Our skin serves as a primary signal of our health, longevity, and even our past, says Shadi Kourosh, M.D., MPH, Associate Professor of Environmental Health at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
As Associate Professor of Dermatology at Harvard Medical School, Kourosh works in multiple areas, from studying the effect of pollution on aging and our skin’s health, to examining the distortion recent technologies deliver to our self-worth. After she and colleagues saw an increased demand for cosmetic procedures during the pandemic, Kourosh published the original papers on “Zoom dysmorphia” to warn peers of this concern. Kourosh’s research work is also rooted in the public sphere, amplifying the physical signs of human trafficking. She bolsters these efforts through her work as founder and director of The Radiance Clinic, Harvard’s pro-bono laser clinic and tattoo removal program, by treating former gang members and trafficking victims.
Her background in public health standards has led her to the regenerative space, to highlight the need for more science, evidence and standards around skin longevity and aesthetics so patients and consumers are educated and protected. Her 2024 paper, for example, dissected different outcomes for platelet-rich plasma treatments growing in popularity in hair restoration and skin rejuvenation treatments. She emphasized the need for standards and protocols in aesthetics medicine, by rooting the field in systems biology and long-term clinical outcomes. Kourosh speaks of this need to shape a new approach to aesthetics medicine, by chairing lectures and keynote sessions at global aesthetic medicine congresses, including the IMCAS Global World Congress.
“The field of regenerative aesthetics will only come of age when we apply the same standards of trials and quantifiable outcome measures that we expect of other medical interventions,” she said.
Kourosh received her M.D. from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical School, and her MPH from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health. She has served as a Medical Correspondent for ABC News and “Good Morning America,” and as a contributing writer for U.S. News & World Report. Kourosh serves as the director of the Center for Aesthetics at Nantucket Cottage Hospital, continues to see patients clinically in New York, and is on the American Academy of Dermatology’s Board of Directors. She was named one of Medscape’s 25 Stars Leading the Future of Medicine in 2020, and has more than 100 publications to her name.
We are delighted to have Dr. Kourosh join our DOC 2026 Faculty!