UAB Model Spinal Cord Injury Care System.
University of Alabama/Birmingham. 619 - 19th Street South SRC 529. Birmingham, AL 35249-7330.
E-mail:mott@uab.edu. URL(s):http://main.uab.edu/show.asp?durki=10712. Principal Investigator: Amie B. Jackson, MD. Public Contact Phone: 205/934-3283 (V), 205/934-4691 (TTY). Fax: 205/975-4642. Project Number: H133N060021. Start Date: October 1, 2006. Length: 60 months. NIDRR Officer: Kenneth D. Wood, PhD. NIDRR Funding: FY 06 $474,471; FY 07 $474,471; FY 08 $474,471; FY 09 $474,417; FY 10 $474,417; FY 11 $474,417. Abstract: The University of Alabama at Birmingham provides rehabilitation services specifically designed to meet the special needs of individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) through its multidisciplinary, comprehensive Spinal Cord Injury Care System (UAB-SCICS). The UAB-SCICS spans the clinical continuum from emergency services through rehabilitation and community re-entry. The System’s research includes one collaborative research module and two in-house research projects, all of which ultimately aim at improving the health and function of its constituents. The collaborative research module involves the validation of an outcome measure for functional recovery. One in-house research project involves the assessment of the predictive value of key parts of the neurological exam for return of bladder function; the second is an investigation of the effect of nicotine on different types of SCI pain. The project continues to benefit from the active involvement of persons with SCI in the design and execution of the proposed activities. Project results are disseminated via a variety of accessible formats and venues for both professionals and persons with SCI and their families. A detailed plan of operation ensures timely completion of project goals and tasks. Finally, an evaluation plan has been designed to assess the quality and timeliness of project outcomes and dissemination, as well as short and long term impacts of project activities. Activities of the UAB-SCICS reflect an active partnership both within the components of UAB's health system and between UAB, the Lakeshore Foundation, and the Birmingham VA Medical Center. The project continues as a participant in data collection activities for the National Spinal Cord Injury Statistical Center. Descriptors: Bladder function, Model Systems, Rehabilitation medicine, Research, Service delivery, Spinal cord injuries. The Rocky Mountain Regional Spinal Injury System.
Craig Hospital. 3425 South Clarkson Street. Englewood, CO 80113.
E-mail:susie@craighospital.org. URL(s):http://www.craighospital.org/Research/SCIMain.asp. Principal Investigator: Daniel P. Lammertse, MD; Susan Charlifue, PhD. Public Contact Phone: 303/789-8306 (V), 303/789-8575 (TTY). Fax: 303/789-8441. Project Number: H133N060005. Start Date: October 1, 2006. Length: 60 months. NIDRR Officer: Kenneth D. Wood, PhD. NIDRR Funding: FY 06 $489,000; FY 07 $489,000; FY 08 $489,000; FY 09 $489,000; FY 10 $489,000. Abstract: The Rocky Mountain Regional Spinal Injury System (RMRSIS) goals are to: (1) implement a program of research focusing on the immediate and long-term health, function, and community integration and participation of people with spinal cord injury (SCI); (2) improve its existing lifetime system of care for people with SCI; and (3) continue exemplary participation in the National SCI Database. A site-specific study determines if high vs. low tidal volumes are more effective in achieving ventilator weaning for individuals with high level tetraplegia, using a randomized clinical trial design. A collaborative research module study involves the development of a reliable, valid measurement tool to assess community participation. RMRSIS includes two Level I trauma centers with specialized acute neurotrauma care facilities (St. Anthony Hospital and Swedish Medical Center) and the rehabilitation and lifetime follow-up services of Craig Hospital. Descriptors: Community integration, Model Systems, Outcome, Rehabilitation medicine, Spinal cord injuries, Ventilator dependence. National Capital Spinal Cord Injury Model System.
National Rehabilitation Hospital |MedStar Research Institute|. 102 Irving Street, NW. Washington, DC 20010.
