Shri Vijay Bala Yogendra Shivakumar, MD

Pune, India
Role: 
Staff
Protocol Specialist
Shivakumar Headshot

Dr. Shivakumar's professional journey is marked by a deep commitment to advancing public health and research in the field of tuberculosis (TB). With a wealth of experience and a strong academic background, he plays a pivotal role as a clinician and protocol specialist for the RePORT India consortium at the Johns Hopkins University Office in India.

In 2013, Dr. Shivakumar embarked on his career at the ICMR-National Institute for Research in TB in Chennai, where he served as a field clinician and site coordinator for C-TRUIMPH. This role involved recruiting a cohort of active TB patients and their household contacts and closely monitoring their health over a two-year period. His work at this stage laid the foundation for his future contributions to TB research and public health initiatives.

In 2016, Dr. Shivakumar made a significant transition by joining the Johns Hopkins team in India. Here, he took on the role of the overall project coordinator for C-TRIUMPH, overseeing participant enrollment in both Chennai and Pune. His dedication to managing the study and its related sub-studies has been unwavering.

Dr. Shivakumar's research interests are driven by a passion to better understand and combat the complexities of TB. He has delved into the infectiousness of extrapulmonary TB, focusing on its implications for treatment outcomes. His work also seeks to mitigate risk factors for TB-related fatalities and gain insights into sub-clinical TB among household contacts of adult pulmonary TB patients.

As part of his educational journey, Dr. Shivakumar completed a Master of Public Health in Epidemiology and Health Systems at the ICMR-National Institute of Epidemiology in Chennai. During this program, he made substantial contributions by supporting the Tamil Nadu state NTEP cell. His responsibilities included conducting a surveillance evaluation of "Nikshay," a pivotal tool for TB surveillance in India. He not only presented his findings at national and international conferences but also conducted a comprehensive situation analysis of TB within the state. This analysis included a detailed examination of trends in TB-related deaths between 2017 and 2021.

In addition to his TB-focused work, Dr. Shivakumar has actively participated in public health initiatives. He supported the "Tamil Nadu Kasanoi Erapilla Thittam" initiative, which aimed to reduce TB-related deaths. His input on assessing disease severity and providing valuable feedback at in-patient care centers in Coimbatore district, Tamil Nadu, has contributed to improving patient care.

Furthermore, his dedication to epidemiology led him to conduct a Shigella outbreak investigation in Shivamogga, Karnataka. He presented the findings of this investigation at a field epidemiology conference in Canberra, Australia. Dr. Shivakumar's journey in public health and TB research is marked by significant achievements and a relentless commitment to making a positive impact. His aspirations include pursuing a Ph.D. in Epidemiology to further contribute to India's goal of achieving a TB-free nation.

The Regional Prospective Observational Research In Tuberculosis (Report) India Phase II Common Protocol

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2022-01-10
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Purpose and Scientific Aims The purpose of the RePORT India Phase II Common Protocol is to collect and utilize data and specimens for tuberculosis (TB) research, leveraging the existing infrastructure, processes, and scientific partnerships established under RePORT India consortium. The RePORT...

Pharmacokinetic Assessment of MDR-TB Drugs in the Treatment of TB Meningitis

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2020-08-23
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Rationale: MDR-TBM is a devastating disease with high mortality and severe neurologic sequelae among survivors. We recognize the importance of sufficient drug concentrations at the site of infection for efficacy of anti-TB drugs and believe it is likely that drug distribution into brain and CSF...

Identification of Biomarkers That Can Predict Progression from Latent Tuberculosis Infection to Active Tuberculosis Disease

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2020-08-23
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Purpose: The C-TRIUMPH study has identified 20 household contacts (HHC), who have progressed to active TB from its HHCs cohort (Cohort B). Immunological profiling of TB antigen induced biosignatures, profiling of transcriptional and proteomic biosignatures should provide novel insights into the...

