Department of Medicine
Faculty Profiles by Division

Division of Infectious Diseases

Faculty Profiles

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photo Deborah K. McMahon, MD

Infectious Diseases

Professor of Medicine

Clinical Director, HIV/AIDS Care Center

Email: mcmahond@pitt.edu

Phone: 412-383-1675

Contact
Office: Keystone Building, Suite 510
3520 Fifth Avenue
Pittsburgh, PA 15213
 
Phone: 412-383-1675
Fax: 412-383-2900
E-mail: mcmahond@pitt.edu
Administrative Assistant:
Ari Blackford-Rupp
Address: Keystone Bldg.
Keystone Bldg. 5th Floor
Pittsburgh, PA 15213
Email: akb121@pitt.edu
Phone: 412-383-1675
Fax: 412-383-2900
Education and Training
Education
BA, Seton Hill College, Greensburg, PA, 1977
MD, Temple University, Philadelphia, PA, 1981
Training
Internship/Residency Training, Maimonides Medical Center, New York, 1985
Infectious Diseases Fellowship, University of Pittsburgh, 1988
Research Interest
Dr. McMahon's research focuses on the HIV reservoir and eradication strategies. She currently serves as co-chair of two NIH-funded AIDS Clinical Trials Group studies. The first study examines the decay of the HIV reservoir in HIV­ infected patients receiving long-term antiretroviral therapy; its substudy intensively examines the reservoir in anatomic sites, such as the blood, gut-associated lymphatic tissue, and CSF. The second study evaluates the impact of a histone deactelyase inhibitor, romidepsin, on immune activation and HIV expression in HIV-infected patients suppressed on antiretroviral therapy. She is also site principal investigator for an NIH-funded study to examine the effects of rifaximin on immune activation and inflammation. She has over 25 years of HIV clinical research experience.
Clinical Interest
Dr. McMahon serves as Clinical Director of the UPMC HIV/AIDS Program, which provides comprehensive HIV primary care services to individuals living with HIV/AIDS in southwestern Pennsylvania. Men, women, and youth 18 years of age and older receive the full spectrum of HIV care at the Pittsburgh AIDS Center for Treatment (PACT), a National Center for Quality Assurance (NCQA)-designated Level 3 Patient-Centered Medical Home. She serves as Project Director for the HRSA funded-Ryan White Program and oversees a team of physicians, mental health specialists, HIV pharmacist, social workers, medical case manager, and nutritionist. Additionally, she leads a HRSA-funded Special Projects of National Significance (SPNS), designed to develop system-level workforce capacity building by integrating HIV primary care in a community health care setting. Finally, she is actively engaged in a major regional initiative, AIDS Free Pittsburgh, focused on dramatically reducing the incidence of new HIV infections and eliminating new AIDS diagnoses in Allegheny County by 2020.
Educational Interest
Dr. McMahon has a long-standing commitment to HIV/AIDS education and training. She serves as co-principal investigator for the HRSA-funded Mid Atlantic AIDS Education and Training Center, which provides HIV/AIDS education, consultation, technical assistance, and resource materials to health professionals throughout the region. She also mentors fellows, residents and students during their clinical rotations through PACT.
Publications
For my complete bibliography, Click Here.
Selected Publications:
Cohen OJ, Pantaleo G, Holodniy, M, Fox CH, Orenstein JM, Schnittman S, Niu M, Graziosi C, Pavlakis GN, Lalezari J, Bartlett JA, Steigbigel RT, Cohn J, Novak R, McMahon DK, Fauci AS. Anti-retroviral monotherapy in early stage human immunodeficiency virus disease has no detectable effect on viral load in lymphoid tissue. J Infect Dis. 1996; 173: 849-856.
Gulick RM, Mellors JW, Havlir D, Eron J, Ganzolez C, McMahon DK, Richman DD, Valentine F, Jonas L, Deutsch P, Meinbohm A, Holder D, Schleif W, Condra J, Emini E, Chodakewitz JA. Treatment with a combination of indinavir, zidovudine, and lamivudine in HIV-infected adults with prior antiretroviral use. N Engl J Med. 1997; 337: 734-739.
McMahon DK, Lederman M, Haas DW, Haubrich R, Stanford J, Cooney E, Horton J, Kelleher D, Ross L, Cutrell A, Lee D, Spreen W, Mellors JW. Antiretroviral activity and safety of abacavir in combination with selected HIV-1 protease inhibitors in therapy naïve HIV-1 infected adults. Antivir Ther. 2001; 6: 105-114.
McMahon DK, DiNubile MJ, Meibohm AR, Marino DR, Robertson MN for the Protocol 060 Study Group. Efficacy, Safety, and Tolerability of Long-Term Combination Antiretroviral Therapy in Asymptomatic Treatment-Naïve Adults with Early HIV Infection. HIV Clin Trials. 2007; 8: 269-281.
Blanchard-Horan C, J Hitti, E Ferguson, KL Klingman, D McMahon. Site Development and Capacity Building for Therapeutic Clinical Trials Targeting HIV-Positive Pregnant Women in Resource-Limited Settings: Challenges and Solutions. SoCRA Source. 2008; 2: 72.
Sponsored Research/Activities
Title: HIV/AIDS Care, Housing Prevention and Education Services (Part B)
Role: Principal Investigator
Funding Agency: Jewish Healthcare Foundation
Start Year: 2018
End Year: 2019
Title: COVID Convalescent Plasma Pittsburgh Program
Role: Co-Investigator
Funding Agency: Pittsburgh Foundation
Grant Number: RES MR2020
Start Year: 2020
End Year: 2021
Title: Pennsylvania/MidAtlantic AETC, HRSA
Role: Co-Investigator
Funding Agency: Health Research and Services Administration
Grant Number: U10 HA29295
Start Year: 2015
End Year: 2019
Title: Pitt-Ohio State - Georgetown Clinical Trials Unit
Role: Co-Investigator
Funding Agency: National Institute of Allergy & Infectious Diseases
Grant Number: UM1 AI069494
Start Year: 2013
End Year: 2020
Notable Achievements
UPMC ACES, 2012
Best Doctors, 2013-2016
Member, ACTG HIV Reservoirs and Viral Eradication Transformative Science Group