Research Summary

I am an Assistant Professor of Medicine at the University of California San Francisco, appointed to the Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine at the San Francisco General Hospital. As a clinician boarded in internal medicine, intensive care medicine, and respiratory medicine, I have expertise in diagnosing and managing the spectrum of lung disease spanning lung cancer, asthma, chronic bronchitis, and e-cigarette or vaping product use-associated lung injury (EVALI). As an NIH-funded patient-oriented researcher, I have expertise in respiratory physiology, vulnerable populations, and causal inference methods in observational research. I am an experienced collaborator and I have worked on several national and international multi-site observational cohort studies. My current research projects investigate the effects of environmental exposures, such as marijuana and vaping aerosol, and chronic viral infections, such as HIV and hepatitis C virus infections, on lung health outcomes, including lung cancer.

Research Funding

  • July 1, 2022 - June 30, 2027 - The Changing Epidemiology of Lung Health: Opportunities for Research on Cannabis and HIV Disease (The ORCHID Study) , Principal Investigator . Sponsor: NHLBI, Sponsor Award ID: K23HL162593
  • July 12, 2018 - June 30, 2019 - The M-PulSe Study: Detecting Pulmonary Edema in Sepsis with Lung Ultrasonography in Malawi , Principal Investigator . Sponsor: NIH, Sponsor Award ID: F32HL144063

Education

  • Stanford University, BS, 2004, Biological Sciences
  • Stanford University, BA, 2004, Cultural and Social Anthropology
  • Weill Cornell Medical College, MD, 2012, Medicine
  • NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital, Residency, 2015, Internal Medicine
  • University of California, San Francisco, Fellowship, 2018, Pulmonary & Critical Care Medicine
  • University of California, San Francisco, MAS, 2020, Clinical Research

Honors & Awards

  • 2018
    San Francisco General Hospital Patient Care Fund Award
  • 2015
    David E. Rogers Memorial Research Award, Second Place
  • 2012
    Lynford Family International Fellowship
  • 2008
    Weill Cornell Medical College International Fellowship
  • 2006
    Fulbright Fellowship to Singapore, U.S. Department of State
  • 2004
    Stanford Asian American Award
  • 2004
    Payson Treat Fellowship