URL(s):http://www.sci-health.org http://www.ncscims.org. Principal Investigator: Suzanne L. Groah, MD. Public Contact Phone: 202/877-1425. Fax: 202/726-7521. Project Number: H133N060028. Start Date: October 1, 2006. Length: 60 months. NIDRR Officer: Kenneth D. Wood, PhD. NIDRR Funding: FY 06 $449,417; FY 07 $449,417; FY 08 $449,417; FY 09 $449,417; FY 10 $449,417. Abstract: The National Capital Spinal Cord Injury Model System (NCSCIMS) serves Washington, DC and the nation. By focusing on the frequent and costly complication of pressure ulcers (PU), the NCSCIMS leverages two unique strengths: an existing Rehabilitation Research and Training Center on spinal cord injury (SCI) that focuses on reduction of secondary conditions, and the population of Washington, DC, which is predominantly composed of underserved individuals. The Center includes two site-specific and one modular project and describes a system of care that meets SCIMS priorities: Site Specific Project 1 is a Practice-Based Evidence (PBE) project specifically focused on PU prevention for all individuals with SCI and/or disease (SCI/D) during the acute and rehabilitative phases of care (to evolve to the community in later phases). The PBE approach allows a detailed examination of the effects of methods, modalities, and therapies utilized in rehabilitation to prevent PUs, which are often based on evidence-based medicine, but in reality may not be extrapolated to the broader population with SCI/D. In this project, researchers aim to utilize a PBE approach to augment evidence-based practice while addressing a critical secondary complication for individuals with SCI. Site Specific Project 2 is an SCI Navigator pilot project that combines elements of Peer Mentoring and Patient Navigation to decrease the occurrence of PUs once the individual has returned to the community. In this project, an SCI Navigator assists people with newly-acquired SCI in the transition from inpatient rehabilitation to the community, within the framework of an, at times, dysfunctional healthcare system. The NCSCIMS works with the Model System at the University of Pittsburg to explore Assistive Technology for Mobility (ATM). In this project, researchers investigate the degree to which inadequate wheelchair technology is the factor preventing people with SCI from doing more, work to understand the impact of changes in wheelchair reimbursement, and fully explore the issue of disparity in ATM prescription. Descriptors: Assistive technology, Community integration, Model Systems, Peer counseling, Pressure sores, Rehabilitation medicine, Spinal cord injuries, Wheelchairs. Georgia Regional Spinal Cord Injury Care System.
Shepherd Center, Inc.. 2020 Peachtree Road Northwest. Atlanta, GA 30309-1465.
E-mail:lesley_hudson@shepherd.org. URL(s):http://www.shepherd.org. Principal Investigator: David F. Apple, Jr., MD; Lesley M. Hudson. Public Contact Phone: 404/350-7591. Fax: 404/355-1826. Project Number: H133N060009. Start Date: October 1, 2006. Length: 60 months. NIDRR Officer: Dawn Carlson, PhD, MPH. NIDRR Funding: FY 06 $474,417; FY 07 $474,417; FY 08 $474,417; FY 09 $474,417; FY 10 $474,417. Abstract: The Georgia Regional Spinal Cord Injury Care System admits approximately 200 individuals annually with acute onset paralysis secondary to spinal cord injury (SCI), and collects post-discharge data on 600 individuals each year. Its patient population comes primarily from Georgia, the rest of the Southeast, and the Eastern Seaboard. The continuum of care begins at injury and continues through transport, assessment, acute care, rehabilitation, emotional adjustment, community reintegration, and lifetime follow-up. The project continues a long record of comprehensive and timely collection of data on subjects who meet the inclusion criteria in three categories: inpatient hospitalization; longitudinal collection at 1, 5, 10, 15, 20, and 25 years post-injury; and registry. In addition to continued model system research, the project conducts two site specific research projects: (1) Psychological Status During Inpatient Rehabilitation and One Year After Onset: Stress, Coping, and Expectation Hope for Recovery; (2) Development and Validation of a Clinical Measure of Wheelchair Seat Cushion Degradation. The project also manages a collaborative data collection research module entitled Impact of SCI on Labor Market Participation. Descriptors: Employment, Model Systems, Rehabilitation medicine, Seating, Spinal cord injuries. Midwest Regional Spinal Cord Injury Care System (MRSCIS).
Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago. 345 East Superior Street, Room 1146. Chicago, IL 60611.
URL(s):http://www.ric.org/research/centers/MidwestRegionalSpinalCordInjuryCareSystem/MRSCICS.aspx. Principal Investigator: David Chen, MD. Public Contact Phone: 312/238-0764. Project Number: H133N060014. Start Date: October 1, 2006. Length: 60 months. NIDRR Officer: Kenneth D. Wood, PhD. NIDRR Funding: FY 06 $484,000; FY 07 $484,000; FY 08 $484,000; FY 09 $482,162; FY 10 $467,189. Abstract: The Spinal Cord Injury Rehabilitation Program at the Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago and the Acute Spinal Cord Injury Program at Northwestern Memorial Hospital demonstrate the ongoing, comprehensive, multidisciplinary services that are provided to individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) which allow them to optimize their rehabilitation outcomes and enhance their ability to return to productive, independent living in the community. In order to contribute to the improvement of outcomes for persons with SCI, the System conducts two site-specific research projects: (1) Development of Low-Cost Devices to Increase Delivery of Intensive Treadmill Training, and (2) Disparities in Access to and Outcomes of Rehabilitation Care for Medicare and Medicaid Beneficiaries with Spinal Cord Injury. In addition, the project includes collaboration on one research project, Assistive Technology for Mobility (ATM) Module. MRSCICS has the capacity to enroll 140 individuals from culturally diverse backgrounds with new spinal cord injuries annually into the Spinal Cord Injury Model Systems database, and collect follow-up data on individuals enrolled between 1973 and 2000. Descriptors: Exercise, Model Systems, Outcomes, Rehabilitation medicine. The New England Regional Spinal Cord Injury Center.
