Lauren Ana Ginn

All Publications

• Patient Perspectives on Psychiatric Polygenic Risk Scores in Reproductive Decision-Making and Polygenic Embryo Screening AMERICAN JOURNAL OF MEDICAL GENETICS PART B-NEUROPSYCHIATRIC GENETICS Ginn, L. A., Merner, A. R., Trotter, P. M., Craig, K. P., Martinez, A. C., Battaglino, A., Barlevy, D., Ayton, D. M., Soda, T., Storch, E. A., Lazaro-munoz, G., Pereira, S. 2026

  Abstract

  Polygenic risk scores (PRS) estimate individuals' genetic risk for developing multifactorial conditions. Recent genome-wide association studies have enabled development of psychiatric PRS, which hold potential to streamline diagnosis and treatment of psychiatric conditions. As individuals with mental illness often identify concern about passing on psychiatric conditions as a key factor in family planning, some may also seek to use psychiatric PRS in reproductive decisions like childbearing or embryo selection for in vitro fertilization. Despite calls for increased regulation, there remains no clinical consensus on the utility of psychiatric PRS in reproductive contexts. Therefore, we conducted semi-structured interviews of adults with psychiatric conditions (n = 29) to evaluate patient perspectives toward the tool's potential benefits and risks. Approximately half of participants would be interested in harnessing psychiatric PRS for reproductive purposes-including embryo screening and family planning-driven largely by desires to improve children's quality of life and seek empowerment while parenting. Others worried selecting against embryos with genetic risk for psychiatric disorders could exacerbate stigma. Regardless of personal stance, many noted using psychiatric PRS in reproductive decisions should be permissible for the general population. As psychiatric PRS continue to mature, patient views reported here can help inform their future in reproductive spaces.

  View details for DOI 10.1002/ajmg.b.70011

  View details for Web of Science ID 001693114800001

  View details for PubMedID 41705312

• Navigating the Future of Polygenic Risk Scores: Insights from Child and Adolescent Psychiatrists CHILD PSYCHIATRY & HUMAN DEVELOPMENT Trotter, P. M., Merner, A. R., Ginn, L. A., Martinez, A. C., Battaglino, A. L., Craig, K. P., Bach, J., Freedberg, K. J., Soda, T., Storch, E. A., Lazaro-Munoz, G., Pereira, S. 2025

  Abstract

  Polygenic risk scores (PRS) are a method of calculating genetic risk for polygenic, or multi-gene, disorders. These scores have potential impacts in the realm of child and adolescent psychiatry, given the high prevalence of psychiatric disorders among youth. However, there are concerns about PRS implementation among key stakeholders, namely child and adolescent psychiatrists (CAP). We conducted interviews with 29 U.S.-based CAP to investigate clinician attitudes toward the use of PRS. The data herein correspond to a future scenario we provided CAP in which PRS are accurate and portable to patients of different racial and ethnic backgrounds. We found that CAP envisioned some utility for PRS in regards to clinical surveillance and treatment; however, several desired further research demonstrating that PRS positively impact patient outcomes before they would consider implementing PRS in-clinic. The most cited concern about PRS deployment was the potential for misinterpretation and misuse of PRS on the part of patients, families, corporate entities, and clinicians themselves. CAP emphasized the need for support in the form of testing infrastructure, clinical guidelines, and collaboration with the involvement of PRS experts, when considering PRS applications in the future.

  View details for DOI 10.1007/s10578-025-01854-y

  View details for Web of Science ID 001489534800001

  View details for PubMedID 40381156

  View details for PubMedCentralID PMC12212414

• Positive impact of an inpatient early childhood literacy programme on literacy practices and family experience in a paediatric heart centre CARDIOLOGY IN THE YOUNG Young, A. C., Ruth, A., Ginn, L., Sethi, L., Hellsten, M., Deshotels, K., Pande, C. K., Borges, N. M., Wang, E., Mummert, K., Hill, S., Bryant, T., Brown, G., Puri, K. 2024; 34 (11): 2370-2376

  Abstract

  CHD predisposes children to neurodevelopmental delays. Frequent, prolonged hospitalisations during infancy prevent children with heart disease from participating in recommended language and cognitive development programmes, such as outpatient early childhood literacy programmes, and contribute to caregiver stress, a risk factor for adverse developmental outcomes. This study aims to describe the implementation of a single-centre inpatient early childhood literacy programme for hospitalised infants with heart disease and assess its impact on reading practices and patient-family hospital experience.Admitted infants ≤1 year old receive books, a calendar to track reading frequency, and reading guidance at regular intervals. Voluntary feedback is solicited from caregivers using an anonymous, QR-code survey on books. A prospective survey also assessed programme impact on hospital experience.From February 2021 to November 2023, the Books@Heart programme provided 1,293 books to families of 840 infants, of whom 110 voluntarily submitted feedback. Caregivers reported a significant improvement in access to books (p < 0.001) and increased reading frequency after learning about Books@Heart (p = 0.003), with the proportion reading to their child daily increasing from 27% to 62%. Among 40 prospective survey responses, caregivers reported feeling a sense of personal fulfillment (60%), self-confidence (30%), connection (98%), and personal well-being (40%) while reading to their child.An inpatient early childhood literacy programme is a well-received intervention for infants with heart disease that promotes development, improves book access, increases reading exposure, and engages families. Further studies are needed to assess its impact on sustained reading practices and neurodevelopmental outcomes.

  View details for DOI 10.1017/S1047951124026702

  View details for Web of Science ID 001340009700001

  View details for PubMedID 39438775

• Psychiatric polygenic risk scores: Experience, hope for utility, and concerns among child and adolescent psychiatrists PSYCHIATRY RESEARCH Merner, A. R., Trotter, P. M., Ginn, L. A., Bach, J., Freedberg, K. J., Soda, T., Storch, E. A., Pereira, S., Lazaro- Munoz, G. 2024; 339: 116080

  Abstract

  Recent advances in psychiatric genetics have enabled the use of polygenic risk scores (PRS) to estimate genetic risk for psychiatric disorders. However, the potential use of PRS in child and adolescent psychiatry has raised concerns. This study provides an in-depth examination of attitudes among child and adolescent psychiatrists (CAP) regarding the use of PRS in psychiatry. We conducted semi-structured interviews with U.S.-based CAP (n = 29) who possess expertise in genetics. The majority of CAP indicated that PRS have limited clinical utility in their current form and are not ready for clinical implementation. Most clinicians stated that nothing would motivate them to generate PRS at present; however, some exceptions were noted (e.g., parent/family request). Clinicians spoke to challenges related to ordering, interpreting, and explaining PRS to patients and families. CAP raised concerns regarding the potential for this information to be misinterpreted or misused by patients, families, clinicians, and outside entities such as insurance companies. Finally, some CAP noted that PRS may lead to increased stigmatization of psychiatric disorders, and at the extreme, could be used to support eugenics. As PRS testing increases, it will be critical to examine CAP and other stakeholders' views to ensure responsible implementation of this technology.

  View details for DOI 10.1016/j.psychres.2024.116080

  View details for Web of Science ID 001271430800001

  View details for PubMedID 39002500

  View details for PubMedCentralID PMC11321910