Karna Murthy

Karna Murthy, MD, MSCI is a Professor in the Department of Pediatrics (Neonatology) at Northwestern University's Feinberg School of Medicine. He is affiliated with Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago and Northwestern Memorial Hospital, where he focuses on neonatal care for critically ill infants.

Dr. Murthy's educational background includes a BS from Duke University (1994), MD from University of Pittsburgh (1998), and MSCI from Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine (2011). His clinical training consists of a Pediatrics residency at Northwestern University, McGaw Medical Center (Children's Memorial Hospital) (2001) and a Neonatal/Perinatal Medicine fellowship at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (2005). He is board certified in Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine by the American Board of Pediatrics.

Dr. Murthy's research focuses on Health Services Research in Regional Neonatal Intensive Care and Chronic Neonatal/Infant Respiratory Failure. He is deeply involved with the Children's Hospital Neonatal Consortium (CHNC), which studies infants with uncommon congenital anomalies and complications related to preterm birth across 50 regional NICUs in the United States and Canada. His long-term goals include establishing standards of care, improving evidence-based practices, reducing care variability, and enhancing short- and long-term outcomes for these critically ill infants.

His recent publications demonstrate ongoing work in gastroschisis outcomes, feeding challenges in preterm infants, respiratory support weaning in bronchopulmonary dysplasia, and infection epidemiology in level IV NICUs, showing a consistent focus on improving care for vulnerable neonatal populations.

• Member, American Pediatric Society, APS (2024)
• Visiting Professor, University of Chicago, Division of Neonatology (2018)
• Julia Foster Visiting Professor Lectureship, Riley Children's Hospital (2016)
• Multiple Outstanding Scholarship/Research Contributions awards from Department of Pediatrics (2006-2015)
• Robert J. Winter Pediatric Housestaff Teaching Award (2007)

Dr. Murthy serves as Chair of the Children's Hospitals Neonatal Consortium (CHNC) since 2018 and has held various leadership roles including Co-chair (2018-2019) and Chair-elect (2009-2018). He is actively involved in multiple research institutes including the Institute for Augmented Intelligence in Medicine, Institute for Innovations in Developmental Sciences, and the Center for Health Services & Outcomes Research. His earlier work on neonatal abstinence syndrome demonstrated significant increases in incidence and healthcare burden, highlighting the growing public health concern related to prescription medication use during pregnancy.

Dr. Murthy leads collaborative research efforts through the CHNC, which aims to address care for infants with uncommon but high-acuity illnesses that have not traditionally been the focus of neonatal registries. His work bridges clinical practice with health services research to improve outcomes for some of the most vulnerable patients in neonatal intensive care.