Validating a Novel Functional Correlate of Immune Protection of Tuberculosis

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2018-10-03
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This C-TRIUMPH study is a longitudinal assessment of PBMC samples of progressors and non-progressors among adult household contacts of active TB patients. The purpose of the study is to probe the functional diversity of T cell responses to several of the antigens encoded by Mtb simultaneously in...

Molecular Signatures of Tuberculosis-Diabetes Interaction: Metabolomics Study

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2018-06-15
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This study is using stored samples from the Cohort for Tuberculosis Research by the Indo-US Medical Partnership (C-TRIUMPH), under the Regional Prospective Observational Research for Tuberculosis (RePORT) Network, an international TB consortium. Type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM...

Molecular Signatures of Tuberculosis-Diabetes Interaction: Transcriptomics Study

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2018-06-15
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This study is using stored samples from the Cohort for Tuberculosis Research by the Indo-US Medical Partnership (C-TRIUMPH), under the Regional Prospective Observational Research for Tuberculosis (RePORT) Network, an international TB consortium. Type 2 diabetes is an...

Association of Lipid Mediators of Inflammation with TB Treatment Outcomes

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2017-08-03
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This study was terminated July 22, 2019. This study used stored samples from the Cohort for Tuberculosis Research by the Indo-US Medical Partnership (C-TRIUMPH), under the Regional Prospective Observational Research for Tuberculosis (RePORT) Network, an international TB...

Biomarkers for Tuberculosis Diagnosis and Treatment Response

Post Date: 
2017-03-24
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This study is conducted by the Cohort for Tuberculosis Research by the Indo-US Medical Partnership (C-TRIUMPH) under the Regional Prospective Observational Research for Tuberculosis (RePORT) Network, an international TB consortium. Aims: ...

MDR-TB Free: Monitoring Adverse Effects, Utilizing Resources Optimally, Knowing Resistance Patterns, and Treatment Strategy

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2017-03-24
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This study is also known as MDR-TB MUKT: Monitoring Adverse Effects, Utilizing Resources Optimally, Knowing Resistance Patterns, and Treatment Strategy. Purpose: To establish an observational cohort of MDR-TB cases and household contacts with accompanying biorepository at PD Hinduja National...

Impact of HIV and Diabetes Mellitus on TB Drug Resistance and Recurrence

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2017-03-02
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This study was terminated in January 2021. Tuberculosis (TB) is the leading cause of mortality globally. With increasing burden of HIV and diabetes mellitus (DM), there is a critical need to understand the microbial response and ensuing disease dynamics of TB in the HIV-infected and diabetic host...

Residual Respiratory Impairment Following Pulmonary Tuberculosis

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2015-09-13
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This study is conducted by the Cohort for Tuberculosis Research by the Indo-US Medical Partnership (C-TRIUMPH) under the Regional Prospective Observational Research for Tuberculosis (RePORT) Network, an international TB consortium. Many TB patients have...

Cohort for Tuberculosis Research by the Indo-US Medical Partnership (C-TRIUMPH)

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2013-09-28
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Collaboratively funded by the US NIH, India’s Department of Biotechnology [DBT], and Indian Council of Medical Research, the Cohort for TB Research by the Indo-US Medical Partnership (C-TRIUMPH) is an Indo-US research consortium that is part of RePORT India, a countrywide consortium for TB...

RePORT India

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2012-06-30
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RePORT India is a joint venture between the Indian and US governments. The Indo-US Vaccine Action Program, a collaboration between the Indian Department of Biotechnology (DBT), the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR), and the US NIH, is co-funding six teams of India- and US-based...

BWI CTU: Baltimore-Washington-India Clinical Trials Unit

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2007-02-02
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Comprising clinical trial sites at Johns Hopkins Medicine in Baltimore, Whitman Walker Health in Washington, DC, and the BJGMC-CCGHE collaboration in Pune, India, the Baltimore-Washington-India Clinical Trials Unit (BWI-CTU) is one of only 25 international HIV/TB clinical trial sites funded by the...

