Professor of Medicine
Medical Director, Osteoporosis Clinic, Center for Metabolic Bone Disease


Address:

830 Faculty Office Tower
510 20th Street South
Birmingham, AL 35294-3408

Telephone:(205) 934-3235
Fax:(205) 934-4602
Email: This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

Education

BS (Nutrition and Dietetics), Iowa State University, 1977
BS (Nutrition and Related Sciences), Iowa State University, 1977
MD, The University of Iowa, 1981
Internship and Residence (Internal Medicine), University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics, Iowa City, 1981-1984
Fellowship (Clinical Nutrition), The University of Alabama at Birmingham, 1984-1986
MS (Nutrition), The University of Alabama at Birmingham, 1987

 
Honors:

Research Description

 
Dr. Morgan's research program has been focused on methotrexate and folic acid metabolism in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.  Her work with Dr. Joseph E Baggott and members of the Division of Clinical Immunology and Rheumatology (Drs. Graciela Alarcon, Dr. William Koopman, Dr. S Louis Bridges, and Dr. Laura Hughes) have established the folic acid supplementation during low dose methotrexate therapy for rheumatoid arthritis lowers toxicity without affecting efficacy.  Drs Morgan and Baggott have also studied purine metabolism and methotrexate therapy in rat adjuvant arthritis and participate in trials related to methotrexate pharmacogenetics.  Dr. Morgan and Dr. Baggott have also investigated the effects of a medical food on osteoarthritis.

Dr. Morgan is currently working on a NIH grant submission with Dr. Jeffrey Curtis related to discontinuation of anti-TNF drugs in individuals in remission of rheumatoid arthritis on methotrexate and an anti-TNF agent.

 As the Medical Director of the UAB Osteoporosis Prevention and Treatment Clinic, Dr. Morgan has an interest in bone densitometry and clinical trials related to osteoporosis.

 

Selected Publications

 
Morgan SL, Baggott JE, Altz-Smith M.  1987. Folate status of rheumatoid arthritis patients on long-term, low-dose methotrexate therapy.  Arthritis Rheum; 30: 1348-56. PMID:3124860

 
Morgan SL, Baggott JE, Vaughn WH, Young PK, Austin JV, Krumdieck CL, Alarcón GS.  1990. The effect of folic acid supplementation on the toxicity of low-dose methotrexate treatment of rheumatoid arthritis.  Arthritis Rheum 33:  9-18. PMID: 2405864

 
Morgan SL, Baggott JE, Vaughn WH, Austin JS, Veitch TA, Lee JY, Koopman WJ, Krumdieck CL, Alarcón GS. 1994. Supplementation with folic acid during methotrexate therapy of rheumatoid arthritis: results from a double-blind, placebo-controlled trial.  Ann Intern Med 121: 833-841. PMID:7978695

 
Morgan SL, Baggott JE, Lee JY, Alarcón GS.  1998. Folic acid supplementation prevents deficient blood folate levels and hyperhomocysteinemia during long-term, low dose methotrexate therapy for rheumatoid arthritis: Implications for cardiovascular disease prevention.  J Rheumatol 25: 441-446. PMID:9517760

 
Morgan SL, Baggott JE, Alarcon GS, Bernreuter W, Arani R.  2001. Separation of inflammation and destructive response - MTX affects inflammation and tissue destruction different in the rat AA model, J Rheumatol 28: 1476-81. PMID:11469449
 

Goodson T, Morgan SL, Carlee JR, Baggott JE.  2003. The energy cost of adjuvant-induced arthritis in rats.  Arthritis Rheum 48: 2979-2982. PMID:14558105
 

Morgan SL, Abercrombie W, Lee JY.  2003. Need for precision studies at individual institutions and assessment of size of regions of interest on serial DXA scans. J Clin Densitometry, 6: 97-101. PMID: 12794231

Morgan SL, Chen DS, Carlee J, Baggott JE.  2004. Effect of methotrexate on bone mineral density and body composition in rat adjuvant arthritis.  J Rheumatol 31a;1693-7. PMID:15338486

