Associate Professor Claire Carson BSc MSc PhD
Senior Researcher in Epidemiology claire.carson@npeu.ox.ac.uk
PA: Emma Kentish emma.kentish@npeu.ox.ac.uk
Biography
Claire Carson is a Senior Researcher in Epidemiology, based in the National Perinatal Epidemiology Unit (NPEU). She has training in both quantitative and qualitative methods, and specialises in the analysis of observational and routine data. Her research interests include maternal morbidity, infertility and fertility treatment, preterm birth, and breastfeeding.
Claire joined the NPEU in 2008 to work on a project exploring health outcomes of children born after assisted reproductive technologies (ART) using data from the Millennium Cohort Study. She was awarded an MRC Career Development Award, and then an MRC Transition Support Award, to investigate the longer-term outcomes of fertility treatment in women and their children using record linkage (PEARL study). She also completed qualitative work to examine how people feel about their fertility data being used in research, and what they understand this to mean (the Taking pART study).
Claire is now Deputy Director of the NIHR Policy Research Unit in Maternal and Neonatal Health and Care, leading work that uses administrative health data to address policy questions. Recent projects have focussed on the maternal six week check, maternal medicine networks and the economic costs of birht trauma. Claire is also the Chief Investigator and co-lead of PRiSMM, an NIHR-funded research programme to improve national data on severe maternal morbidity and evaulate a new national change to maternity care - the Maternal Care Bundle.
Prior to joining the University of Oxford, Claire was a Research Fellow at London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, where she also completed an MSc and then a PhD in Epidemiology. Claire supervises DPhil and MSc students, and enjoys teaching. She is a co-lead for the Maternal and Child Health module in the MSc Global Health Science & Epidemiology.
Publications
Yang, M., Carson, C. & Violato, M. Measuring and decomposing income inequalities in child and adolescent mental health in the UK. Eur J Health Econ (2026). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10198-026-01918-3
Yang, M., Violato, M. & Carson, C. The changing role of family income in mental health from childhood to adolescence: findings from a UK longitudinal study. Arch Public Health 83, 224 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1186/s13690-025-01702-4
Coathup V, Carson C, Ashdown H, Santorelli G, Quigley MA. Association between maternal body mass index and hospital admissions for infection in offspring: longitudinal cohort study. BMJ Medicine. 2025;4:e001050. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjmed-2024-001050
Li Y, Kurinczuk JJ, Alderdice F, Quigley MA, Rivero-Arias O, Sanders J, Kenyon S, Siassakos D, Parekh N, De Almeida S, Carson C. Pre-pregnancy care in general practice in England: cross-sectional observational study using administrative routine health data. BMC Public Health. 2025 Mar 22;25(1):1101. doi: 10.1186/s12889-025-21728-1. PMID: 40121446; PMCID: PMC11929985.
Ramakrishnan R, Korb D, Li Y, Knight M, Carson C. (2025) Maternal postpartum six-week check and short-term health outcomes for women with hypertensive disorders in pregnancy: An observational study using the Clinical Practice Research Datalink (CPRD). Acta Obstet Gynecol Scand. 2025; 00: 1-11. doi:10.1111/aogs.15068
Li, Y., Kurinczuk, J. J., Alderdice, F., Quigley, M. A., Rivero-Arias, O., Sanders, J., Kenyon, S., Siassakos, D., Parekh, N., De Almeida, S. and Carson, C. (2025) “Addressing uncertainty in identifying pregnancies in the English CPRD GOLD Pregnancy Register: a methodological study using a worked example”, International Journal of Population Data Science, 10(1). doi: 10.23889/ijpds.v10i1.2471
Coathup V, Ashdown HF, Carson C, et al (2024) Associations between maternal body mass index and childhood infections in UK primary care: findings from the Born in Bradford birth cohort study Archives of Disease in Childhood Published Online First: 27 September 2024. doi: 10.1136/archdischild-2024-326951
Li Y, McLeish J, Hardy P, Cole C, Carson C, Alderdice F, Maheshwari A (2024) Anxiety in couples undergoing IVF: evidence from E-Freeze randomised controlled trial, Human Reproduction Open, 2024; https://doi.org/10.1093/hropen/hoae037
Rahmartani LD, Quigley MA, Carson C. Do various types of prelacteal feeding (PLF) have different associations with breastfeeding duration in Indonesia? A cross-sectional study using Indonesia Demographic and Health Survey datasets, BMJ Global Health 2024;9:e014223.
