Annika Theodoulou

I work as a Systematic reviewer for the Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine and with the Health Behaviours team on research aiming to improve health through behaviour change. I am also a DPhil candidate reading for a DPhil in Evidence-based Health Care.

My research interests are focussed on evidence synthesis, and on interventions for smoking cessation and weight management. I joined the department in 2018 and have contributed to multiple evidence syntheses including a large review, funded by the British Heart Foundation and NIHR Oxford BRC, aimed at evaluating long-term weight regain following behavioural weight management programmes. I also work with the Cochrane Tobacco Addiction group on multiple projects, most recently including a living systematic review investigating the use of electronic cigarettes for smoking cessation, and a review update on preventing weight gain after smoking cessation.

Prior to joining the department, I worked as an orthopaedic researcher in Australia. I contributed to clinical trials and led systematic reviews investigating a wide variety of musculoskeletal conditions, from surgical treatments through to post-operative care.  

Doctoral research

My doctoral research focusses on exploring socioeconomic inequalities in smoking behaviours. I am a Rotary Scholar and undertake this work with the support of the Rotary Foundation. My doctoral research is jointly undertaken within the Centre for Evidence-Based Medicine and the Department for Continuing Education, under the supervision of Dr Jamie Hartmann-Boyce and Dr Nicola Lindson.

I completed a Master of Clinical Science with The Joanna Briggs Institute at the University of Adelaide and was awarded the Dean’s Commendation for Master of Research Thesis Excellence. My research demonstrated the increased risk of complication and poorer outcomes in patients with obesity and diabetes undergoing upper-limb arthroplasty. My work was supported by a merit-based scholarship granted by the Australian Government Research Training Program.

In 2012, I graduated from a Bachelor of Health Sciences at the University of Adelaide in Australia. Majoring in Pharmacology and Psychology, I was awarded for achieving the highest mark for each major and, in addition, was awarded the Dean’s Certificate of Merit.