Erica C Leifheit, PhD
Research Scientist in Epidemiology (Chronic Diseases)DownloadHi-Res Photo
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Research Scientist in Epidemiology (Chronic Diseases)
Biography
Erica Leifheit is a Research Scientist in the Department of Chronic Disease Epidemiology at Yale School of Public Health. Her research interests are in cardiovascular and cerebrovascular disease epidemiology and outcomes. Dr. Leifheit’s earlier work focused on the relationship of psychosocial factors, such as social support, depression, and stress, to patient-centered outcomes and adherence after acute myocardial infarction. Her current work centers on outcomes after stroke, using national healthcare claims data to better understand patterns in stroke care delivery and outcomes across hospitals and geographic regions. She is also involved in a number of projects that use Medicare administrative data to enhance the surveillance of patient outcomes for clinical trials and prospective registries. Dr. Leifheit received her PhD in epidemiology and public health from Yale University.
Last Updated on April 07, 2025.
Appointments
Chronic Disease Epidemiology
Research ScientistPrimary
Other Departments & Organizations
Education & Training
- PhD
- Yale University (2010)
Research
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Overview
Medical Research Interests
Cardiovascular Diseases; Quality of Health Care; Stroke
Public Health Interests
Mental Health; Aging; Cardiovascular Diseases
ORCID
0000-0001-9675-8913
Research at a Glance
Yale Co-Authors
Frequent collaborators of Erica C Leifheit's published research.
Publications Timeline
A big-picture view of Erica C Leifheit's research output by year.
Research Interests
Research topics Erica C Leifheit is interested in exploring.
Judith Lichtman, PhD, MPH
Harlan Krumholz, MD, SM
Erica Spatz, MD, MHS
Gail D'Onofrio, MD, MS
Cesar Caraballo-Cordovez, MD
Fan Li, PhD
39Publications
3,389Citations
Stroke
Quality of Health Care
Cardiovascular Diseases
Publications
2025
Association between Marital/Partner Status and Patient-Reported Outcomes in Stroke Patients: A Systematic Review
Zhu C, Tran P, Leifheit E, Spatz E, Dreyer R, Nyhan K, Wang S, Roberson P, Goldstein L, Lichtman J. Association between Marital/Partner Status and Patient-Reported Outcomes in Stroke Patients: A Systematic Review. Cerebrovascular Diseases 2025, 1-21. PMID: 40383118, PMCID: PMC12353958, DOI: 10.1159/000546413.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsConceptsPatient-reported outcome measuresMarital/partner statusStroke patientsOutcome domainsSystematic reviewPersonal recovery outcomesPatient-reported outcomesPoststroke functional outcomeNewcastle-Ottawa ScaleFunctional outcomesPeer-reviewed studiesMental domainsMental healthStudy qualityRecovery outcomesPartner statusPoststroke depressionOutcome measuresQualitative synthesisNewcastle-OttawaMeta-analysesMeta-analysisStrokeAssociationOutcomesDepression and Low Social Support Mediate the Association of Marital Stress and 12-Month Cardiac-Specific Quality of Life in Young Adults With Acute Myocardial Infarction
Zhu C, Dreyer R, Li F, Spatz E, Caraballo C, Mahajan S, Raparelli V, Leifheit E, Lu Y, Krumholz H, Spertus J, D’Onofrio G, Pilote L, Lichtman J. Depression and Low Social Support Mediate the Association of Marital Stress and 12-Month Cardiac-Specific Quality of Life in Young Adults With Acute Myocardial Infarction. Biopsychosocial Science And Medicine 2025, 87: 129-137. PMID: 39909011, DOI: 10.1097/psy.0000000000001363.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsMeSH Keywords and ConceptsConceptsLow social supportCardiac-specific quality of lifeNatural direct effectSocial supportMonths post-AMIQuality of lifeAcute myocardial infarctionMarital stressComprehensive secondary preventive strategySignificant depressive symptomsPost-AMISecondary prevention strategiesYoung adultsMyocardial infarctionSociodemographic factorsDepressive symptomsAMI survivorsCovariate adjustmentPrevention strategiesSelf-ReportContinuous scoresQoLBaseline QOLCategorical depressionDepression
2024
Association of marital/partner status with hospital readmission among young adults with acute myocardial infarction.