Zhang CX, Quigley MA, Bankhead C, Kwok CH, Parekh N, Carson C. (2024) Ethnic Inequities in 6-8 week baby check coverage in England 2006-2021: a cohort study using the Clinical Practice Research Datalink. British Journal of General Practice; published online first 15 April 2024. DOI: https://doi.org/10.3399/BJGP.2023.0593
Yang M, Carson C, Creswell C, Violato M. (2023) Child mental health and income gradient from early childhood to adolescence: Evidence from the UK. SSM - Population Health. 2023;24:101534.
Zhang, CX, Bankhead C, Quigley MA, Kwok CH, Carson C. (2023). “Ethnic Inequities in Routine Childhood Vaccinations in England 2006–2021: an Observational Cohort Study Using Electronic Health Records.” EClinicalMedicine 65.
Hua X, Rivero-Arias O, Quigley MA, Kurinczuk JJ, Carson C. (2023) Long-term healthcare utilization and costs of babies born after assisted reproductive technologies (ART): a record linkage study with 10-years' follow-up in England. Hum Reprod. 2023 Dec 4;38(12):2507-2515. doi: 10.1093/humrep/dead198. PMID: 37804539.
Pereyra-Elías R, Carson C, Quigley MA, (2023) Association between breastfeeding duration and educational achievement in England: Results from the Millennium Cohort Study. Archives of Disease in Childhood. Archives of Disease in Childhood 2023;108:665-672
Hua X, Petrou S, Coathup V, Carson C, Kurinczuk JJ, Quigley MA, Boyle E, Johnson S, Macfarlane A, Rivero-Arias O, (2023) Gestational age and hospital admission costs from birth to childhood: a population based record linkage study in England. Gestational age and hospital admission costs from birth to childhood: a population-based record linkage study in England, Archives of Disease in Childhood - Fetal and Neonatal Edition, Online First: 09 February 2023. doi: 10.1136/archdischild-2022-324763
Zhang CX, Quigley MA, Bankhead C, Bentley T, Otasowie C, Carson C.(2022) Ethnic differences and inequities in paediatric healthcare utilisation in the UK: a scoping review. Archives of Disease in Childhood Published Online First: 07 November 2022. doi: 10.1136/archdischild-2022-324577
Alterman N, Johnson S, Carson C, Petrou S, Kurinzcuk JJ, Macfarlane A, Boyle E, Quigley MA. (2022) Gestational age at birth and academic attainment in primary and secondary school in England: Evidence from a national cohort study. PLoS One. 2022 Aug 17;17(8):e0271952. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0271952.
Burton HAL, Pickenhan C, Carson C, et al., (2022), How women with obsessive compulsive disorder experience maternity care and mental health care during pregnancy and postpartum: A systematic literature review. Journal of Affective Disorders, 314: 1-18, doi: 10.1016/j.jad.2022.06.041
Pereyra-Elías R, Quigley MA, Carson C (2022) To what extent does confounding explain the association between breastfeeding duration and cognitive development up to age 14? Findings from the UK Millennium Cohort Study. PLoS ONE 17(5): e0267326.
Tianyi F-L, Li Y, Alderdice F, Quigley MA, Kurinczuk JJ, Bankhead C, Carson C, (2022) The association between conception history and subsequent postpartum depression and/or anxiety: Evidence from the Clinical Practice Research Datalink 1991–2013, Journal of Affective Disorders, 310:266-273
Li Y, Kurinczuk JJ, Gale C, Siassakos D, Carson C, (2022) Evidence of disparities in the provision of the maternal postpartum 6-week check in primary care in England, 2015–2018: an observational study using the Clinical Practice Research Datalink (CPRD), J Epidemiol Community Health 2022;76:239-246
Coathup V, Carson C, Kurinzcuk JJ, Macfarlane AJ, Boyle E, Johnson S, Petrou S, Quigley MA, (2021), Associations between gestational age at birth and infection-related hospital admission rates during childhood in England: Population-based record linkage study, PLoS One, 2021;16(9):e0257341.
Li Y, Kurinczuk JJ, Gale C, Siassakos D, Carson C. (2021) Evidence of disparities in the provision of the maternal postpartum 6-week check in primary care in England, 2015–2018: an observational study using the Clinical Practice Research Datalink (CPRD) J Epidemiol Community Health Online First: 09 September 2021. doi: 10.1136/jech-2021-216640
Opondo C, Harrison S, Alderdice F, Carson C, Quigley MA (2021) Electronic cigarette use (vaping) and patterns of tobacco cigarette smoking in pregnancy–evidence from a population-based maternity survey in England. PLoS ONE 16(6): e0252817.
