Christopher Berger, MD

Assistant Professor
Medicine
[email protected]

Christopher Berger, MD, MSIMT is an assistant professor in the UCSF Division of Pulmonary Critical Care Medicine, clinically based at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital. His research focuses on improving tuberculosis screening, diagnosis, and treatment programs globally through the use of implementation science and human-centered design principles. He works with Dr. Adithya Cattamanchi on projects in the Philippines to improve the diagnostic and clinical tools used in MDR and XDR TB and in Uganda designing improved versions of the globally utilized “Directly Observed Therapy” toolkit. Christopher completed his undergraduate degree in international health at the University of Pittsburgh where he went on complete his MD. He received his master’s in tropical medicine and international health at the Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona in Barcelona, Spain. He completed his internal medicine residency and pulmonary/critical care medicine fellowship at UCSF. He is currently completing a masters in Clinical Research at UCSF.

UCSF Center for Tuberculosis Initiatives:
TB RAMP Scholar | Class 2023
World TB Day Planning Committee 2022

Publications: 

Adverse events reported during weekly isoniazid-rifapentine (3HP) tuberculosis preventive treatment among people living with HIV in Uganda.

medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences

Kadota JL, Musinguzi A, Aschmann HE, Akello L, Welishe F, Nakimuli J, Berger CA, Kiwanuka N, Phillips PP, Katamba A, Dowdy DW, Cattamanchi A, Semitala FC

Comparison of 3 optimized delivery strategies for completion of isoniazid-rifapentine (3HP) for tuberculosis prevention among people living with HIV in Uganda: A single-center randomized trial.

PLoS medicine

Semitala FC, Kadota JL, Musinguzi A, Welishe F, Nakitende A, Akello L, Kunihira Tinka L, Nakimuli J, Ritar Kasidi J, Bishop O, Nakasendwa S, Baik Y, Patel D, Sammann A, Nahid P, Belknap R, Kamya MR, Handley MA, Phillips PP, Katahoire A, Berger CA, Kiwanuka N, Katamba A, Dowdy DW, Cattamanchi A

Implementation, feasibility, and acceptability of 99DOTS-based supervision of treatment for drug-susceptible TB in Uganda.

PLOS digital health

Kiwanuka N, Kityamuwesi A, Crowder R, Guzman K, Berger CA, Lamunu M, Namale C, Kunihira Tinka L, Nakate AS, Ggita J, Turimumahoro P, Babirye D, Oyuku D, Patel D, Sammann A, Turyahabwe S, Dowdy DW, Katamba A, Cattamanchi A

Understanding patient-level costs of weekly isoniazid-rifapentine (3HP) among people living with HIV in Uganda.

The international journal of tuberculosis and lung disease : the official journal of the International Union against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease

Sung J, Musinguzi A, Kadota JL, Baik Y, Nabunje J, Welishe F, Bishop O, Berger CA, Katahoire A, Nakitende A, Nakimuli J, Akello L, Kasidi JR, Kunihira Tinka L, Kamya MR, Sohn H, Kiwanuka N, Katamba A, Cattamanchi A, Dowdy DW, Semitala FC

Barriers and Facilitators to Implementing a Digital Adherence Technology for Tuberculosis Treatment Supervision in Uganda: Qualitative Study.

Journal of medical Internet research

Leddy A, Ggita J, Berger CA, Kityamuwesi A, Sanyu AN, Tinka LK, Crowder R, Turyahabwe S, Katamba A, Cattamanchi A

Adherence trajectory as an on-treatment risk indicator among drug-resistant TB patients in the Philippines.

PloS one

Huddart S, Geocaniga-Gaviola DM, Crowder R, Lim AR, Lopez E, Valdez CL, Berger CA, Destura R, Kato-Maeda M, Cattamanchi A, Garfin AMC

Completion of isoniazid-rifapentine (3HP) for tuberculosis prevention among people living with HIV: Interim analysis of a hybrid type 3 effectiveness-implementation randomized trial.

PLoS medicine

Semitala FC, Kadota JL, Musinguzi A, Nabunje J, Welishe F, Nakitende A, Akello L, Bishop O, Patel D, Sammann A, Nahid P, Belknap R, Kamya MR, Handley MA, Phillips PPJ, Katahoire A, Berger CA, Kiwanuka N, Katamba A, Dowdy DW, Cattamanchi A

Acceptance and completion of rifapentine-based TB preventive therapy (3HP) among people living with HIV (PLHIV) in Kampala, Uganda-patient and health worker perspectives.

Implementation science communications

Semitala FC, Musinguzi A, Ssemata J, Welishe F, Nabunje J, Kadota JL, Berger CA, Katamba A, Kiwanuka N, Kamya MR, Dowdy D, Cattamanchi A, Katahoire AR

Digital adherence technology for tuberculosis treatment supervision: A stepped-wedge cluster-randomized trial in Uganda.

