Helene M. Langevin, M.D.

Dr. Langevin is interested in exploring how to keep connective tissue flexible and free from pain, slow aging, and increase the health of the whole body. One limitation of conventional medicine is its fragmentation of the body into separate systems and body parts. Connective tissue is a body-wide network that connects all its systems and parts, making it important for the integrated functioning of the whole body. Dr. Langevin’s previous work has focused on the role of connective tissue in chronic pain and the mechanisms of acupuncture, manual, and movement-based therapies. Her goal at NIDCR is to understand how mechanical forces may help connective tissue stay strong and flexible, allow for successful healing after injury, reduce inflammation, and prevent cancer.

Dr. Helene Langevin holds an M.D. degree from McGill University, Montreal. She completed a postdoctoral research fellowship in neurochemistry at the MRC Neurochemical Pharmacology Unit in Cambridge, England, and a residency in internal medicine and fellowship in endocrinology and metabolism at The Johns Hopkins Hospital, Baltimore.

In November 2018, Dr. Langevin was sworn in as director of the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH). Prior to her arrival, she was director of the Osher Center for Integrative Medicine, jointly based at Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, and professor in residence of medicine at Harvard Medical School. She also was a visiting professor of neurological sciences at the University of Vermont Larner College of Medicine, Burlington.