical and allied health education on prevention, diagnosis and treatment.
All of her work has focused on collaborative national initiatives with the long-term goal of developing best practice models to be disseminated on local, state, and national levels.
The overarching emphasis of Dr. O’Connor’s research career has been the development, evaluation, and dissemination of empirically supported assessment and treatment methods for high-risk children.
Publications
- Hayes, EA, Koehl, D, Cantor, R, Fisher, LA, Azeka, E, Mokshagundam, D et al.. Long-Term Survival in Children Following Heart Transplantation. Pediatr Transplant. 2025;29 (2):e70042. doi: 10.1111/petr.70042. PubMed PMID:39895595 .
- Obana, KK, Lind, DRG, Luzzi, AJ, O'Connor, MJ, LeVasseur, MR, Levine, WN et al.. Online patients questions regarding reverse total shoulder arthroplasty pertain to timeline of recovery, specific activities, and limitations. JSES Rev Rep Tech. 2025;5 (1):7-13. doi: 10.1016/j.xrrt.2024.09.005. PubMed PMID:39872341 PubMed Central PMC11764610.
- Wooster, L, O'Connor, MJ, Zhang, X, Mavroudis, CD, Maeda, K, Ahmed, H et al.. Impact of Heart Transplant Allocation Changes on Waitlist Mortality and Clinical Practice in Pediatric and Adult Patients With Congenital Heart Disease and Cardiomyopathy. Circulation. 2025; :. doi: 10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.124.072335. PubMed PMID:39781913 .
- Amdani, S, Shezad, MF, Kroslowitz, B, Townsend, M, Joong, A, Najm, H et al.. Outcomes for Children With Congenital Heart Disease Undergoing Ventricular Assist Device Implantation: An ACTION Registry Analysis. J Am Coll Cardiol. 2024; :. doi: 10.1016/j.jacc.2024.10.083. PubMed PMID:39772369 .
- Goldstein, AC, Pantano, C, Redko, M, MacMullen, LE, Maeda, K, O'Connor, MJ et al.. Expanded-access use of elamipretide in a critically ill patient with Barth syndrome. Genet Med Open. 2024;2 :101859. doi: 10.1016/j.gimo.2024.101859. PubMed PMID:39669625 PubMed Central PMC11613783.