Catarina Almqvist Malmros

About me

Current position and commissions of trust

• Professor in Clinical Epidemiology, KI
• Consultant Pediatrician, Astrid Lindgren Children's Hospital
• Deputy Chair Karolinska Institutet Committee for research
• Chair, Swedish Twin Registry Steering group 

Research description

The major theme of my research has been in assessing early risks and consequences for asthma and other diseases in childhood and adolescence, as well as co-morbidity between disease groups. The research is focused towards combining register-based information with experimental and clinical data, using advanced family and twin design. We also run clinical trials to investigate treatment of anxiety-related asthma with cognitive behaviour therapy, and have large national and international collaborations.

The research group consists of Hanna Borgström, Philip Curman, Tong Gong, Anna Gunnerbeck, Bronwyn Brew, Samuel Rhedin, Lottie Philips, Cecilia Lundholm, Gustaf Rejnö, Catarina Almqvist Malmros, Mwenya Mubanga, Amanda Wikström, Anna Hedman, Mona-Lisa Wernroth och Awad Smew (October 2022).

Research projects

• Swedish Twin study On Perinatal characteristics to Prevent Asthma STOPPA
• Born into Life
• Maternal Asthma Events, STRess and Offspring MAESTRO and MAESTRO-CHILD
• MANTRA - Internet-based cognitive behaviour therapy for anxiety-related asthma
• Appeasing the wheezing - understanding the causes and consequences of respiratory and allergic disorders

Five selected publications

Antibiotics in fetal and early life and subsequent childhood asthma: nationwide population based study with sibling analysis. Örtqvist AK, Lundholm C, Kieler H, Ludvigsson JF, Fall T, Ye W, Almqvist C.  BMJ 2014 Nov;349():g6979

Early Exposure to Dogs and Farm Animals and the Risk of Childhood Asthma. Fall T, Lundholm C, Örtqvist AK, Fall K, Fang F, Hedhammar Å, Kämpe O, Ingelsson E, Almqvist C. JAMA Pediatr 2015 Nov;169(11):e153219

Shared genetic origin of asthma, hay fever and eczema elucidates allergic disease biology. Ferreira MA, Vonk JM, Baurecht H, Marenholz I, Tian C, Hoffman JD, et al Nat. Genet. 2017 Dec;49(12):1752-1757

Longitudinal depression or anxiety in mothers and offspring asthma: a Swedish population-based study. Brew BK, Lundholm C, Viktorin A, Lichtenstein P, Larsson H, Almqvist C Int J Epidemiol 2018 02;47(1):166-174

Targeting excessive avoidance behavior to reduce anxiety related to asthma: A feasibility study of an exposure-based treatment delivered online. Bonnert M, Särnholm J, Andersson E, Bergström SE, Lalouni M, Lundholm C, Serlalchius E, Almqvist C. Internet Interv. 2021;25:100415.

Current postdocs and assistant professors

• Anna Gunnerbeck
• Anna Hedman 
• Bronwyn Haasdyk Brew 
• Marianne Bonnert 
• Mwenya Mubanga 
• Philip Curman
• Samuel Rhedin 
• Tong Gong 

Current doctoral students

• Emma Caffrey Osvald
• Awad Smew
• Hanna Borgström

Previous doctoral students

• Anne Örtqvist 2015
• Vilhelmina Ullemar 2016
• Tong Gong 2016
• Gustaf Rejnö 2018
• Cecilia Lundholm 2021

Funding

• Swedish Research Council
• Swedish Heart Lung Foundation
• Swedish Asthma and Allergy Association’s Research Foundation
• Grants provided by the Stockholm County Council (ALF projects)
• FORTE
• KID and CSTP funding for doctoral students
• Stiftelsen Frimurare Barnahuset Stockholm

Teaching portfolio

Main supervisor (14) and co-supervisor (23) for exjobb- and master students in the medical, biomedicine and public health sciences programs 2010-2022.

Formal mentor for several doctoral students who defended their thesis 2019-2022.

Education

• 1993 MD Karolinska Institutet; Board certified physician 1995
• 2002 PhD Pediatrics, Karolinska Institutet
• 2005-2007 Post-Doc Woolcock Inst of Medical Research, Sydney, Australia
• 2008 Board certificated Specialist in Pediatrics
• 2010 Associate Professor, Karolinska Institutet
• 2020 Board certified Specialist in Pediatric allergology

Academic honours, awards and prizes

Awards

• European Respiratory Society (ERS) Roman Pauwels Young Investigator award 2010
• KI fonder and Board of Research Young Investigator Award in Public Health and international health 2011 
• SFFA (Swedish Medical Association) prize 2021