Alterman N, Johnson S, Carson C, et al. (2021) Gestational age at birth and child special educational needs: a UK representative birth cohort study. Arch Dis Child Published Online First: 22 January 2021. doi: 10.1136/archdischild-2020-320213
Rahmartani LD, Carson C, Quigley MA. (2020) Prevalence of prelacteal feeding and associated risk factors in Indonesia: Evidence from the 2017 Indonesia Demographic Health Survey. PLoS ONE 2020, 15(12):e0243097
Coathup V, Boyle E, Carson C, et al. (2020) Gestational age and hospital admissions during childhood: population based, record linkage study in England (TIGAR study) BMJ 2020; 371 :m4075
Carson C, Hinton L, Kurinczuk JJ, Quigley MA, 'I haven't met them, I don't have any trust in them. It just feels like a big unknown': a qualitative study exploring the determinants of consent to use Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority registry data in research. BMJ Open 2019;9:e026469. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2018-026469
Simpson DA, Quigley MA, Kurinczuk JJ, Carson C. Twenty-five-year trends in breastfeeding initiation: The effects of sociodemographic changes in Great Britain, 1985-2010. PLoS One, Jan 17;14(1):e0210838. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0210838. eCollection 2019.
Altijani N, Carson C, Choudhury SS, Rani A, Sarma UC, Knight M, Nair M, 'Stillbirth among women in nine states in India: Rate and risk factors in study of 886,505 women from the Annual Health Survey', BMJ Open. 2018 Nov 8;8(11):e022583. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2018-022583.
Henderson J, Carson C, Jayaweera H, Alderdice F, Redshaw M, 'Recency of migration, region of origin and women's experience of maternity care in England: evidence from a large cross-sectional survey,' Midwifery, 2018, Sep 21;67:87-94. doi: 10.1016/j.midw.2018.09.008
Leps C, Carson C, Quigley MA, Gestational age at birth and wheezing trajectories at 3–11 years, Arch Dis Child, 2018, Jun 2. pii: archdischild-2017-314541. doi: 10.1136/archdischild-2017-314541.
Tiwari S, Gray R, Jenkinson C, Carson C, Association between spousal emotional abuse and reproductive outcomes of women in India: findings from cross-sectional analysis of the 2005-2006 National Family Health Survey, Soc Psychiatry Psychiatr Epidemiol. 2018, May; 53(5):509-519
Quigley MA, Carson C, Kelly Y; Breastfeeding and Childhood Wheeze: Age-specific analyses and longitudinal wheezing phenotypes as complimentary approaches to the analysis of cohort data, Am J Epi, 2018, Apr 3. doi: 10.1093/aje/kwy057. [Epub ahead of print]
Barton K, Redshaw M, Quigley MA, Carson C, Unplanned pregnancy and subsequent psychological distress in partnered women: a cross-sectional study of the role of relationship quality and wider social support. BMC Pregnancy & Childbirth, 2017;17(1):44
Kroll ME, Carson C, Redshaw M, Quigley MA, Early Father Involvement and Subsequent Child Behaviour at Ages 3, 5 and 7 Years: Prospective Analysis of the UK Millennium Cohort Study. PLOS ONE, 2016, 11(9): e0162339. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0162339
Henderson J, Carson C, Redshaw M, Impact of preterm birth on maternal well-being and women's perceptions of their baby: a population-based survey, BMJ Open, 2016; 6:e012676. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2016-012676
Quigley M, Carson C, Sacker A, and Kelly Y, Exclusive breastfeeding duration and infant infection, European Journal of Clinical Nutrition advance online publication 27 July 2016; doi: 10.1038/ejcn.2016.135
Quigley M, Carson C, Breastfeeding in the 21st century. The Lancet, 387:2087-8, May 2016 [Letter]
Carson C, Redshaw M, Gray R, Quigley MA. Risk of psychological distress in parents of preterm children in the first year: evidence from the UK Millennium Cohort Study. BMJ Open. 2015 Dec 18;5 (12):e007942. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2015-007942.
Carson C, Children conceived following induced ovulation or intrauterine insemination have a small increased risk of mental disorders. Evidence-based Mental Health 10/2013; DOI: 10.1136/eb-2013-101526 [Invited commentary]
Morinis J, Carson C, Quigley MA Effect of teenage motherhood on cognitive outcomes in children: a population-based cohort study. Arch Dis Child. 2013 Dec;98(12):959-64.