Zhu C, Dreyer R, Li F, Spatz E, Caraballo C, Mahajan S, Raparelli V, Leifheit E, Lu Y, Krumholz H, Spertus J, D'Onofrio G, Pilote L, Lichtman J. Association of marital/partner status with hospital readmission among young adults with acute myocardial infarction. PLOS ONE 2024, 19: e0287949. PMID: 38277368, PMCID: PMC10817183, DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0287949.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsMeSH Keywords and ConceptsConceptsMarital/partner statusPsychosocial factorsAcute myocardial infarctionYoung adultsHospital dischargeYear of hospital dischargeYoung acute myocardial infarctionAssociated with 1.3-foldCohort of young adultsLong-term readmissionCox proportional hazards modelsStatus interactionSimilar-aged menMyocardial infarctionProportional hazards modelUnpartnered statusPatient interviewsPhysician panelCardiovascular healthHospital readmissionSocioeconomic factorsAMI survivorsSequential adjustmentCardiac readmissionMultiple imputation
2023
Outcomes after ischemic stroke for dual-eligible Medicare-Medicaid beneficiaries in the United States
Leifheit E, Wang Y, Goldstein L, Lichtman J. Outcomes after ischemic stroke for dual-eligible Medicare-Medicaid beneficiaries in the United States. PLOS ONE 2023, 18: e0292546. PMID: 37797070, PMCID: PMC10553827, DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0292546.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetricMeSH Keywords and ConceptsConceptsStroke hospitalization ratesMedicare beneficiariesIschemic strokeHospitalization ratesUS acute care hospitalsDual-eligible patientsLong-term mortalityUS Medicare beneficiariesIschemic stroke hospitalizationsPost-stroke outcomesAcute care hospitalsService Medicare beneficiariesDual-eligible statusDual-eligible beneficiariesPercentage of beneficiariesCause readmissionHigher readmissionClinical factorsDual eligibilityAdjusted analysisPoor outcomeStroke patientsCox regressionStroke hospitalizationsPrincipal diagnosisImpact of Marital Stress on 1‐Year Health Outcomes Among Young Adults With Acute Myocardial Infarction
Zhu C, Dreyer R, Li F, Spatz E, Caraballo‐Cordovez C, Mahajan S, Raparelli V, Leifheit E, Lu Y, Krumholz H, Spertus J, D'Onofrio G, Pilote L, Lichtman J. Impact of Marital Stress on 1‐Year Health Outcomes Among Young Adults With Acute Myocardial Infarction. Journal Of The American Heart Association 2023, 12: e030031. PMID: 37589125, PMCID: PMC10547344, DOI: 10.1161/jaha.123.030031.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetricMeSH Keywords and ConceptsConceptsAcute myocardial infarctionCardiac-specific qualityGeneric health statusMyocardial infarctionBaseline healthMarital stressHealth outcomesHealth statusWorse patient-reported outcomesMental healthYoung adultsObservational cohort studyPatient-reported outcomesSocioeconomic factorsWorse mental healthReadmission 1Cause readmissionCohort studyYounger patientsRoutine screeningDepressive symptomsGreater oddsAnginaMale participantsOutcomesAssociation of short-term hospital-level outcome metrics with 1-year mortality and recurrence for US Medicare beneficiaries with ischemic stroke
Wang Y, Leifheit E, Goldstein L, Lichtman J. Association of short-term hospital-level outcome metrics with 1-year mortality and recurrence for US Medicare beneficiaries with ischemic stroke. PLOS ONE 2023, 18: e0289790. PMID: 37561680, PMCID: PMC10414659, DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0289790.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsMeSH Keywords and ConceptsConceptsIschemic strokeInverse probability weightsStroke patientsCause mortalityOutcome metricsLower riskUS hospitalsBetter long-term outcomesRecurrent stroke rateIschemic stroke recurrenceIschemic stroke patientsLong-term outcomesUS Medicare beneficiariesPerformance categoriesIntermediate hospitalsRecurrent strokeStroke recurrenceCohort studyClinical factorsRecurrence ratePrincipal diagnosisPatient riskStroke rateReadmission measuresCox modelAssociation of marital/partner status and patient-reported outcomes following myocardial infarction: a systematic review and meta-analysis
