NIH Awards UT-Houston $1.47 Million Grant
Creating Network for Neurological Research
HOUSTON – (Oct. 16, 2007)–The University of Texas Medical School at Houston has been awarded a $1.47 million grant to join a national network that will research the most effective treatments for patients with neurological emergencies.
Elizabeth Jones, M.D.
The funding by the National Institutes of Health will establish the Southeast Texas Neurological Emergency Treatment Trial Network (SETNETT).
Elizabeth Jones, M.D., assistant professor in the Department of Emergency Medicine, said the local site is one of 15 nationwide that will be researching how to improve treatments and outcomes for patients with stroke, seizures, traumatic brain injury and other neurological emergencies.
Jones, the principal investigator at the local hub, will coordinate clinical trials at Memorial Hermann – Texas Medical Center, Lyndon B. Johnson General Hospital, Memorial Hermann Memorial City, Memorial Hermann Southwest, St. Luke’s Episcopal Hospital, The Methodist Hospital, Memorial Hermann Baptist Hospital-Orange, Memorial Hermann Baptist Hospital-Beaumont and Texas Children’s Hospital. The Houston Fire Department also will participate, and the Center of Clinical and Translational Sciences (CCTS) at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston will support the research endeavor.
While local physicians and researchers are conducting trials and collecting data, the other study sites around the country will be testing the same protocols. This will allow health care professionals to enroll more patients in the studies, some of which will focus on treatments for rare disorders.
“One of the major advantages of the consortium is that we will be able to more quickly enroll the number of patients needed to produce scientifically and statistically valid data,” said Alex Valadka, M.D., professor and vice chair of the Department of Neurosurgery.
Jones said the network is designed to overcome research barriers, leading to expedited discoveries that benefit patients.
“The network will allow us to set up trials that can be done quickly and produce good quality data,” Jones said. “For some studies, where it wouldn’t be possible to consent the patient for enrollment in the study, the network also opens the door for community consent. Instead of consenting each individual patient, we’ll educate the public in advance of the studies by making presentations to community groups.”
In the upcoming months, the local network plans to launch two clinical trials – one that tests a medication for stroke and another that studies an injectable medication for patients who are having seizures.
James Grotta, M.D., chairman of the Department of Neurology and co-director of the Mischer Neuroscience Institute at Memorial Hermann – TMC, said the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke placed a high priority on creating this national research network.
“We share this priority of advancing neuroscience research,” Grotta said. “We’re one of the few places that have a neurological emergency response team. This network will allow us to carry out research projects and gain expedited results.”
With Jones, Grotta, Valadka, Brent King, M.D., chairman of the Department of Emergency Medicine and executive vice dean for clinical affairs at the UT Medical School at Houston; and David Persse, M.D., director of the City of Houston Emergency Medical Services, serve on the steering committee that will help set up and operate studies within the local network.
“The goal of this network is to conduct numerous trials simultaneously, search for new discoveries and improve upon what we are already doing,” Valadka said.