Faculty Profile

Perinatal and Reproductive Psychiatry Clinical Research Program

Dr. Joffe is the Director of Research in the Perinatal and Reproductive Psychiatry Clinical Research Program at Massachusetts General Hospital and an Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at Harvard Medical School.  She received her undergraduate degree from Harvard University, her medical degree from Cornell University Medical College, and her Masters Degree in Epidemiology from the Harvard School of Public Health.  She completed her psychiatry residency training at McLean Hospital and a fellowship in Reproductive Psychiatry at Massachusetts General Hospital.

Dr. Joffe is an experienced clinician and researcher in women's mental health.  Her work focuses on the biologic mechanisms and treatment of menopausal symptoms of hot flashes, depression, sleep disturbance, and cognitive difficulties.  Ongoing work involves an examination of the impact of hot flashes on sleep and well-being in women with and without mood disturbance and the mechanisms involved in the etiology of hot flashes.  Dr. Joffe also conducts studies that focus on the hormonal and central nervous system mechanisms that are responsible for the development of hot flashes related to menopause and breast-cancer therapies.

Dr. Joffe also studies the impact of hormones on mood in women with premenstrual mood disturbance and the reproductive consequences of psychotropic medications.  She has examined the role of hormonal contraceptives on premenstrual depression and determined the impact of anti-epileptic drugs on reproductive function and the polycystic ovarian syndrome in women.

Current funding:
NIH
"Ms-FLASH: Relative Efficacy of Hormonal and Non-Hormonal Interventions for VMS"
Role: Principal Investigator

NIA/NIH
"(SWAN) Study of Women's Health Across the Nation III"
Role: Co-Investigator

Bayer Investigator Initiated Trial
"Oral Contraceptive Pill for the Treatment of Premenstrual Worsening of Depression"
Role: Co-PI

Friends of Dana-Farber
"Mechanisms of Hot Flushes in Women with Breast Cancer: Neuroimaging of the Hormonal Changes Caused by Anti-Estrogen Therapies"
Role: Co-Investigator

Completed funding:
NIMH/NIH
"Physiology of Estrogen’s Mood Effects in Menopausal Women"
Role: PI

NIMH/NIH
"Predictors of Antenatal and Postpartum Depression"
Role: Consultant

NARSAD (National Alliance for Research on Schizophrenia and Depression) Young Investigator Award
"Stabilizing Estrogen and Progesterone Levels with the Oral-Contraceptive Pill to Treat Premenstrual Worsening Depression"
Role: PI

MGH Claflin Distinguished Scholar Award
"Hot Flushes in Menopause and Breast Cancer Treatment: Developing the Optimal Experimental Model"
Role: PI

HMS Center of Excellence Fund for Women's Health Research Award
"Mechanisms of Hot Flushes in Women with Breast Cancer: Neuroimaging of the Hormonal Changes Caused by Anti-Estrogen Therapies"
Role: PI

Sepracor Investigator Initiated Trial
"Treatment of Insomnia in Symptomatic Peri- and Postmenopausal Women"
Role: Co-Investigator

Susan B. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation
"Targeting Insomnia to Optimize Hot-Flush Therapy in Women with Breast Cancer"
Role: PI

Thurston RC, Sowers MR, Sternfeld B, Gold EB, Bromberger J, Chang Y, Joffe H, Crandall CJ, Waetjen LE, Matthews KA. Gains in body fat and vasomotor symptom reporting over the menopausal transition: the study of women's health across the nation.
Am J Epidemiol. 2009 Sep 15;170(6):766-74. Epub 2009 Aug 12. [PMID:19675142]

Joffe H, Soares CN, Thurston RC, White DP, Cohen LS, Hall JE. Depression is associated with worse objectively and subjectively measured sleep, but not more frequent awakenings, in women with vasomotor symptoms.
Menopause. 2009 Jul-Aug;16(4):671-9. [PMID: 19197217]

Harlow BL, Joffe H. Interpreting incidence of hospitalization for postpartum psychotic and bipolar episodes study.
Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2009 Mar;66(3):332. [PMID: 19255383]

Joffe H, Greenfield SF. Introduction: women's mental health: new research findings.
Harv Rev Psychiatry. 2009;17(2):69-71. [PMID: 19373616]

Thurston RC, Bromberger JT, Joffe H, Avis NE, Hess R, Crandall CJ, Chang Y, Green R, Matthews KA. Beyond frequency: who is most bothered by vasomotor symptoms?
Menopause. 2008 Sep-Oct;15(5):841-7. [PMID: 18521049]

Soares CN, Joffe H, Viguera AC, Petrillo L, Rydzewski M, Yehezkel R, Somley B, Cohen LS. Paroxetine versus placebo for women in midlife after hormone therapy discontinuation.
Am J Med. 2008 Feb;121(2):159-162.e1. [PMID: 18261506]

Joffe H, Petrillo LF, Viguera AC, Gottshcall H, Soares CN, Hall JE, Cohen LS. Treatment of premenstrual worsening of depression with adjunctive oral contraceptive pills: a preliminary report.
J Clin Psychiatry. 2007 Dec;68(12):1954-62. [PMID: 18162029]

