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Dr Christopher Owen

NAME	Dr Christopher G Owen
Research Status	Epidemiologist
Academic Section	Community Health Sciences
Phone Number	020 8725 2796
Email	cowen@sgul.ac.uk
Research Interests	Cardiovascular risk factors in childhood, life-course and ophthalmic epidemiology.
Research Methods	Epidemiology


External Committees
National: Dr Owen was formerly an advisor on a report commissioned by the Department of Health for the Special Advisory Committee on Nutrition, entitled ‘The influence of maternal, fetal and child nutrition on the development of disease in later life'.
External Collaborations
The lifecourse epidemiology group has a number of national and international collaborators who contribute to our systematic reviews and meta-analyses. This work is carried out under the auspices of the EARLYREAD (Early Risk Exposures in Adult Disease) Collaboration.
PUBLICATIONS 2001- 2007
Huxley R, Owen CG , Whincup PH, Cook DG, Rich-Edwards J, Davey Smith G et al. Is birth weight a risk factor for ischemic heart disease in later life? Am J Clin Nutr 2007; 85(5):1244-1250. Rudnicka AR , Owen CG , Strachan DP. The effect of breastfeeding on cardiorespiratory risk factors in adult life. Pediatrics 2007; 119(5):e1107-e1115. Rudnicka AR , Owen CG . Epidemiology of primary open angle glaucoma. In: Edgar DF, Rudnicka AR , eds. Glaucoma Identification and Co-management. Philadelphia , USA : Elsevier Ltd, 2007:1-16. Lawlor DA, Owen CG , Davies AA, Whincup PH, Ebrahim S, Cook DG, Davey-Smith G. Sex differences in the association between birth weight and total cholesterol. A meta-analysis. Ann Epidemiol 2006; 16:19-25. Owen CG , Carey IM, De Wilde S., Whincup PH, Wormald R, Cook DG. The epidemiology of medical treatment for glaucoma and ocular hypertension in the United Kingdom : 1994 to 2003. Br J Ophthalmol 2006; 90:861-868. Owen CG , Rudnicka AR, Smeeth L, Evans JR, Wormald RP, Fletcher AE. Is the NEI-VFQ-25 a useful tool in identifying visual impairment in an elderly population? BMC Ophthalmol 2006; 6:24. Owen CG , Whincup PH, Cook DG, Martin RM, Davey-Smith G. Differences Between Meta-analyses on Breastfeeding and Obesity Support Causality of the Association: In Reply. Pediatrics 2006; 117:987-988. Owen CG , Martin RM, Whincup PH, Davey-Smith G, Cook DG. Does breastfeeding influence risk of type 2 diabetes in later life? A quantitative analysis of published evidence. Am J Clin Nutr 2006; 84:1043-1054. Rudnicka AR, Mt-Isa S, Owen CG , Cook DG, Ashby D. Variations in Primary Open-Angle Glaucoma Prevalence by Age, Gender, and Race: A Bayesian Meta-Analysis. Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci 2006; 47:4254-4261. Whincup PH, Owen CG . Commentary: Early life determinants of blood pressure in childhood--where do we go from here? Int J Epidemiol 2006; 35:877-879. Martin RM, Middleton N, Gunnell D, Owen CG , Davey-Smith G. Breast-feeding and cancer: the Boyd Orr cohort and a systematic review with meta-analysis. J Natl Cancer Inst 2005; 97:1446-1457. Martin RM, Gunnell D, Owen CG , Davey-Smith G. Breast-feeding and childhood cancer: A systematic review with metaanalysis. Int J Cancer 2005; 117:1020-1031. Owen CG , Newsom RS, Rudnicka AR , Ellis TJ, Woodward EG. Vascular Response of the Bulbar Conjunctiva to Diabetes and Elevated Blood Pressure. Ophthalmology 2005; 112:1801-1808. Owen CG , Martin RM, Whincup PH, Davey-Smith G, Cook DG. Effect of infant feeding on the risk of obesity across the life course: a quantitative review of published evidence. Pediatrics 2005; 115:1367-1377. Owen CG , Whincup PH, Cook DG. Are early life factors responsible for international differences in adult blood pressure? An ecological study. Int J Epidemiol 2005; 34:649-654. Owen CG , Martin RM, Whincup PH, Davey-Smith G, Gillman MW, Cook DG. The effect of breastfeeding on mean body mass index throughout life: a quantitative review of published and unpublished observational evidence. Am J Clin Nutr 2005; 