Carson C, A Sacker, Y Kelly, M Redshaw, JJ Kurinczuk, MA Quigley. 'Asthma in children born after infertility treatment: findings from the UK Millennium Cohort Study'. Hum Reprod, 2013, 28(2): 471-9
Carson C, M Redshaw, A Sacker, Y Kelly, JJ Kurinczuk, MA Quigley. 'The effects of pregnancy planning, fertility and Assisted Reproductive Treatment on child behavioural problems at 5 and 7 years: evidence from the Millennium Cohort Study'. Fertility and Sterility, 2013; 99(2): 456-463
Quigley MA, Hockley C, Carson C, Kelly Y, Renfrew MJ, Sacker A. Breastfeeding is Associated with Improved Child Cognitive Development: A Population-Based Cohort Study. J Pediatr, 2012;160:25-32
Carson C, Kelly Y, Kurinczuk JJ, Sacker A, Redshaw M, Quigley MA. The association between pregnancy planning, fertility treatment and childhood cognitive outcomes at 3 and 5 years: evidence from the Millennium Cohort Study. BMJ. 2011 Jul 26; 343
Wannamethee SG, Papacosta O, Whincup PH, Thomas MC, Carson C, Lawlor DA, Ebrahim S, Sattar N. The potential for a two-stage diabetes risk algorithm combining non-laboratory-based scores with subsequent routine non-fasting blood tests: results from prospective studies in older men and women. Diabet Med. 2011 Jan;28(1):23-30
Lois G Kim, Shah Ebrahim, C Carson, Debbie A Lawlor, Geographical Variation in cardiovascular incidence: results from the British Women's Heart and Health Study,BMC Public Health. 2010;10:696.
Gregson CL, Carson C, Amuzu A, Ebrahim S. The association between graded physical activity in postmenopausal British women, and the prevalence and incidence of hip and wrist fractures. Age Ageing. 2010 Sep;39(5):565-74.
Wannamethee SG, Papacosta O, Whincup PH, Carson C, Thomas MC, Lawlor DA, Ebrahim S, Sattar N. Assessing prediction of diabetes in older adults using different adiposity measures: a 7 year prospective study in 6,923 older men and women. Diabetologia. 2010 May;53(5):890-8.
Nitsch D, Lawlor DA, Patel R, Carson C, Ebrahim S. The association of renal impairment with all-cause and cardiovascular disease mortality. Nephrol Dial Transplant. 2010 Apr;25(4):1191-9.
Jefferis BJ, Lowe GD, Welsh P, Rumley A, Lawlor DA, Ebrahim S, Carson C, Doig M, Feyerabend C, McMeekin L, Wannamethee SG, Cook DG, Whincup PH. Secondhand smoke (SHS) exposure is associated with circulating markers of inflammation and endothelial function in adult men and women. Atherosclerosis. 2010 Feb;208(2):550-6.
Jefferis BJ, Whincup P, Welsh P, Wannamethee G, Rumley A, Lennon L, Thomson A, Lawlor D, Carson C, Ebrahim S, Lowe G. Prospective study of matrix metalloproteinase-9 and risk of myocardial infarction and stroke in older men and women. Atherosclerosis. 2010 Feb;208(2):557-63.
Carson C, Kurinczuk JJ, Sacker A, Kelly Y, Klemetti R, Redshaw M, Quigley MA. Cognitive development following ART: effect of choice of comparison group, confounding and mediating factors. Hum Reprod. 2010 Jan;25(1):244-52.
Kamaruzzaman S, Watt H, Carson C, Ebrahim S. The association between orthostatic hypotension and medication use in the British Women's Heart and Health Study. Age Ageing. 2010 Jan;39(1):51-6.
Jefferis BJ, Whincup PH, Welsh P, Wannamethee SG, Rumley A, Lennon LT, Thomson AG, Carson C, Ebrahim S, Lowe GD. Circulating TNFalpha levels in older men and women do not show independent prospective relations with MI or stroke. Atherosclerosis. 2009 Jul;205(1):302-8.
Amuzu A, Carson C, Watt HC, Lawlor DA, Ebrahim S. Influence of area and individual lifecourse deprivation on health behaviours: findings from the British Women's Heart and Health Study. Eur J Cardiovasc Prev Rehabil. 2009 Apr;16(2):169-73
Watt HC, Carson C, Lawlor DA, Patel R, Ebrahim S. Influence of life course socioeconomic position on older women's health behaviors: findings from the British Women's Heart and Health Study. Am J Public Health. 2009 Feb;99(2):320-7.
Andersen AF, Carson C, Watt HC, Lawlor DA, Avlund K, Ebrahim S. Life-course socio-economic position, area deprivation and Type 2 diabetes: findings from the British Women's Heart and Health Study. Diabetes Medicine. 2008 Dec;25(12):1462-8.
Carson C, Hajat S, Armstrong B, Wilkinson P. Declining vulnerability to temperature-related mortality in London over the 20th century. Am J Epidemiol. 2006 Jul 1;164(1):77-84. Epub 2006 Apr 19
Maconochie N, Doyle P, Carson C. Infertility among male UK veterans of the 1990-1 Gulf war: reproductive cohort study. BMJ. 2004 Jul 24;329(7459):196-201. Epub 2004 Jul 14.
Team
Projects