Characterising cause of death among people treated for drug-susceptible TB in India

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2023-01-12
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The International Journal of Tuberculosis and Lung Disease
Annually, 1.5 million people die of TB.1 India has thehighest burden of TB,1 and in 2020, the case fatality ratio (CFR) among people with drug-susceptible TB was 4.3%.2 Even after treatment, mortality is more than two-fold higher among people with prior TB compared to the general population.3...

Whole Genome Sequencing Assessing Impact of Diabetes Mellitus on Tuberculosis Mutations and Type of Recurrence in India

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2022-10-06
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Clinical Infectious Diseases
Dr. Vidya Mave and colleagues concluded considerable intrahost mycobacterium tuberculosis mutation rates were present at recurrence among patients with diabetes mellitus.

Concomitant pulmonary disease is common among patients with extrapulmonary TB

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2022-08-12
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International Journal of Tuberculosis and Lung Disease
Dr. Shivakumar and his group discovered that a high proportion of patients classified as EPTB in India have concomitant PTB. Their results support the need for improved symptom and CXR screening, and recommends routine sputum TB microbiology screening of all Indian patients with EPTB.

Cycloserine did not increase depression incidence or severity at standard dosing for MDR-TB

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2022-03-24
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European Respitory Journal
In 2018 cycloserine was elevated to World Health Organization (WHO) group B status for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB), and is recommended in longer MDR-TB treatment regimens [ 1 ]. Inclusion of cycloserine is associated with improved MDR-TB treatment success and reduced mortality, but is...

Host lipidome and tuberculosis treatment failure

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2022-01-06
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European Respiratory Journal
Introduction: Host lipids play important roles in tuberculosis (TB) pathogenesis. Whether host lipids at TB treatment initiation (baseline) affect subsequent treatment outcomes has not been well characterised. We used unbiased lipidomics to study the prospective association of host lipids with TB...

Increased Moxifloxacin Dosing among MDR-TB Patients with Low-Level Resistance to Moxifloxacin did not Improve Treatment Outcomes in a Tertiary Care Center in Mumbai, India

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2021-12-23
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Open Forum Infectious Diseases
Background Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) strains resistant to isoniazid and rifampin (multidrug-resistant tuberculosis [MDR-TB]) are increasingly reported worldwide, requiring renewed focus on the nuances of drug resistance. Patients with low-level moxifloxacin resistance may benefit from higher...

Baseline IL-6 is a biomarker for unfavorable tuberculosis treatment outcomes: a multi-site discovery and validation study

Post Date: 
2021-11-08
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The European Respiratory Journal
Dr. Akshay Gupte and colleagues discovered that elevated IL-6 can predict poor treatment outcomes, showcasing a need for including IL-6 in clinical screenings.

Unhealthy alcohol use independently associated with unfavorable TB treatment outcomes among Indian men

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2021-03-10
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International Journal of Tuberculosis and Lung Disease
This study by Samyra Cox and colleagues highlights the need for integrating effective alcohol interventions into TB care.

Integration of metabolomics and transcriptomics reveals novel biomarkers in the blood for tuberculosis diagnosis in children

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2020-11-11
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Scientific Reports
Pediatric tuberculosis (TB) remains a major global health problem. Improved pediatric diagnostics using readily available biosources are urgently needed. We used liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry to analyze plasma metabolite profiles of Indian children with active TB (n = 16) and age- and sex...

Assessment of persistent depression among TB patients

Post Date: 
2020-11-01
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International Journal of Tuberculosis and Lung Disease
(No abstract available)

Tuberculosis preventive treatment should be considered for all household contacts of pulmonary tuberculosis patients in India

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2020-07-29
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PLoS One
PLoS One: Dr. Mandar Paradkar and colleagues conducted a CTRIUMPH study that supports TB preventive therapy for all household contacts of pulmonary TB patients in India

A mobile health-facilitated behavioral intervention for community health workers improves exclusive breastfeeding and early infant HIV diagnosis in India: A cluster randomized trial