Selected Publications

  1. Wang RJ. Beyond Race-Specific Spirometry Reference Equations: What Comes Next? Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2023 Aug 18.  View on PubMed
  2. Byanova KL, Fitzpatrick J, Jan AK, McGing M, Hartman-Filson M, Farr CK, Zhang M, Gardner K, Branchini J, Kerruish R, Bhide S, Bates A, Hsieh J, Abelman R, Hunt PW, Wang RJ, Crothers KA, Huang L. Isolated abnormal diffusing capacity for carbon monoxide (iso↓DLco) is associated with increased respiratory symptom burden in people with HIV infection. PLoS One. 2023; 18(7):e0288803.  View on PubMed
  3. Wang RJ. The Race Arithmetic of the GLI Global Reference Equations. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2023 May 16.  View on PubMed
  4. Wang RJ, Nouraie M, Kunisaki KM, Huang L, Tien PC, Anastos K, Bhandari N, Bhatt SP, Bolivar H, Cribbs SK, Foronjy R, Gange SJ, Lazarous D, Morris A, Drummond MB. Lung Function in Women With and Without Human Immunodeficiency Virus. Clin Infect Dis. 2023 02 08; 76(3):e727-e735.  View on PubMed
  5. Schell CO, Khalid K, Wharton-Smith A, Oliwa J, Sawe HR, Roy N, Sanga A, Marshall JC, Rylance J, Hanson C, Kayambankadzanja RK, Wallis LA, Jirwe M, Baker T, EECC Collaborators, EECC Collaborators*. Essential Emergency and Critical Care: a consensus among global clinical experts. BMJ Glob Health. 2021 Sep; 6(9).  View on PubMed
  6. Jan AK, Moore JV, Wang RJ, Mcging M, Farr CK, Moisi D, Hartman-Filson M, Kerruish R, Jeon D, Lewis E, Crothers K, Lederman MM, Hunt PW, Huang L. Markers of inflammation and immune activation are associated with lung function in a multi-center cohort of persons with HIV. AIDS. 2021 06 01; 35(7):1031-1040.  View on PubMed
  7. Wang RJ, Bhadriraju S, Glantz SA. E-Cigarette Use and Adult Cigarette Smoking Cessation: A Meta-Analysis. Am J Public Health. 2021 02; 111(2):230-246.  View on PubMed
  8. Wang RJ, Katha G, Phiri M, Delbridge P, Gordon SB, Calfee CS, Huang L, Rylance J. Sonographic B-Lines, Fluid Resuscitation, and Hypoxemia in Malawian Patients with Suspected Sepsis. Am J Respir Crit Care Med. 2020 08 01; 202(3):463-466.  View on PubMed
  9. Vanderburg S, Alipanah N, Crowder R, Yoon C, Wang R, Thakur N, Slown K, Shete PB, Rofael M, Metcalfe JZ, Merrifield C, Marquez C, Malcolm K, Lipnick M, Jain V, Gomez A, Burns G, Brown LB, Berger C, Auyeung V, Cattamanchi A, Hendrickson CM. Management and Outcomes of Critically-Ill Patients with COVID-19 Pneumonia at a Safety-net Hospital in San Francisco, a Region with Early Public Health Interventions: A Case Series. medRxiv. 2020 May 29.  View on PubMed
  10. Wang RJ, Moore J, Moisi D, Chang EG, Byanyima P, Kaswabuli S, Musisi E, Sanyu I, Sessolo A, Lalitha R, Worodria W, Davis JL, Crothers K, Lin J, Lederman MM, Hunt PW, Huang L. HIV infection is associated with elevated biomarkers of immune activation in Ugandan adults with pneumonia. PLoS One. 2019; 14(5):e0216680.  View on PubMed
  11. Wang RJ, Miller RF, Huang L. Approach to Fungal Infections in Human Immunodeficiency Virus-Infected Individuals: Pneumocystis and Beyond. Clin Chest Med. 2017 09; 38(3):465-477.  View on PubMed
  12. Nishtala A, Bui P, Wang RJ, Sheu L. Bilateral Peripheral Cystic Lesions in a Patient with Progressive Dyspnea. J Gen Intern Med. 2017; 32(6).  View on PubMed
  13. Peck RN, Wang RJ, Mtui G, Smart L, Yango M, Elchaki R, Wajanga B, Downs JA, Mteta K, Fitzgerald DW. Linkage to Primary Care and Survival After Hospital Discharge for HIV-Infected Adults in Tanzania: A Prospective Cohort Study. J Acquir Immune Defic Syndr. 2016 Dec 15; 73(5):522-530.  View on PubMed
  14. Trehan I, Goldbach HS, LaGrone LN, Meuli GJ, Wang RJ, Maleta KM, Manary MJ. Antibiotics as part of the management of severe acute malnutrition. N Engl J Med. 2013 Jan 31; 368(5):425-35.  View on PubMed
  15. Chang CY, Trehan I, Wang RJ, Thakwalakwa C, Maleta K, Deitchler M, Manary MJ. Children successfully treated for moderate acute malnutrition remain at risk for malnutrition and death in the subsequent year after recovery. J Nutr. 2013 Feb; 143(2):215-20.  View on PubMed
  16. Wang RJ, Trehan I, LaGrone LN, Weisz AJ, Thakwalakwa CM, Maleta KM, Manary MJ. Investigation of food acceptability and feeding practices for lipid nutrient supplements and blended flours used to treat moderate malnutrition. J Nutr Educ Behav. 2013 May-Jun; 45(3):258-63.  View on PubMed
  17. LaGrone LN, Trehan I, Meuli GJ, Wang RJ, Thakwalakwa C, Maleta K, Manary MJ. A novel fortified blended flour, corn-soy blend "plus-plus," is not inferior to lipid-based ready-to-use supplementary foods for the treatment of moderate acute malnutrition in Malawian children. Am J Clin Nutr. 2012 Jan; 95(1):212-9.  View on PubMed

Go to UCSF Profiles, powered by CTSI