Andrew Thagard MD

Education

Fellowship, Maternal-Fetal Medicine
Madigan Army Medical Center, Tacoma, WA
2013–2016

Residency, Obstetrics & Gynecology
Naval Medical Center Portsmouth, Portsmouth, VA
2008–2012

Doctor of Medicine
University of Florida College of Medicine, Gainesville, FL
2004–2008

Bachelor of Science (Pre-professional Studies, cum laude)
University of Notre Dame, IN
2000–2004

Biography

Born in Miami, Florida, Major Andrew S. Thagard joined the Air Force through the health professions scholarship program in 2004 while a senior in the College of Science at the University of Notre Dame where he graduated cum laude. He earned his medical doctorate in 2008 at the University of Florida College of Medicine before completing an internship and residency in Obstetrics & Gynecology at Naval Medical Portsmouth from 2008-2012. While a resident, Thagard distinguished himself by serving six weeks aboard the USNS Comfort in support of Operation Continuing Promise providing gynecologic surgical care to women in need throughout Latin America.

Upon graduation from residency, Thagard remained at Portsmouth for a year serving as a staff specialist in Obstetrics & Gynecology in addition to a three month stint providing critical support in women’s health services at Naval Hospital Jacksonville. In addition to his clinical duties, he served as chair of the hospital’s ORYX Perinatal Advisory Committee and provided educational support for the Department’s residency program. He was accepted to a fellowship in Maternal-Fetal Medicine at Madigan Army Medical Center starting in 2013. As a perinatology fellow, Thagard provided high acuity care to the pregnant population of Joint Base Lewis-McChord and Naval Station Bremerton. He was recognized as a prolific researcher, establishing a mouse research platform to explore the impact of preterm labor on the neurodevelopment of offspring that culminated in three publications and ongoing hypothesis generation. He secured over $300,000 in research grants and presented his findings at regional and national meetings. His collaborative efforts with researchers at Johns Hopkins continue to this day.

After completion of fellowship, Thagard returned to Naval Medical Center Portsmouth where he continues to serve as a staff physician in the Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine. His focus remains on education, standardization, communication, and collaboration to improve outcomes for the patients he serves. To these ends, he created a Maternal-Fetal Medicine outreach clinic at USAF Hospital Langley and designed and implemented a protocol to optimize the care of pregnancies complicated by growth restriction. Thagard is recognized as a core faculty member of the OB/GYN residency program and is the site director for medical students rotating through the Women’s Health Department from the Uniformed Services University, Eastern Virginia Medical School, and a variety of other civilian institutions, mentoring students, interns, and residents in research. He is an ardent supporter of simulation in medical training, serving as faculty for the annual Society of Maternal-Fetal Medicine Obstetrics Critical Care Course. At a national level, he is the vice chairman of the Armed Forces Maternal-Fetal Medicine Network and chairman of the DHA WICC's Opioid & ERAS Working Group.

Thagard was first certified by the American Board of Obstetrics & Gynecology in 2014. He is a fellow of the American College of Obstetricians & Gynecologists and holds active membership in the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine, the International Society of Ultrasound in Obstetrics & Gynecology, and the American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine. His personal awards include the Meritorious Service Medal, Air Force Commendation Medal, Army Achievement Medal, and National Defense Service medal.

Career Highlights: Positions, Projects, Deployements, Awards and Additional Publications

Maternal-Fetal Medicine Staff Physician, Naval Medical Center Portsmouth

Site Director, Student Clerkships, Women's Health Department, Naval Medical Center Portsmouth

Chairman, Opioid & ERAS Working Group, Women and Infant Clinical Community, Defense Health Agency

Vice Chairman, Armed Forces Maternal-Fetal Medicine Network

Assistant Professor (community), Obstetrics & Gynecology, Eastern Virginia Medical School

Sandlin, A.T., E.F. Magann, S.T. Ounpraseuth, I.A. Hammad, C.G. Goodier, A.S. Thagard, J.D. Dahlke, E.Y. Chang, C.M. Quick, and S.P. Chauhan. “A comparison of placental pathology between small for gestational age infants at < 5 % versus 5-9.” European Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology and Reproductive Biolology, 2020 Jul 23; 252:483-489. doi: 10.1016/j.ejogrb.2020.07.043.

