Speak with our HG Experts
To contact the HER Foundation for interviews, please email media@hyperemesis.org.
HG women in your area
To find women around the world willing to share their stories to help raise awareness of HG, please email media@hyperemesis.org.
Media Relations Contacts
Please direct media inquiries to media@hyperemesis.org.
Our HG Experts
Dr. Marlena Fejzo, a Harvard-trained women's health researcher, specializing in genetics, an affiliated with the University of Southern California. Dr. Fejzo is credited with discovering the cause of HG and is the world's leading research scientist on HG and a HER Foundation Board member and Research Advisor. Dr. Fejzo endured HG during her pregnancies. Email her at research at hyperemesis.org.
Dr. Aimee Brecht-Doscher is an OBGYN in the Los Angeles area who has personally been affected by HG. She is a HER Foundation Board member and the Medical Advisor for the Foundation. Email her at aimee at hyperemesis.org.
Kimber MacGibbon is a registered nurse (RN) and has helped many thousands of families facing HG across the globe since 2000. She has an extensive understanding of HG from a medical, advocacy, and personal perspective. Kimber is also co-founder of the HER Foundation. She and Dr. Fejzo have co-authored over three dozen publications on HG in collaboration with universities, including USC and UCLA. Kimber had HG in both of her pregnancies and is located in Portland, Oregon. Email her at kimber at hyperemesis.org.
Press Releases
- Dr. Marlena Fejzo was named to TIME's Annual Women of the Year List, Recognizing Extraordinary Leaders Fighting for a More Equal World - February 2024
- GDF15 linked to maternal risk of nausea and vomiting during pregnancy - December 2023
- Amy Schumer joins the Board of Directors of the Hyperemesis Education and Research
(HER) Foundation - May 2022 - Researchers Identify Gene Mutation Linked to Pregnancy Sickness - March 2022
- HER Foundation HG Awareness Day - Raise Your Voice - May 2020
- HG Awareness Day 2019 – May 2019
- HER Foundation Helps UCLA and 23 & Me with Genetic Studies – March 2018
- HER Foundation Responds to Duchess’ Third HG Pregnancy – September 2017
- HER Foundation donates $46,000 to UCLA geneticist for research into Hyperemesis Gravidarum – September 2012
- UCLA: Extreme morning sickness could lead to lifelong emotional, behavioral disorders in kids – August 2011
- Moms and Experts Meet On Capitol Hill, Give Voice To Overlooked Pregnancy Disease – September 2005
- HER Foundation Releases Survey Results On Hyperemesis Gravidarum – May 2005
- Untreated Hyperemesis Predisposes Babies to Diseases – December 2003
- Devastating illness for moms’-to-be in need of research to save lives – June 2003
Statistics and Fact Sheets
- HER Foundation Fact Sheet
- Advocacy Priorities
- Research Presentation Poster: SMFM 2019 Genetics Poster
- Research Presentation Poster:
Symptomatology and Outcomes of Women with HG as Reported in a Large Registry - Research Presentation Poster:
Familial Aggregation of HG - Research Presentation Poster:
Voluntary Termination in a Large Cohort of Women with Hyperemesis Gravidarum - Research Presentation Poster:
Secular Trends in the Treatment of Hyperemesis Gravidarum - Research Presentation Poster:
Extreme Weight Loss and Extended Duration of Symptoms Common in Hyperemesis Gravidarum
Dr. Fejzo Makes the Cover of The New York Times
Her doctor said her illness was all in her head. Dr. Fejzo was determined to find the truth. And she did: HG’s most likely genetic cause is GDF15. Read her story in The New York Times.
World Autism Awareness Day 2023
April 2, 2022, is World Autism Awareness Day. At the HER Foundation, we light up kindness and wear blue in support of understanding and acceptance for people with autism. Children born after an HG pregnancy have an increased risk of an autism diagnosis, and we are grateful for each of these children.
Highlights of SMFM 2023 Medical Conference
Overall, this study contributes to our understanding of the biology of nausea and vomiting in pregnancy and may lead to future research evaluating new treatment avenues. Of note, drugs targeting the GDF15 pathway have shown great promise in mitigating weight loss, loss of appetite, and vomiting in animal models and are currently in clinical trials in cancer cachexia, a disease with similar symptoms to HG.
