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Our Impact

The Division of Pediatric Infectious Disease directs and manages two active inpatient consultation services across several hospitals and an active ambulatory service, including five separate clinics, for children with infectious diseases. A key part of our work includes operating the largest clinic for HIV-infected and HIV-exposed children and adolescents in North Texas at Children's Health℠ Children's Medical Center in Dallas. Other clinics are devoted to general infectious diseases, tuberculosis, congenital infection, and transplant infectious diseases.

The Division was established in the early 1960s with one faculty member: John D. Nelson, M.D. Shortly after, George McCracken, M.D., joined the Division, and the two managed the Division for decades, graduating more than 100 fellows, many of whom are currently leaders in academics and in the field of infectious diseases. Their efforts made the fellowship program one of – if not the – longest-standing and productive pediatric infectious disease fellowship programs in the world.

Drs. Nelson and McCracken were the founding editors for the Pediatric Infectious Disease Journal, the top publication in the field of pediatric infectious diseases. Currently, the Division has nine faculty members, an active fellowship program, and several research and administrative support staff.

2024 Impact

  • By the Numbers

    By the Numbers

    Faculty and Staff icon

    Faculty

    • 9 faculty
    Fellowships icon

    Clinical

    • 5 clinical sites
    • 1,888 outpatient encounters
    • 2,655 inpatient encounters
    Doctors in Training icon

    Education

    • 3 fellows
    Clinical Studies Icon

    Research

    • 5 active awards
    • $228,869 total funding from grants (FY25)
    • 4 active clinical trials
    • $50,155 revenue from clinical trials (FY25)
    • 4 lab and data studies
    • 30 publications
    • 1,596 citations
  • Honors and Awards

    Honors and Awards

    • Texas Fetal and Infant Mortality Review – Congenital Syphilis Case Review Team and Community Action Team, Core Team Dallas (Evans)
    • Dallas County HIV Task Force (Evans)
    • Cystic Fibrosis Infection Prevention and Control Guidelines Committee, Cystic Fibrosis Foundation (Most)
    • Dallas County Medical Society Community Emergency Response Committee member (Sebert)
    • Associate editor, PLOS Pathogens, 2023 – present (Wetzel)
    • 2024 ad hoc reviewer for NIH IIDA-D02 study section (Wetzel)
    • 2025 ad hoc reviewer for NIH DCAI-02 study section (Wetzel)
  • Top Peer-Reviewed Publications and Book Chapters

    Top Peer-Reviewed Publications and Book Chapters

    • Evans AS, Singh S, Joshi C, Filkins L, Akkoyun E, Custodio H, Daniels EA, Kao CM, Richardson K, Carrillo-Marquez M, Borré CI, Oliveira CR, Espinosa C, Mandelia Y, Mazade M, Kimberlin DW. Examining clinical features and severe neurologic disease of parechovirus infection in young infants: A multi-state cohort study. Clinical Infectious Diseases. 2024;ciae400, https://doi.org/10.1093/cid/ciae400.
    • Liu T, Hanners NW, Tao H, Szabo C, Xu D, Lin W, Schoggins JW, Yan N, Wu J. STT3A-mediated mega protein complex assembly during dengue and Zika virus infection.
    • Most ZM, Perl TM, Sebert ME. Respiratory virus infections in symptomatic and asymptomatic children upon hospital admission: new insights. Antimicrobial Stewardship and Healthcare Epidemiology. 2024;4, e162:1-8.
    • Most ZM, Hanna J, Radunsky A, Cooper L, Lehmann CU, Perl T, Medford R. Risk factors for candidemia in adults hospitalized with SARS-CoV-2 infection. Antimicrobial Stewardship & Healthcare Epidemiology. 2024;4(1):e69.
    • Most ZM, Phillips B, Sebert ME. Discontinuation of contact precautions for methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus in a pediatric healthcare system. Journal of the Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society. 2024;13(2):123-128.
    • Most ZM, Phillips B, Sebert ME. Healthcare-associated respiratory viral infections after discontinuing universal masking. Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology. 2024;45(2):247-249.
    • Nepal B, McCormick-Baw C, Patel K, Firmani S, Wetzel DM.* Cutaneous Leishmania mexicana infections in the United States: Defining strains through endemic human pediatric case in northern Texas. mSphere. 2024 Mar 26;9(3):e0081423.
    • Datta A, Barrie U, Wetzel DM.* A multi-color immunofluorescence assay to distinguish intracellular from external Leishmania parasites. Bio-protocol. 2024;14(11):e5009. PMCID: PMC11166538.
    • Barrie U, Floyd K, Datta A, Wetzel DM.* MAPK/ERK activation in macrophages promotes Leishmania internalization and pathogenesis. Microbes and Infection. 2024;26(5-6):105353.
    • Wei L, Barrie U, Aloisio G, Khuong FTK, Arang N, Datta A, Kaushansky A*, Wetzel DM.* Using machine learning to dissect host kinases required for Leishmania internalization and development. Molecular and Biochemical Parasitology Mol Biochem Parasitol. 2024;260:111651.
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