The Institute for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Research (IPR) is an organized research unit of the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California. Participating faculty represent the Departments of Preventive Medicine, Medicine, Pediatrics, Family Medicine and Surgery, and several of the departments of social sciences.

Faculty of the Department have made important contributions to studies of cancer etiology, including studies of the roles of various endogenous hormones in female cancers and cancer of the prostate, and studies of the long-term risks and benefits associated with oral contraceptives and menopausal hormone replacement therapy. Other studies have included medical and dental x-ray exposure as risk factors for central nervous system tumors, and parental occupational and environmental exposures as causes of childhood cancer. There is currently an intensive effort in genetic epidemiologic research. Faculty are conducting innovative studies of respiratory function impairment and childhood asthma associated with air pollution. Members of the Department have pioneered school and community-based programs for tobacco, alcohol and drug abuse prevention.

Multi-disciplinary programmatic research at the Institute is designed to:

• Identify the most important risk factors for intervention
• Assess the determinants of healthful and unhealthful behaviors in at-risk populations
• Design and assess promising strategies for health promotion and disease prevention
• Test the best of these approaches in defined populations to enhance understanding of specific effectiveness of prevention programs, and demonstrate the feasibility of effective prevention programs for widespread dissemination by public agencies, foundations and consortia within communities.

The principal goal of the Institute is the primary prevention of disease. To accomplish this goal, the Institute has an extensive portfolio of research protocols designed to promote primary prevention among children and adolescents.

Research is also conducted on the study of age-appropriate secondary prevention interventions for chronic diseases. Secondary prevention strategies are used when primary prevention strategies are not appropriate.

IPR research focuses on community-level interventions (e.g. schools, family, mass media, work sites, voluntary health organizations, clinics, health departments, civic groups, local and state governments), as well as multi-component, comprehensive community approaches to prevention.

For further information about Institute for Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Research please visit the IPR web site.