Zhu C, Tran P, Leifheit E, Spatz E, Dreyer R, Nyhan K, Wang S, Lichtman J. Association of marital/partner status and patient-reported outcomes following myocardial infarction: a systematic review and meta-analysis. European Heart Journal Open 2023, 3: oead018. PMID: 36942107, PMCID: PMC10023828, DOI: 10.1093/ehjopen/oead018.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetricConceptsPatient-reported outcome measuresMarital/partner statusPersonal recovery outcomesMyocardial infarctionHigher HRQoLMI patientsPartner statusSystematic reviewOutcome domainsRecovery outcomesSex differencesPatient-reported outcomesNewcastle-Ottawa ScaleStandardized mean differenceSymptoms of anxietyPotential sex differencesUnpartnered patientsFunctional statusSubgroup analysisEligible studiesStudy qualityOutcome measuresPeer-reviewed studiesMean differencePatientsAssociations Between Long-Term Air Pollutant Exposure and 30-Day All-Cause Hospital Readmissions in US Patients With Stroke
Tran P, Warren J, Leifheit E, Goldstein L, Lichtman J. Associations Between Long-Term Air Pollutant Exposure and 30-Day All-Cause Hospital Readmissions in US Patients With Stroke. Stroke 2023, 54: e126-e129. PMID: 36729388, PMCID: PMC11059199, DOI: 10.1161/strokeaha.122.042265.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetricMeSH Keywords and ConceptsConceptsLong-term air pollutant exposureAir pollutant exposureCause hospital readmissionHospital readmissionPollutant exposureMedicare beneficiaries agePerformance categoriesMatter 2.5Sulfur dioxide exposureCause readmission measureIschemic strokeStroke incidenceUS patientsHospital characteristicsSD increaseReadmissionCox modelReadmission measuresBeneficiaries ageLong-term exposureStrokePatientsMedicaid ServicesParticulate matter 2.5US fee
2022
The association of marital/partner status with patient-reported health outcomes following acute myocardial infarction or stroke: Protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis
Zhu C, Tran P, Leifheit E, Spatz E, Dreyer R, Nyhan K, Wang S, Goldstein L, Lichtman J. The association of marital/partner status with patient-reported health outcomes following acute myocardial infarction or stroke: Protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis. PLOS ONE 2022, 17: e0267771. PMID: 36378664, PMCID: PMC9665376, DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0267771.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsMeSH Keywords and ConceptsConceptsPatient-reported outcome measuresAcute myocardial infarctionMarital/partner statusPartner statusMyocardial infarctionHealth outcomesPatient-reported health outcomesPROSPERO registration numberRisk of biasPatient-centered factorsPeer-reviewed journalsPrimary outcomeSubgroup analysisThird reviewerOutcome measuresRegistration numberLower mortalitySystematic reviewEthics approvalStrokePartner supportMale participantsInfarctionFull textOutcomesTrends in 1-Year Recurrent Ischemic Stroke in the US Medicare Fee-for-Service Population
Leifheit EC, Wang Y, Goldstein LB, Lichtman JH. Trends in 1-Year Recurrent Ischemic Stroke in the US Medicare Fee-for-Service Population. Stroke 2022, 53: 3338-3347. PMID: 36214126, PMCID: PMC11059192, DOI: 10.1161/strokeaha.122.039438.Peer-Reviewed Original ResearchCitationsAltmetricMeSH Keywords and ConceptsConceptsRecurrent ischemic strokeIschemic strokeRecurrence rateMedicare beneficiariesRecurrent stroke rateSecondary stroke preventionPoor general healthHigh-risk populationHigh recurrence rateService Medicare beneficiariesUS Medicare feeHighest sextileRecurrent strokeStroke preventionStroke recurrenceClinical characteristicsCohort studyGeneral healthPrincipal diagnosisStroke rateUninsured adultsCox modelMedicare feeHigh recurrenceTesting rates
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