Davidson H. Hamer, MD

Professor, Boston University School of Public Health

Biography

Davidson Hamer, MD, FACP, FIDSA, FASTMH, FISTM is a Professor of Global Health and Medicine at the Boston University School of Public Health and Chobanian & Avesidian School of Medicine, and Adjunct Professor of Nutrition at the Tufts University Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy. Dr. Hamer, a board-certified specialist in infectious diseases with a particular interest in tropical infectious diseases, has extensive field experience in neonatal and child survival research including studies of micronutrient interventions, maternal and neonatal health, malaria, pneumonia, and diarrheal diseases. During the last 20+ years, he has supervised and provided technical support to numerous studies in developing countries that evaluated interventions for improving neonatal survival, integrated community case management (iCCM), improving access for pregnant women to emergency obstetrical care, treatment and prevention of malaria, HIV/AIDS, micronutrient deficiencies, diarrheal disease, and pneumonia. Dr. Hamer received a MD from the University of Vermont College of Medicine and a BA in biology and French from Amherst College. He is a Fellow of the American College of Physicians, Infectious Diseases Society of America, American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, and the International Society of Travel Medicine.

Dr. Hamer currently has active projects in Bangladesh, Uganda, Zambia, and the United States. Major current projects include neonatal sepsis prevention using prebiotics and probiotics in Bangladesh; an autopsy study of fungal infections in HIV-infected patients in Uganda; etiologies of sepsis in HIV-exposed and uninfected children in Zambia; and a prospective cohort study of Chagas disease among US immigrants that includes a biobank. In addition, Dr. Hamer is the Surveillance Lead for the GeoSentinel Surveillance Network, a global network of 70 sites in 31 countries that conducts surveillance of emerging infectious diseases using returning travelers, immigrants, and refugees as sentinels of infection (https://geosentinel.org).

Publications

  • Published 10/1/2025

    Huits R, Libman M, Hamer DH, Javelle E. Resurgence of chikungunya in the Indian Ocean region in 2024-2025. J Travel Med. 2025 Oct 01; 32(6). PMID: 40577550.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 9/15/2025

    Freitas AC, Li G, Shawon J, Qamar H, Pell LG, Kabir M, Oduaran OH, Puebla-Barragan S, Bassani DG, O'Callaghan KM, Onuora JC, Loutet MG, Heasley C, Starke CWE, Mahmud AA, Hamer DH, Pullenayegum E, Hossain MI, Siddiqui MM, Islam MS, Sherman PM, Shah PS, Gaffar SMA, Sultana S, Morris SK, Ahmed T, Haque R, Sarker SA, Roth DE. Abundance of Bifidobacterium species in the infant gut microbiota and associations with maternal-infant characteristics in Dhaka, Bangladesh. mSphere. 2025 Sep 15; e0031425. PMID: 40951971.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 9/1/2025

    Leppänen JM, Pyykkö J, Evans D, Coetzee L, Fink G, Yousafzai AK, Hamer DH, Parkerson D, Rockers PC. Early Emerging Gradients in Children's Eye Movement Times Across Levels of Household Resources. Dev Sci. 2025 Sep; 28(5):e70058. PMID: 40798850.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 8/8/2025

    Kibone W, Muzoora C, Bongomin F, Namiiro MA, Ssenkungu S, Ochola E, Kasirye P, Hamer DH. Indications for hospitalisation and predictors of 30-day re-admission of patients with sickle cell disease in Uganda: a retrospective study. BMJ Open. 2025 Aug 08; 15(8):e104303. PMID: 40780722.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 7/28/2025

    Adams QH, Gause EL, Baker RE, Hamer DH, Werneck GL, Hutyra LR, Shioda K, Wellenius GA. Impact of weather extremes on the spatiotemporal dynamics of visceral leishmaniasis in Brazil. PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2025 Jul; 19(7):e0013316. PMID: 40720386.

    Read at: PubMed

Other Positions

  • Professor, Medicine
    Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine
  • Faculty, National Emerging Infectious Disease Lab
    Boston University
  • Faculty, Center for Emerging Infectious Diseases Policy & Research
    Boston University
  • Core Co-lead for EIDs, One Health, and Climate Change, Center for Emerging Infectious Diseases Policy & Research
    Boston University
  • Faculty, African Studies Center
    Boston University
  • Member, Pulmonary Center
    Boston University
  • Member, Evans Center for Interdisciplinary Biomedical Research
    Boston University
  • Graduate Faculty (Primary Mentor of Grad Students)
    Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine, Graduate Medical Sciences

Education

  • University of Vermont College of Medicine, MD
  • Amherst College, BA