Thagard, A.S., A.T. Poole, J.A. Greer, and C.S. Ennen. “Attendance and quality and quantity of research presentations at an Obstetrics & Gynecology regional meeting pre- and post changes in federal funding.” Military Medicine, June 2020, usaa150. doi:10.1093/milmed/usaa150.

Wade, E.E., J.G. Byers, and A.S. Thagard. “The state of the science of preterm birth: Assessing contemporary screening and preventive strategies.” The Journal of Perinatal & Neonatal Nursing, April/June 2020, 34(2): 113-124. doi: 10.1097/JPN.0000000000000470.

Estrada, S.M., A.S. Thagard, M.J. Dehart, J.R. Damicis, E.M. Dornisch, D.L. Ippolito, I. Burd, P.G. Napolitano, and N. Ieronimakis. “The orphan nuclear receptor Nr4a1 mediates perinatal neuroinflammation in a murine model of preterm labor.” Cell Death & Disease, January 2020, 11(1):11. doi: 10.1038/s41419-019-2196-7.

Representative Bibliography

Thagard, A.S., L.M. Foglia, B.L. Staat, and M.A. Lutgendorf. “Variations in prenatal screening in a U.S. federal healthcare system: Save coverage, different options.” Journal of Genetic Counseling, accepted for publication 23 August 2019.

Dillon, C.M., C.S. Ennen, K.J. Bailey, and A.S. Thagard. “A Comprehensive Approach to Care of Women of Advanced Maternal Age.” Nursing for Women’s Health, April 2019, 23(2): 124-134. doi: 10.1016/j.nwh.2019.02.002.

Hussain, S.A., B.J. O’Shea, and A.S. Thagard. “Preeclamptic serous retinal detachment without hypertension: A case report.” Case Reports in Women’s Health, 2019, 21(e0098). doi: 10.1016/j.crwh.2019.e00098.

Thagard, A.S., P.G. Napolitano, and A.S. Bryant. “The role of extremes in interpregnancy interval in women at increased risk for adverse obstetric outcomes due to health disparities: A literature review.” Current Women’s Health Reviews, 2018, 14: 242-250. doi: 10.2174/1573404813666170323154244.

Thagard, A.S., J.M. Slack, S.M. Estrada, A.A. Kazanjian, S. Chan, I. Burd, P.G. Napolitano, and N. Ieronimakis. “Long-term impact of intrauterine neuroinflammation and treatment with magnesium sulphate and betamethasone: Sex-specific differences in a preterm labor murine model.” Scientific Reports December 2017. doi: 10.1038/s41598-017-18197-x.

Ieronimakis N., S.M. Estrada, A.S. Thagard, P.G. Napolitano, A.D. Lane, M.J. Dehart, and I. Burd. “Bacterial endotoxin exposure invokes transcriptional changes in embryonic murine neural stem cells.” Am J Obstet Gynecol, July 2017. doi: 10.1016/j.ajog.2017.07.016.

Escalona-Vargas, D, Thagard, A.S., McGrail K., Napolitano, P.G., Magann, E.F., Lowery, C.L., and Eswaran, H. “Observations of fetal brain activity via non-invasive magnetoencephalography following administration of magnesium sulfate for neuroprotection in preterm labor.” Prenatal Diagnosis, 2016, 36(10): 982-984. doi: 10.1002/pd.4919.

Putnam KF, Mueller LA, Magann EF, Thagard A, Johnson AM, Ounpraseuth ST, Morrison JC. “Evaluating effects of self-reported domestic physical activity on pregnancy and neonatal outcomes in “stay at home” military wives.” Mil Med. 2013Aug;178(8):893-8. doi: 10.7205/MILMED-D-13-00045.

Thagard A, Dubil EA, Lee A, Allard J, Zelig C. “The use of middle cerebral artery Doppler ultrasonography to guide delivery of a viable pregnancy complicated by metastatic gestational chroriocarinoma.” AJUM May 2013 16 (2) pg 93-96. doi: 10.1002/j.2205-0140.2013.tb00171.x.

Lutgendorf MA, Thagard A, Rockswold PD, Busch JM, Magann EF. “Domestic violence screening of obstetric triage patients in a military population.” J Perinatol. 2012 Oct;32(10):763-9. doi: 10.1038/jp.2011.188.