Gold EB, Lasley B, Crawford SL, McConnell D, Joffe H, Greendale GA. Relation of daily urinary hormone patterns to vasomotor symptoms in a racially/ethnically diverse sample of midlife women: study of women's health across the nation.
Reprod Sci. 2007 Dec;14(8):786-97. [PMID: 18089597]

Harlow BL, Vitonis AF, Sparen P, Cnattingius S, Joffe H, Hultman CM. Incidence of hospitalization for postpartum psychotic and bipolar episodes in women with and without prior prepregnancy or prenatal psychiatric hospitalizations.
Arch Gen Psychiatry. 2007 Jan;64(1):42-8. [PMID: 17199053]

Joffe H, Soares CN, Somley B, Koch J, Petrillo L, Viguera A, Cohen LS. Treatment of
depression and menopause-related symptoms with the serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake
inhibitor duloxetine.
J Clin Psychiatry. 2007; 68(6):943-950. [PMID: 17592922]

Joffe H, Cohen LS, Suppes T, Hwang CH, Molay F, Adams JM, Sachs GS, Hall JE. Longitudinal follow-up of reproductive and metabolic features of valproate-associated polycystic ovarian syndrome features: A preliminary report.
Biol Psychiatry. 2006 Dec 15;60(12):1378-81. Epub 2006 Sep 1. [PMID:16950230]

Thurston RC, Joffe H, Soares CN, Harlow BL. Physical activity and risk of vasomotor symptoms in women with and without a history of depression: results from the Harvard Study of Moods and Cycles.
Menopause. 2006 Jul-Aug;13(4):553-60. [PMID: 16837876]

Joffe H, Cohen LS, Suppes T, McLaughlin WL, Lavori P, Adams JM, Hwang CH, Hall JE, Sachs GS. Valproate is associated with new-onset oligoamenorrhea with hyperandrogenism in women with bipolar disorder.
Biol Psychiatry. 2006 Jun 1;59(11):1078-86. Epub 2006 Jan 31. [PMID: 16448626]

Joffe H, Hall JE, Gruber S, Sarmiento IA, Cohen LS, Yurgelun-Todd D, Martin KA. Estrogen therapy selectively enhances prefrontal cognitive processes: a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study with functional magnetic resonance imaging in perimenopausal and recently postmenopausal women.
Menopause. 2006 May-Jun;13(3):411-22. [PMID: 16735938]

Rich-Edwards JW, Kleinman K, Abrams A, Harlow BL, McLaughlin TJ, Joffe H, Gillman MW. Sociodemographic predictors of antenatal and postpartum depressive symptoms among women in a medical group practice.
J Epidemiol Community Health. 2006 Mar;60(3):221-7. [PMID: 16476752]

Joffe H, Kim DR, Foris JM, Baldassano CF, Gyulai L, Hwang CH, McLaughlin WL, Sachs GS, Thase ME, Harlow BL, Cohen LS. Menstrual dysfunction prior to onset of psychiatric illness is reported more commonly by women with bipolar disorder than by women with unipolar depression and healthy controls.
J Clin Psychiatry. 2006 Feb;67(2):297-304. [PMID: 16566627]

Soares CN, Arsenio H, Joffe H, Bankier B, Cassano P, Petrillo LF, Cohen LS. Escitalopram
versus ethinyl estradiol and norethindrone acetate for symptomatic peri and postmenopausal
women: impact on depression, vasomotor symptoms, sleep and quality of life.
Menopause. 2006; 13(5):780-6. [PMID: 16894334]

Soares CN, Joffe H, Rubens R, Caron J, Roth T, Cohen L. Eszopiclone in patients with
insomnia during perimenopause and early postmenopause: a randomized controlled trial.
Obstet Gynecol. 2006; 108(6):1402-1410. [PMID: 17138773]

Reviews

Payne JL, Palmer JT, Joffe H. A reproductive subtype of depression: conceptualizing models and moving toward etiology.
Harv Rev Psychiatry. 2009;17(2):72-86. Review. [PMID: 19373617]

Hickey M, Saunders C, Partridge A, Santoro N, Joffe H, Stearns V. Practical clinical guidelines for assessing and managing menopausal symptoms after breast cancer.
Ann Oncol. 2008 Oct;19(10):1669-80. Epub 2008 Jun 2. Review. [PMID: 18522932]

Joffe H, Hayes FJ. Menstrual cycle dysfunction associated with neurologic and psychiatric disorders: their treatment in adolescents.
Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2008;1135:219-29. Review. [PMID: 18574228]

Joffe H. Reproductive biology and psychotropic treatments in premenopausal women with bipolar disorder.
J Clin Psychiatry. 2007;68 Suppl 9:10-5. Review. [PMID: 17764379]

Additional Publications

Joffe H, Petrillo L, Viguera AC, Koukopoulos A, Silver-Heilman K, Farrell A, Yu G,
Pollack M, Cohen LS. Eszopiclone improves insomnia, depressive and anxious symptoms in
perimenopausal and postmenopausal women with hot flashes. American College of
Neuropsychopharmacology 46th Annual Meeting, Boca Raton, FL, USA, December 2007.

Joffe H, McCurnin KE, Hall JE. Hormone dynamics and sleep consequences of experimentally induced hot flashes. Endocrine Society 89th Annual Meeting, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, June 2007