About

Leonelo Bautista is an Associate Professor of Population Health Sciences at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. His main research interests include the distribution of cardiovascular diseases and risk factors in developing countries, the etiology of coronary heart disease, and the role of chronic mild inflammation and endothelial function in the development of essential hypertension. He is the Principal Investigator of the Consortium of Latin American Studies on Obesity (LASO), which aims to understand the causes and consequences of obesity in Latin America. Bautista's research also explores the link between mild chronic inflammation and the clinical course of essential hypertension, as well as the impact of quality of life, depression, and socioeconomic factors on non-adherence to pharmacologic treatment among patients with hypertension. He holds credentials including MD, MPH, and DrPH, and is affiliated as an adjunct professor at the Department of Preventive Medicine and Biometrics at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences. Additionally, he serves on the editorial board of The Open Obesity Journal and is a member of the Society for Epidemiologic Research, the American College of Epidemiology, and the American Heart Association.

Research topics

• Humanities
• Medicine
• Art
• Artificial Intelligence
• Computer Science
• Political Science
• Physics
• Biology
• Virology
• Chromatography
• Genetics
• Chemistry
• Internal medicine
• Engineering

Selected publications

• Typologies of Maternal Substance Use in Pregnancy: Latent Classes and Sociodemographic Correlates in a U.S. Sample

  Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs · 2025-01-20

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  Objective: Substance use patterns vary considerably in the general population, yet little is known about patterns before and during pregnancy. The purpose of this study was to describe single substance and polysubstance use (PSU) before and during pregnancy among recent births in the United States (US) and compare exposure patterns. Methods: We used data from the Pregnancy and Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS) postpartum survey for 2016-2018 to estimate the prevalence and identify patterns of substance use by participants one to three months before and during pregnancy. Data on use of cigarettes, cannabis, opioids, amphetamines, heroin, and cocaine were available for seven states. We used latent class analysis to identify patterns of substance use and tested whether participants with those patterns differed by age, income, race/ethnicity, and pre-pregnancy alcohol use. Analyses were weighted using PRAMS’ state-level weights. Results: We studied 15,429 participants representing 384,918 live, singleton births. Approximately half (51.3%) were 20-29 years old, 42.3% were above 200% of the Federal Poverty Level, and 73.3% were non-Hispanic White. We identified seven latent classes of maternal substance use: minimal users (70.7%), pre-pregnancy cigarette users (10.5%), persistent cigarette users (6.8%), pre-pregnancy cannabis users (5.5%), broad PSU (3.6%), opioid-only users (1.9%), and persistent cigarette/opioid co-users (1.0%). Participants in these groups differed significantly by age, income, race/ethnicity, and pre-pregnancy alcohol use (p<0.001). Conclusions: This novel empirical classification of single and PSU could help to further our understanding of the impact of PSU on perinatal health and to design interventions for maternal substance use.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Serie de casos: Difteria en el Hospital Infantil Dr. Robert Reid Cabral, Semana Epidemiológica

  Ciencia y Salud · 2023-10-14

  articleOpen access1st authorCorresponding

  Carta/comentario sobre el artículo publicado por Mancebo García et al. sobre una serie de casos de difteria.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Pronunciamiento del Nodo SAO en relación con la práctica del vapeo en Colombia y sus efectos sobre la salud humana

  Salud UIS · 2023-12-13

  articleOpen accessSenior author

  Durante los últimos días hemos revisado con preocupación los datos de Colombia publicados por algunos investigadores nacionales sobre la prevalencia, factores asociados y potenciales efectos de la enfermedad asociada al uso de cigarrillos electrónicos conocido como "vapeo".Dichos resultados han sido replicados

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Predicting the risk of incident hypertension and increase in blood pressure: A systematic review of existing prediction models for adults

  medRxiv · 2023-04-19

  reviewOpen accessSenior author

  ABSTRACT Background and aims Models that can predict the risk of developing essential hypertension or increase in blood pressure (BP) can be used to identify high risk individuals. We aimed to summarize and assess prediction models developed in the general adult population using longitudinal data, as well as any external validation of such models. Methods For this systematic review, we searched the literature on Medline and Embase for studies published between database inception and February 5, 2021. We conducted a narrative synthesis of all models and assessed the risk of bias (ROB) in included studies using PROBAST. We also performed a meta-analysis of all external validation studies validating the Framingham hypertension risk model. We excluded models based on cross-sectional data, or those based on specific patient populations. Results Our review includes 29 articles which contain 42 prediction models and 11 external validation studies of existing prediction models. Among model development studies, only five models performed both internal and external validation. Among the validation studies, only two existing models were externally validated by researchers other than the ones who developed the model. Most models had low ROB in the predictors and outcomes domains, and half had low ROB in the participants domain. However, all had high ROB in the analysis domain due to inappropriate handling of missing data and/or lack of adequate performance measures, which resulted in high overall ROB for all models. Conclusions All current risk prediction models predicting hypertension or increased blood pressure have high ROB and most have not been externally validated. New studies should aim to reduce their ROB using standard reporting guidelines and externally validated existing models.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• The need for transparency in COVID-19 vaccine trials and vaccination policies: the case of CoronaVac in Latin America

  Journal of Public Health and Emergency · 2023-09-01 · 1 citations

  articleOpen access1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• 13. Hypertension

  American Public Health Association eBooks · 2023-01-01

  book-chapter1st authorCorresponding
  PublisherDOI

• Sensitivity and efficiency of RNA sample pooling for real-time quantitative polymerase chain reaction testing for SARS-CoV-2

