Charina Marie Ramirez, MD
Pediatric Gastroenterologist
Professor at UT Southwestern Medical Center
- Languages Spoken:
- English
Biography
Charina Ramirez, M.D., is a pediatric gastroenterologist at Children’s Health℠ and a Professor of pediatrics at UT Southwestern Medical Center.
After receiving her medical degree from the UT Medical Branch at Galveston, Dr. Ramirez completed an internship and residency training in pediatrics at Children’s Medical Center.
Dr. Ramirez completed her fellowship in pediatric gastroenterology, hepatology and nutrition at UT Southwestern and Children’s Medical Center. She also served as a research fellow studying lipid metabolism during this time. She was awarded the Ara Parseghian Medical Research Foundation fellowship grant.
Dr. Ramirez’s research interest involves cholesterol transport in the murine models of Nieman-Pick Type C disease and Lysosomal Acid Lipase Deficiency. Currently, she’s evaluating the effects of a low carbohydrate diet in pediatric patients with metabolic syndrome and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.
Education and Training
- Medical School
- University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston (2003)
- Internship
- Children's Medical Center Dallas (2004), Pediatrics
- Residency
- Children's Medical Center Dallas (2006), Pediatrics
- Fellowship
- UT Southwestern - Children's Medical Center (2010), Pediatric Gastroenterology
- Board Certification
- American Board of Pediatrics/Gastroenterology
Conditions
- Abdominal migraines
- Achalasia
- Alagille syndrome (ALGS)
- Alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency (A1AT)
- Ascites
- Biliary atresia
- Celiac disease
- Childhood obesity
- Chronic abdominal pain (stomach ache)
- Cirrhosis
- Colic
- Colon polyps
- Colorectal cancer (CRC)
- Constipation
- Crigler-Najjar syndrome
- Cyclic vomiting syndrome (CVS)
- Diarrhea
- Dubin-Johnson syndrome
- Dysphagia (swallowing disorder)
- Encopresis
- Esophageal stricture
- Failure to thrive (FTT)
- Familial adenomatous polyposis (FAP)
- Fecal incontinence
- Feeding disorder (PFD)
- Functional abdominal pain syndrome (FAPS)
- Gastroenteritis (stomache flu)
- Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD)
- Gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding
- Gilbert's syndrome
- Glycogen storage disease (GSD)
- Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) infection
- Hemochromatosis
- Hepatitis A
- Hepatitis B
- Hepatitis C
- Hirschsprung's disease
- Intrahepatic cholestasis liver disease
- Irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)
- Lactose intolerance
- Liver (hepatic) tumors
- Liver failure
- Malabsorption
- Metabolic liver disease
- Microscopic colitis (lymphocytic colitis or collagenous colitis)
- Nausea and vomiting
- Necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC)
- Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH)
- Peptic ulcer
- Rumination syndrome (merycism)
- Viral hepatitis
- Wilson's disease
Treatments
Departments and Programs
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Research Interests
- Fatty liver disease
- Niemann-Pick type C disease
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Publications
- Delineation of metabolic responses of Npc1-/-nih mice lacking the cholesterol-esterifying enzyme SOAT2 to acute treatment with 2-hydroxypropyl-ß-cyclodextrin. Ramirez CM, Taylor AM, Lopez AM, Repa JJ, Turley SD, Steroids 2020 Dec 164 108725
- Ontogenesis and Modulation of Intestinal Unesterified Cholesterol Sequestration in a Mouse Model of Niemann-Pick C1 Disease. Lopez AM, Ramirez CM, Taylor AM, Jones RD, Repa JJ, Turley SD, Digestive diseases and sciences 2019 Jul
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Professional Activities
- American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (2013)
- American Gastroenterological Association (2008)
- North American Society for Pediatric Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition (2007)
- Pediatric Society of Greater Dallas (2012)
- Texas Medical Association (2003)
- The Obesity Society (2014)
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Awards and Honors
- D Magazine Best Doctor (2022)
- D Magazine Best Pediatric Specialist (2019-2021)
- Post-Doctoral Research Fellowship Grant - Ara Parseghian Medical Research Foundation (2009-2010)
- Summa Cum Laude - University of Houston (1999)
