Researcher profile

Alvaro Alonso

Dr. Álvaro Alonso is a chronic disease epidemiologist and Professor at the School of Medicine, University of Navarra (Pamplona, Spain), where he returned in 2026 after two decades in academic positions in the United States. He is also Adjunct Professor of Epidemiology at the Rollins School of Public Health, Emory University (Atlanta, USA). From 2016 to 2026, he was Professor of Epidemiology at Emory, where he held the Stephen D. Clements Jr. Chair in Cardiovascular Disease Prevention. With more than two decades of experience in population-based research on chronic diseases, Dr. Alonso has authored over 550 peer-reviewed publications, receiving more than $11 million in research funding as PI. His research focuses on the epidemiology of atrial fibrillation and its clinical consequences and on the role of cardiovascular health in Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias. He has made seminal contributions to understanding risk factors and disparities in atrial fibrillation, led the development of the widely used CHARGE-AF risk prediction model, and advanced evidence on the cardiovascular determinants of cognitive decline through leadership roles in the ARIC Neurocognitive Study and the Data Management and Statistics Core of the Goizueta Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center. Dr. Alonso earned his MD and PhD from the University of Navarra, an MPH from the Carlos III Institute of Health, completed residency training in Preventive Medicine and Public Health in Spain, and conducted postdoctoral research at the Harvard School of Public Health as a Fulbright fellow. A Fellow of the American Heart Association, he is an experienced mentor of graduate and doctoral trainees and a recognized leader in cardiovascular and neuroepidemiology.