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2020-07-03
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Journal of the International AIDS Society
When community health workers used a mobile health intervention with HIV+ women to deliver care, there was a higher uptake of exclusive breastfeeding at two months and early infant HIV diagnosis at six weeks

Transcriptomic profiles of confirmed pediatric tuberculosis patients and household contacts identifies active tuberculosis, infection, and treatment response among Indian children

Post Date: 
2019-12-04
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Journal of Infectious Diseases
Journal of Infectious Diseases: Gene expression profiles among Indian children with confirmed TB were distinct from those of adults, highlighting the importance of including distinct populations in differential gene expression models

MAL adaptor (TIRAP) S180L polymorphism and severity of disease among tuberculosis patients

Post Date: 
2019-10-31
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Infection, Genetics, and Evolution
Infection, Genetics, and Evolution : We investigated the association of TIRAP variants with severity of TB disease and IP-10 production in humans, which may be useful in predicting poor clinical outcome

Smoking, alcohol use disorder and tuberculosis treatment outcomes: A dual co-morbidity burden that cannot be ignored

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2019-07-31
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PLoS One
BACKGROUND: More than 20% of tuberculosis (TB) disease worldwide may be attributable to smoking and alcohol abuse. India is the second largest consumer of tobacco products, a major consumer of alcohol particularly among males, and has the highest burden of TB globally. The impact of...

Infection free "resisters" among household contacts of adult pulmonary tuberculosis

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2019-07-18
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PLoS One
Despite substantial exposure to infectious pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) cases, some household contacts (HHC) never acquire latent TB infection (LTBI). Characterizing these "resisters" can inform who to study immunologically for the development of TB vaccines. We enrolled HHCs of culture-confirmed...

Age-specific prevalence of TB infection among household contacts of pulmonary tuberculosis: Is it time for TB preventive therapy?

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2019-06-21
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Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
BACKGROUND: Household contacts (HHCs) of TB patients are at high risk of developing evidence of latent TB infection (LTBI) and active disease from the index patient. We estimated the age-specific prevalence of LTBI and the force of infection (FI), as a measure of recent transmission, among HHCs of...

Assessment of lung function in successfully treated tuberculosis reveals high burden of ventilatory defects and COPD

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2019-05-23
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PLoS One
New in PLoS One: We found a high burden of lung function defects and COPD in tuberculosis cases who successfully completed treatment, suggesting a need for lung function screening as part of patient management.

Subtherapeutic rifampicin concentration is associated with unfavourable tuberculosis treatment outcomes

Post Date: 
2019-05-10
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Clinical Infectious Diseases
Rifampicin concentrations were sub-therapeutic in most Indian patients taking a thrice-weekly TB regimen

Respiratory health status is associated with treatment outcomes in pulmonary tuberculosis

Post Date: 
2019-04-19
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The International Journal of Tuberculosis and Lung Disease
BACKGROUND: The association between respiratory impairment and tuberculosis (TB) treatment outcomes is not clear. METHODS: We prospectively evaluated respiratory health status, measured using the Saint George's Respiratory Questionnaire (SGRQ), in a cohort of new adult pulmonary TB cases during and...

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Abhilash Suresh

Baltimore, Maryland
Abhilash Suresh is a BS candidate in biomedical engineering at Johns Hopkins Whiting School of Engineering (2018), who worked with Drs. Akshay Gupte and Shri Vijay Bala Yogendra Shivakumar on the C-TRIUMPH substudy on Residual Respiratory Impairment Following Pulmonary Tuberculosis. During May and June 2016 he conducted a field placement in Chennai, India, at the National Institute for Research in Tuberculosis where he worked under Dr. Shivakumar. Awards 2016 Global Health Established Field Placement Grant ...

Advancing Global TB Research through RePORT

Post Date: 
2016-02-29
Regional Prospective Observational Research for Tuberculosis (RePORT) International is a large, international tuberculosis research effort being undertaken by 4 regional consortia: RePORT Brazil, RePORT South Africa, RePORT Indonesia, and RePORT India. While each region collects and maintains...