PLoS medicine

Cattamanchi A, Crowder R, Kityamuwesi A, Kiwanuka N, Lamunu M, Namale C, Tinka LK, Nakate AS, Ggita J, Turimumahoro P, Babirye D, Oyuku D, Berger C, Tucker A, Patel D, Sammann A, Stavia T, Dowdy D, Katamba A

Iterative Adaptation of a Tuberculosis Digital Medication Adherence Technology to Meet User Needs: Qualitative Study of Patients and Health Care Providers Using Human-Centered Design Methods.

JMIR formative research

Patel D, Berger CA, Kityamuwesi A, Ggita J, Kunihira Tinka L, Turimumahoro P, Feler J, Chehab L, Chen AZ, Gupta N, Turyahabwe S, Katamba A, Cattamanchi A, Sammann A

Study protocol and implementation details for a pragmatic, stepped-wedge cluster randomised trial of a digital adherence technology to facilitate tuberculosis treatment completion.

BMJ open

Crowder R, Kityamuwesi A, Kiwanuka N, Lamunu M, Namale C, Tinka LK, Nakate AS, Ggita J, Turimumahoro P, Babirye D, Oyuku D, Berger CA, Tucker A, Patel D, Sammann A, Dowdy D, Stavia T, Cattamanchi A, Katamba A

Opportunities to improve digital adherence technologies and TB care using human-centered design.

The international journal of tuberculosis and lung disease : the official journal of the International Union against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease

Berger C, Patel D, Kityamuwesi A, Ggita J, Tinka LK, Turimumahoro P, Neville K, Chehab L, Chen AZ, Gupta N, Turyahabwe S, Katamba A, Cattamanchi A, Sammann A

Variation in tuberculosis treatment outcomes and treatment supervision practices in Uganda.

Journal of Clinical Tuberculosis and Other Mycobacterial Diseases

Berger CA, Kityamuwesi A, Crowder R, Lamunu M, Kunihira Tinka L, Ggita J, Sanyu Nakate A, Namale C, Oyuku D, Chen K, Turyahabwe S, Cattamanchi A, Katamba A

Protocol for the 3HP Options Trial: a hybrid type 3 implementation-effectiveness randomized trial of delivery strategies for short-course tuberculosis preventive therapy among people living with HIV in Uganda.

Implementation science : IS

Kadota JL, Musinguzi A, Nabunje J, Welishe F, Ssemata JL, Bishop O, Berger CA, Patel D, Sammann A, Katahoire A, Nahid P, Belknap R, Phillips PPJ, Namusobya J, Kamya M, Handley MA, Kiwanuka N, Katamba A, Dowdy D, Semitala FC, Cattamanchi A

Summary for Clinicians: 2019 Clinical Practice Guideline Summary for the Treatment of Drug-Resistant Tuberculosis.

Annals of the American Thoracic Society

Berger CA, Alipanah N, Kheir F, Ruminjo JK, Nahid P, Thomson C

Willingness to accept reimbursement for visits to an HIV clinic for tuberculosis preventive therapy.

The international journal of tuberculosis and lung disease : the official journal of the International Union against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease

Kadota JL, Katamba A, Musinguzi A, Welishe F, Nabunje J, Ssemata JL, Berger CA, Kamya MR, Namusobya J, Semitala FC, Cattamanchi A, Dowdy DW

Management and Outcomes of Critically-Ill Patients with COVID-19 Pneumonia at a Safety-net Hospital in San Francisco, a Region with Early Public Health Interventions: A Case Series.

medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences

Vanderburg S, Alipanah N, Crowder R, Yoon C, Wang R, Thakur N, Slown K, Shete PB, Rofael M, Metcalfe JZ, Merrifield C, Marquez C, Malcolm K, Lipnick M, Jain V, Gomez A, Burns G, Brown LB, Berger C, Auyeung V, Cattamanchi A, Hendrickson CM

Presentation and outcome of suspected sepsis in a high-HIV burden, high antiretroviral coverage setting.

International journal of infectious diseases : IJID : official publication of the International Society for Infectious Diseases

Chaka W, Berger C, Huo S, Robertson V, Tachiona C, Magwenzi M, Magombei T, Mpamhanga C, Katzenstein D, Metcalfe J

Implementation science to improve the quality of tuberculosis diagnostic services in Uganda.

Journal of Clinical Tuberculosis and Other Mycobacterial Diseases

Cattamanchi A, Berger CA, Shete PB, Turyahabwe S, Joloba M, Moore DA, Davis LJ, Katamba A