  Journal of Public Health and Emergency · 2022 · 3 citations

  1st authorCorresponding
  • Humanities
  • Computer Science
  • Art

  En el Repositorio Universidad de Santander están depositados materiales en formato digital fruto de la producción científica o académica, de esta manera permite almacenar, difundir y preservar información de vital importancia.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Cadmium Exposure and Risk of Breast Cancer: A Meta-Analysis

  SSRN Electronic Journal · 2022-01-01 · 1 citations

  articleOpen access
  PublisherDOI

• Validation of RT-qPCR test for SARS-CoV-2 in saliva specimens

  Journal of Infection and Public Health · 2022 · 3 citations

  Senior authorCorresponding
  • Medicine
  • Internal medicine
  • Chemistry

  BACKGROUND: Saliva samples may be an easier, faster, safer, and cost-saving alternative to NPS samples, and can be self-collected by the patient. Whether SARS-CoV-2 RT-qPCR in saliva is more accurate than in nasopharyngeal swaps (NPS) is uncertain. We evaluated the accuracy of the RT-qPCR in both types of samples, assuming both approaches were imperfect. METHODS: We assessed the limit of detection (LoD) of RT-qPCR in each type of sample. We collected paired NPS and saliva samples and tested them using the Berlin Protocol to detect SARS-CoV-2 envelope protein (E). We used a Bayesian latent class analysis (BLCA) to estimate the sensitivity and specificity of each test, while accounting for their conditional dependence. RESULTS: The LoD were 10 copies/mL in saliva and 100 copies/mL in NPS. Paired samples of saliva and NPS were collected in 412 participants. Out of 68 infected cases, 14 were positive only in saliva. RT-qPCR sensitivity ranged from 82.7 % (95 % CrI: 54.8, 94.8) in NPS to 84.5 % (50.9, 96.5) in saliva. Corresponding specificities were 99.1 % (95 % CrI: 95.3, 99.8) and 98.4 %(95 % CrI: 92.8, 99.7). CONCLUSIONS: SARS-CoV-2 RT-qPCR test in saliva specimens has a similar or better accuracy than RT-qPCR test in NPS. Saliva specimens may be ideal for surveillance in general population, particularly in children, and in healthcare or other personnel in need of serial testing.

  PublisherDOI

• Alternancia Escolar: un reto para garantizar la salud y la vida de la comunidad educativa

  Revista CUIDARTE · 2021-01-01

  articleOpen access

  La inesperada llegada de la pandemia, enfrentó a todo el mundo a cambios drásticos en la forma de vida que se disfrutaba en épocas de normalidad, obligando a la población a diferentes tipos de confinamientos. Estos trajeron consigo el cierre de casi todos los sectores y en consecuencia la interrupción de muchos servicios esenciales, como las intervenciones en el sector educativo. Muchas de estas intervenciones estaban dirigidas, además de a la educación misma, a brindar protección a los escolares, detectar condiciones de riesgo de violencia intrafamiliar, maltrato y trabajo infantil, suministrar raciones alimenticias, vigilar el cumplimiento del esquema de vacunación y a evitar la deserción escolar, entre otras. Aunque los escolares no son el grupo más afectado por COVID-19, un reciente estudio de UNICEF realizado en 87 países revela que, en noviembre de 2020, los niños y los adolescentes representaron el 11% del total de infecciones1, mientras que, en Colombia, la proporción de casos pediátricos (menores de 18 años) se estima entre 7-8% y representan el 0.025% del total de fallecimientos2. Aunque se ha reportado que el riesgo de infección en escolares es menor que el del personal docente y administrativo en instituciones de educación, esta discrepancia pudiera estar sobreestimada debido a una menor probabilidad de detección considerando el curso predominantemente asintomático de la infección en niños. Sin embargo, COVID-19 puede ser una enfermedad severa en los menores, contribuyendo no solo al número de ingresos a unidades de cuidados intensivo sino al de casos fatales3. En términos de la transmisión, un estudio conducido en población infantil evidenció que esta ocurre con mayor frecuencia en el entorno familiar, relacionándose directamente con el estadio de enfermedad del caso índice: comparados con casos asintomáticos aquellos en etapa pre sintomática fueron responsables del doble de casos secundarios (1/3 versus 1/6)4. Esto indica que los niños infectados constituyen una fuente importante de contagio para sus pares, con evidencia de mayor transmisión en el nivel de secundaria comparado con el de primaria5, así como para los miembros del personal docente y administrativo de sus escuelas. Estos últimos, a su vez generarían nuevos casos de infección en la comunidad estudiantil y dada cuenta de su mayor movilidad, también en la población general6.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

Recent grants

• NIH Grant R24TW009547

  NIH · $147k · 2015

Frequent coauthors

• Aroon D. Hingorani

  University College London

  44 shared

• Salim Yusuf

  McMaster University

  42 shared

• Shofiqul Islam

  McMaster University

  39 shared

• Álvaro Avezum

  Imperial College London

  36 shared

• Rafael Díaz

  Instituto Cardiovascular de Rosario

  36 shared

• Max Luna

  36 shared

• Fernando Laņas

  Universidad de La Frontera

  36 shared

• Juan P. Casas

  34 shared

Education

• DrPH, Epidemiology

  Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health

  1993

• Master in Public Health, Epidemiology

  Universidad Autónoma de Santo Domingo Facultad Ciencias de la Salud

  1986

• MD

  Universidad Autonoma de Santo Domingo

  1983