 
Morgan SL, Oster RA, Lee JY, Alarcón GS, Baggott JE.  2004. The effect of folic acid and folinic acid supplements on purine metabolism in methotrexate-treated rheumatoid arthritis.  Arthritis Rheum 50:3104-3111. PMID:15476202

 
Baggott JE, Bridges SL, Morgan SL.  2005. Evidence for two phenotypes in the metabolism of methotrexate to 7-hydroxymethotrexate in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.  Arthritis Rheum 52: 356-358. PMID:15641087

 
Morgan SL, Baggott JE.  2006. Medical Foods: Products for the Management of Chronic Diseases.  Nutrition Reviews 64: 495-501. PMID:17131945

 
Baggott JE, Morgan SL.  2007. Methotrexate and erythro-9-(2-hydroxynon-3-yl) adenine therapy for rat adjuvant arthritis and the effect of methotrexate on in vivo purine metabolism.  Euro J Pharm Sci 31: 95-101. PMID:17408934

 
Morgan SL, Lopez-Ben R, Nunnally N, Burroughs L, Fineberg N, Tubbs SH, Yester MV.  2008. "Black hole artifacts": a New Potential Pitfall for DXA Accuracy, J Clin Densitometry 11:266-275. PMID:18291695

 
Morgan SL, Lopez-Ben R, Nunnally N, Burroughs L, Fineberg N, Tubbs SH, Yester MV.  2008. The effect of common artifacts lateral to the spine on bone mineral density in the lumbar spine.  J Clin Densitometry,11:243-249. PMID:18291694

 
Mann ML, Thornley-Brown D, Campbell R, Bell E, Feng R, Morgan SL.  2008. The effect of peritoneal dialysate on DXA bone densitometry results in patients with end-stage renal disease. J Clin Densitom 11:532-6. PMID:18809346

 
Morgan SL, Baggott JE, Moreland L, Desmond R, Kendrach AC.  2009. The safety of flavocoxid, a medical food, in the dietary management of knee osteoarthritis.  J Medicinal Food 12: 1143-1148. PMID:19857081

 
Baggott JE, Morgan SL.  2009. Methotrexate catabolism to 7-hydroxymethotrexate in rheumatoid arthritis alters drug efficacy and retention and is reduced by folic acid supplementation.  Arthritis Rheum 60:2257-2261. PMID:19644884

 
Morgan SL.  2009. Nutrition and bone: it is more than calcium and vitamin D.  Women's Health 5: 727-737. PMID:19863475

 
Danila MI, Hughes LB, Brown EE, Morgan SL, Baggott JE, Arnett DK, Bridges SL Jr  2010. Measurement of erythrocyte methotrexate polyglutamate levels: ready for clinical use in rheumatoid arthritis?  Curr Rheumatol Rep 12: 342-7. PMID:20665136

 
Binkley N, Krueger DC, Morgan S, Wiebe D.  2010. Current status of clinical 25-hydroxyvitamin D measurement: An assessment of between-laboratory agreement.  Clin Chim Acata 13: 283-91. PMID: 20713030

 
Morgan SL, Baggott JE.  2010. Folate supplementation during methotrexate therapy for rheumatoid arthritis.  Clin Exp Rheumatol 28 (Suppl 61): S102-109. PMID:21044441

Pitt MJ, Morgan SL, Lopez-Ben R, Stellman RE, Nunnally N, Burroughs L, Fineberg N.  Association of the presence of bone bars on radiographs and low bone mineral density.  Skeletal Radiol, 40:905-911. PMID:21243354

 
Baggott JE, Gorman GS, Morgan SL. 2011. Phenotypes and circadian rhythm in utilization of formate in purine nucleotide biosynthesis de novo in adult humans. Life Sci. 88(15-16):688-92. PMID: 21324323

 
Kiebzak GM, Morgan SL.  2011. Long-term vs. short-term precision of dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry scans and the impact of interpreting change in bone mineral density at follow-up.  J Clinical Densitometry  14: 108-115.