Carmen Zorrilla is a professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the UPR School of Medicine, certified by the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology and the American Academy of HIV Medicine. In 1987, she established the first longitudinal clinic for women living with HIV in Puerto Rico. She participated in the PACTG 076 as one of the first 10 pilot sites and was instrumental in making AZT available to pregnant women living with HIV in Puerto Rico. Her clinic, in which more than 600 infants have been born to HIV-positive women, has had a nearly zero transmission rate during the past 16 years. Dr. Zorrilla implemented a program for group prenatal care at the University Hospital, the first in Puerto Rico. This new model of care evidenced a reduction in preterm births. She is one of leaders who spearheaded the research response to the emerging Zika epidemic among pregnant women in Puerto Rico and established a multidisciplinary clinic for pregnant women with Zika. She is the site PI for the Zika in Infants and Pregnancy (ZIP Study) in San Juan.
She has experience in both obstetrics and gynecology and HIV-related research that includes behavioral interventions and clinical trials with HIV-infected and at-risk populations, as well as with pregnant and non-pregnant women. Dr. Zorrilla has participated in diverse clinical and behavioral research projects for women living with HIV and has many publications. She has been a consultant for national and international organizations including the National Institutes of Health, the Maternal and Child Health Bureau, the Centers for Disease Control and the Institute for Health Care Improvement. She was a member of the Office of Women’s Health Advisory Committee and the CDC/HRSA AIDS and STD Advisory Committee.
