Avron S. Spiro, PhD

Research Professor, Boston University School of Public Health

Biography

Dr. Avron (Ron) Spiro received his PhD in Human Development and Family Studies in 1982 from The Pennsylvania State University, specializing in adult development and aging and in developmental methodology. In 1986, he joined the VA Normative Aging Study (NAS), then at the Boston VA Outpatient Clinic, as a research psychologist and methodologist. In that position, he has studied the influences of health and disease on cognitive aging, and conducted longitudinal studies of personality, well-being, and mental health. He also works with the VA Dental Longitudinal Study (DLS), an ongoing study of dental health among NAS men. In 1998, the VA funded the Massachusetts Veterans Epidemiology Research and Information Center (MAVERIC), which incorporated the NAS/DLS, now located at VA Boston Healthcare System in Jamaica Plain. From 1993 - 2018, Dr. Spiro collaborated with researchers at the VA HSR&D Center for Healthcare Organization and Implementation Research (CHOIR; formerly the Center for Health Quality, Outcomes, and Economic Research [CHQOER]). His work there focused primarily on mental health, including PTSD and depression, and on patient-reported outcomes, including health-related quality of life.

In 1987, Dr. Spiro was appointed Assistant Professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics at the Boston University School of Public Health, promoted to Associate Professor in the Department of Epidemiology in 2004, and to Research Professor in 2011. In 2011, Dr. Spiro was appointed as Research Professor of Psychiatry at BU School of Medicine. Since 2001, he has been Associate Professor in the Department of Health Policy and Health Services Research at BU’s Goldman School of Dental Medicine. In 2008, he received a Research Career Scientist award from the Clinical Science R&D Service of the Department of Veterans Affairs, and from 2013 to 2020 was funded as a Senior Research Career Scientist. Dr. Spiro has been funded by NIH and VA. His current work involves (a) examining the effects of health and disease on cognitive aging, (b) modeling longitudinal changes in personality in relation to health, (c) examining the long-term effects of military service on health and well-being in later life, and (d) studying mental disorders and their impact on health and functioning.

Publications

  • Published 5/1/2025

    Stellman SD, Pless Kaiser A, Smith BN, Spiro A, Stellman JM. Persistence and Patterns of Combat-Related Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Medical, and Social Dysfunction in Male Military Veterans 50 Years After Deployment to Vietnam. J Occup Environ Med. 2025 May 01; 67(5):306-312. PMID: 40335437.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 12/18/2024

    Stellman SD, Pless Kaiser A, Smith BN, Spiro A, Stellman JM. Impact of Persistent Combat-Related PTSD on Heart Disease and Chronic Disease Comorbidity in Aging Vietnam Veterans. J Occup Environ Med. 2025 May 01; 67(5):299-305. PMID: 39696828.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 4/1/2024

    Marino VR, Trudel-Fitzgerald C, Aldwin CM, Spiro A, Lee LO. The Costs of Coping: Long-Term Mortality Risk in Aging Men. J Gerontol B Psychol Sci Soc Sci. 2024 Apr 01; 79(4). PMID: 38501168.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 3/2/2024

    Pless Kaiser A, Daks JS, Korsun L, Heintz H, Moye J, Sloan DM, Cook JM, Vogt D, Spiro A. Enhancing social functioning in older veterans with PTSD: Rationale and design of an intervention and initial RCT. Contemp Clin Trials. 2024 Apr; 139:107485. PMID: 38432471.

    Read at: PubMed

  • Published 8/24/2023

    Atherton OE, Graham EK, Dorame AN, Horgan D, Luo J, Nevarez MD, Ferrie JP, Spiro A, Schulz MS, Waldinger RJ, Mroczek DK, Lee LO. Is there intergenerational continuity in early life experiences? Findings from the Harvard Study of Adult Development. J Fam Psychol. 2023 Dec; 37(8):1123-1136. PMID: 37616090.

    Read at: PubMed

Other Positions

  • Associate Professor, Health Policy & Health Svcs Research
    Boston University Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine
  • Research Professor, Psychiatry
    Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine

Education

  • Pennsylvania State University, PhD