Dr. Hudgins has treated pediatric patients with lipid disorders for over 30 years. After completing medical school at The University of Pennsylvania and her pediatric residency at Jacobi and Albert Einstein Hospitals, she carried out patient-oriented lipid research at The Rockefeller University, investigating the metabolic effects of dietary fat and carbohydrate on heart disease and obesity. In 1995, she became the pediatric director of the Rogosin Institute Comprehensive Lipid Control Center and a full faculty member of Weill-Cornell Medicine. While continuing research, she developed special expertise in severe genetic lipid disorders, including familial hypercholesterolemia (FH) and chylomicronemia. She currently is a faculty member of the Weill-Cornell Department of Pediatric Cardiology, continuing her clinical practice and research in lipid disorders. Under her supervision, children with homozygous FH are treated with the specialized lipid-lowering treatment, lipoprotein apheresis. She believes that the early identification and treatment of lipid abnormalities will prevent not only cardiovascular disease but also other conditions that are so difficult to treat in adulthood, such as obesity, diabetes, fatty liver and kidney disease.