82:1298-1307. Whincup PH, Owen CG , Sattar N, Cook DG. School dinners and markers of cardiovascular health and type 2 diabetes in 13-16 year olds: cross sectional study. BMJ 2005; 331:1060-1061. Whincup PH, Gilg JA, Owen CG , Odoki K, Alberti KG, Cook DG. British South Asians aged 13-16 years have higher fasting glucose and insulin levels than Europeans. Diabet Med 2005; 22:1275-1277. Huxley R, Owen CG , Whincup PH, Cook DG, Colman S, Collins R. Birth weight and subsequent cholesterol levels: exploration of the "fetal origins" hypothesis. JAMA 2004; 292:2755-2764. Owen CG , Ellis TJ, Woodward EG. A comparison of manual and automated methods of measuring conjunctival vessel widths from photographic and digital images. Ophthalmic Physiol Opt 2004; 24:74-81. Owen CG , Henshaw K, Smeeth L, Sheikh A. Allergic conjunctivitis. In: Wormald R, Smeeth L, Henshaw K, editors. Evidence-based ophthalmology. London : BMJ Books; 2004. 17-32. Owen CG , Shah A, Henshaw K, Smeeth L, Sheikh A. Topical treatments for seasonal allergic conjunctivitis: systematic review and meta-analysis of efficacy and effectiveness. Br J Gen Pract 2004; 54:451-456. Owen CG , Fletcher AE, Donoghue M, Rudnicka AR. How big is the burden of visual loss caused by age related macular degeneration in the United Kingdom ? Br J Ophthalmol 2003; 87:312-317. Owen CG , Whincup PH, Gilg JA, Cook DG. Effect of breast feeding in infancy on blood pressure in later life: systematic review and meta-analysis. BMJ 2003; 327:1189-1195. Owen CG , Whincup PH, Odoki K, Gilg JA, Cook DG. Birth weight and blood cholesterol level: a study in adolescents and systematic review. Pediatrics 2003; 111:1081-1089. Owen CG , Ellis TJ, Rudnicka AR , Woodward EG. Optimal green (red-free) digital imaging of conjunctival vasculature. Ophthalmic Physiol Opt 2002; 22:234-243. Owen CG , Whincup PH, Odoki K, Gilg JA, Cook DG. Infant feeding and blood cholesterol: a study in adolescents and a systematic review. Pediatrics 2002; 110:597-608. Rudnicka AR , Frost C, Owen CG , Edgar DF. Nonlinear behavior of certain optic nerve head parameters and their determinants in normal subjects. Ophthalmology 2001; 108:2358-2368. *For a full list of division publications, please visit our website:* /depts/chs/chs_research/publications/publications.cfm
RESEARCH GRANTS
2007-2008 British Heart Foundation Project Grant 'Early markers of vascular disease in British children of South Asian, African-Caribbean and white European origin' Cost £228,915 for 18 months, PI Prof. Peter Whincup, co-applicants Prof. John Deanfield (Great Ormond Street Hospital) Prof. Derek Cook, Dr Chris Owen (St George's). Grant no. PG/07/033/22770. 2006-2008 Diabetes, UK Project Grant ‘Early life exposures and the risks of type 2 diabetes: building a systematic framework of observational evidence' Cost £77,817 for 2 years, PI Prof. Peter Whincup, co-applicants Dr Chris Owen , Prof. Derek Cook (St George's). Grant no. RD05/0003099. 2004-2007 British Heart Foundation Project grant 'Early life exposures and coronary heart disease risk: building a systematic framework of observational evidence'. Cost £153,163, 3 years, PI Prof. Peter Whincup ( St George's ), co-applicants Prof. Derek Cook, Dr Chris Owen , ( St George's ). Grant no. PG/04/072. 2004-2005 Pfizer ‘The epidemiology of treatment for glaucoma and ocular hypertension' using the Doctors Independent Network General Practice database. Cost £96,019 for 1½ years (2004-2005), PI Prof. Derek Cook, co-applicants Dr Chris Owen , Prof. Peter Whincup, Dr Stephen DeWilde, Dr Iain Carey (St George's), Mr Richard Wormald ( Institute of Ophthalmology , Moorfields Eye Hospital ). 2004-2005 Department of Health Special Advisory Committee on Nutrition - Subgroup on Maternal and Child Nutrition (SMCN) 'Influence of maternal, fetal, and child nutrition on the development of disease in later life'. Cost £18,830 for 6 months, applicants Dr Chris Owen , Dr Tony Williams, Prof. Peter Whincup, Prof. Derek Cook ( St George's ).