Bonny Lab
Adolescent and Young Adult Contraception and Substance Use Disorders (SUD)
Despite being the most common endocrine disorder in women, controversy continues regarding the underlying etiopathogenesis, diagnosis and treatment recommendations for Polyendocrine Metabolic Ovarian Syndrome (PMOS, formerly polycystic ovary syndrome) in adolescents. Dr. Bonny’s Lab is a clinical site for the Clinical Adolescent Polyendocrine Metabolic Ovarian Syndrome (CALICO) Consortium which aims to describe the presenting reproductive and metabolic phenotypes, natural history, and response to therapy in adolescents with PMOS. In the same manner, research is needed to inform clinical practice for AYA on contraception. Reducing incidence pregnancy and tailoring contraceptive needs and preferences requires more exploration as this has been widely studied in adult populations, but not in AYA. The nonmedical use of substances, particularly opioids, by AYA continues to be major a public health concern. The peak risk for nonmedical use of prescription opioids among adolescents (age 12-21 years) occurs at age 16. In the United States, unintentional drug overdose remains a leading cause of injury death in adolescents. Research is needed to inform clinical practice for this vulnerable patient population, as well as dictating public policy.
Current Research
- Mental Health Co-morbidity in Adolescents with PMOS
- Contraceptive Choice Pathways in Adolescents
- Strategies to Improve Access to Care for Patients with SUD
- Treatment Outcomes in Adolescents with SUD
Lab Staff
Andrea E. Bonny, MD
Principal Investigator
Andrea.Bonny@NationwideChildrens.org
Andrea Bonny, MD, is an adolescent medicine clinician whose vision is a world where adolescents do not suffer from preventable harms including unintended pregnancy and drug overdose.
Dr. Bonny began her career with an emphasis on adolescent reproductive health.Her early scholarly work focused on hormonal contraceptive side effects with the goal of improving contraceptive adherence in adolescent populations. Dr. Bonny’s contraceptive research efforts led to an exploration of weight gain, bone mineral density loss, and adherence among adolescents on hormonal contraception. In 2025, Dr. Bonny joined the CALICO Consortium where she now serves as a site-coinvestigator and member of the Steering Committee.
Although adolescent reproductive health has remained an important emphasis of her career, Dr. Bonny’s arrival at Nationwide Children’s in 2011 brought newfound interest in adolescent substance misuse and addiction. In the midst of the opioid epidemic, Ohio needed more healthcare providers with substance abuse expertise. Dr. Bonny began providing care in the institutional substance use and recovery (STAR) program and soon engaged the team in research priority setting to inform our clinical efforts.
Brittny Manos
Clinical Research Coordinator II
Brittny.Manos@NationwideChildrens.org
Brittny’s research interests center around protecting and advancing research efforts for vulnerable populations, especially AYA. She coordinated Dr. Bonny’s Multi-Dose DMPA Study, in which they assessed the degree of association between medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA) exposure and bone mineral density loss and weight gain in adolescents randomized to one of three doses of DMPA (150, 104, or 75 mg); Brittny believes this solidified the trajectory of her career. She has since then coordinated a multi-phase Pilot Clinical Evaluation of the BioFire® Diagnostics Vaginitis and Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI) Panels which aim for the simultaneous detection and identification of multiple causes of vaginitis and urethritis in both near-patient and laboratory settings. In addition, Brittny is coordinating and supporting eating disorder studies in Adolescent Medicine including “Omega-3 fatty acid supplementation for the treatment of anxiety in anorexia nervosa in adolescents” and “DNA sequencing in anorexia and bulimia nervosa.” She has also secured federal and state funding to support research in the Substance Use Treatment and Recovery Program.
