Michael Von Korff has carried out groundbreaking research on the management and outcomes of chronic pain, depression, and other illnesses in primary care settings. His work as an epidemiologist and health services researcher focuses on understanding how patients adapt to chronic illnesses associated with pain and psychological distress, including how they use health care services and cope with illness in their daily lives.

Dr. Von Korff has co-led major randomized trials examining various approaches to chronic illness management in primary care, including collaborative care for depression and interventions to improve self-care of chronic-recurrent back pain. A major focus throughout his career has been studying mental-physical comorbidity and how patients manage distressing physical symptoms. This research has included a series of longitudinal studies of disability and health care use among primary care patients with depression, back pain, headache, or other chronic pain conditions. More recently, his research has focused on trends and risks of long-term prescription of opioids for chronic non-cancer pain.

Dr. Von Korff has published more than 270 papers in peer-reviewed journals on mental health, pain, and chronic illness. In 1997, he was selected as a fellow of AcademyHealth and of the Society of Behavioral Medicine. In 2002, the Institute for Scientific Information recognized him as one of the nation's most highly cited scientists in psychiatry and behavioral sciences. He has served as an advisor to major World Health Organization initiatives related to disability and mental health. He also served as Group Health Research Institute (GHRI) Associate Director for Research from 1992 to1996 and again from 1999 to 2005.

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Recent publications

Heckbert SR, Rutter CM, Oliver M, Williams LH, Ciechanowski P, Lin EH, Katon WJ, Von Korff M. Depression in relation to long-term control of glycemia, blood pressure, and lipids in patients with diabetes. J Gen Intern Med. 2010 Feb 24. [Epub ahead of print]. PubMed

Katon WJ, Lin EH, Williams LH, Ciechanowski P, Heckbert SR, Ludman E, Rutter C, Crane PK, Oliver M, Von Korff M. Comorbid depression is associated with an increased risk of dementia diagnosis in patients with diabetes: a prospective cohort study. J Gen Intern Med. 2010 Jan 28. [Epub ahead of print]. PubMed

Dunn KM, Saunders KW, Rutter CM, Banta-Green CJ, Merrill JO, Sullivan MD, Weisner CM, Silverberg MJ, Campbell CI, Psaty BM, Von Korff M. Opioid prescriptions for chronic pain and overdose: a cohort study. Ann Intern Med. 2010;152(2):85-92. PubMed

Saunders KW, Dunn KM, Merrill JO, Sullivan M, Weisner C, Braden JB, Psaty BM, Von Korff M. Relationship of opioid use and dosage levels to fractures in older chronic pain patients. J Gen Intern Med. 2010 Jan 5. [Epub ahead of print]. PubMed

Lin EH, Rutter CM, Katon W, Heckbert SR, Ciechanowski P, Oliver MM, Ludman EJ, Young BA, Williams LH, McCulloch DK, Von Korff M. Depression and advanced complications of diabetes: a prospective cohort study. Diabetes Care. 2010 Feb;33(2):264-9. Epub 2009 Nov 23. PubMed

Boudreau D, Von Korff M, Rutter CM, Saunders K, Ray GT, Sullivan MD, Campbell CI, Merrill JO, Silverberg MJ, Banta-Green C, Weisner C. Trends in long-term opioid therapy for chronic non-cancer pain. Pharmacoepidemiol Drug Saf. 2009 Dec;18(12):1166-75. Epub 2009 Aug 28. PubMed

Katon W, Russo J, Lin EH, Heckbert SR, Ciechanowski P, Ludman EJ, Von Korff M. Depression and diabetes: factors associated with major depression at five-year follow-up. Psychosomatics. 2009;50(6):570-9. PubMed

Katon W, Russo J, Lin EH, Heckbert SR, Karter AJ, Williams LH, Ciechanowski P, Ludman E, Von Korff M. Diabetes and poor disease control: is comorbid depression associated with poor medication adherence or lack of treatment intensification? Psychosom Med. 2009 Nov;71(9):965-72. Epub 2009 Oct 15. PubMed

Gensichen J, Von Korff M, Rutter CM, Seelig MD, Ludman EJ, Lin EH, Ciechanowski P, Young BA, Wagner EH, Katon WJ. Physician support for diabetes patients and clinical outcomes. BMC Public Health. 2009 Sep 29;9:367. PubMed

Braden JB, Sullivan MD, Ray GT, Saunders K, Merrill J, Silverberg MJ, Rutter CM, Weisner C, Banta-Green C, Campbell C, Von Korff M. Trends in long-term opioid therapy for noncancer pain among persons with a history of depression. Gen Hosp Psychiatry. 2009;31(6):564-70. Epub 2009 Aug 27. PubMed

Katon WJ, Russo JE, Heckbert SR, Lin EH, Ciechanowski P, Ludman E, Young B, Von Korff M. The relationship between changes in depression symptoms and changes in health risk behaviors in patients with diabetes. Int J Geriatr Psychiatry. 2009 Aug 26. [Epub ahead of print]. PubMed

To view more publications, please see Dr. Von Korff's CV.

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