Boston University Medical Center. Preston F-511 732 Harrison Avenues. Boston, MA 02118-2393.
E-mail:jane.wierbicky@bmc.org. URL(s):http://www.bmc.org/spinalcordinjurycenter/research.htm. Principal Investigator: Steve Williams, MD. Public Contact Phone: 617/638-7316 (Wierbicky), 617/638-7380 (Houlihan). Fax: 617/638-7303. Project Number: H133N060024. Start Date: October 1, 2006. Length: 60 months. NIDRR Officer: Kenneth D. Wood, PhD. NIDRR Funding: FY 06 $464,417; FY 07 $464,417; FY 08 $464,417; FY 09 $464,417; FY 10 $464,417. Abstract: The New England Regional Spinal Cord Injury Center (NERSCIC), based at Boston Medical Center (BMC), uses a network of rehabilitation hospitals (including Gaylord Hospital, Wallingford, CT), partners, and affiliates to develop a regional capacity to disseminate materials in such a way that they will be utilized both by consumers with spinal cord injury (SCI) and their families, and health care professionals, with particular attention to minorities and underserved groups. NERSCIC’s site-specific research project involves designing an improved outcome instrument in SCI research. This project applies contemporary measurement methods (CATS) to initiate a major transformation in the outcome assessment technology used to assess activity limitation frequently monitored in SCI research. Once the SCI-CAT has been developed using data collected front major field study, a demonstration of the SCI-CAT evaluates its respondent burden, acceptability to patients and clinicians, as well as its breadth, precision, sensitivity to change, and validity with inpatients and outpatients with SCI who are receiving care from NERSCIC. Comparisons are made between the FIM and SCI-CAT over a 6-month follow-up period. Additionally, this site-specific project will be integrated with the NeuroQoL collaborative module, in order to expand and improve both projects and to avoid developing competing computer adaptive testing instruments. This project is now referred to as the QOL/SCI-CAT Combined Project. Lastly, NERSCIC is a participating site in the SCI Collaborative Participation Module, led by Gale Whiteneck at Craig Hospital, to address the importance of participation given the current absence of a standard acceptable measure of participation. This collaborative SCI module identifies the best existing measure of participation or combines the best items from existing measures of participation to form a new and improved tool with better psychometric properties validated in the SCI Model Systems to ensure broad acceptability in future SCI outcomes research, and to allow for meaningful testing of clinical interventions. Descriptors: Measurement, Model Systems, Outcomes, Rehabilitation medicine, Service delivery, Spinal cord injuries. University of Michigan Model Spinal Cord Injury Care System.
University of Michigan. 300 North Ingalls, Room NI2A09. Ann Arbor, MI 48109-5491.
E-mail:model.sci@umich.edu. URL(s):http://www.med.umich.edu/pmr/modelsci/. Principal Investigator: Denise G. Tate, PhD, ABPP, FACRM. Public Contact Phone: 734/763-0971. Fax: 734/936-5492. Project Number: H133N060032. Start Date: October 1, 2006. Length: 60 months. NIDRR Officer: Theresa San Agustin, MD. NIDRR Funding: FY 06 $457,417; FY 07 $457,417; FY 08 $457,417; FY 09 $457,417; FY 10 $457,417. Abstract: The overall purpose of this project is to provide comprehensive rehabilitation and community participation services and to generate new knowledge through research, development, and demonstration designed to improve outcomes for persons with spinal cord injury (SCI). A site-specific research study is conducted in partnership with faculty from the University of Michigan Depression Center, Department of Psychiatry, and the Molecular and Behavioral Neurosciences Institute. This study is a randomized clinical trial study designed to evaluate the efficacy of a pharmacological agent, Venlafaxine HCI also known as Effexor XR, as a preventive agent for reducing depression among persons with SCI. This clinical trial addresses a major need in the field as there are no randomized clinical trials currently available on the effectiveness of antidepressants in persons with SCI. In this study, the drug's effects on pain are also assessed. An outcome of this study is the formulation of recommendations for antidepressant medication use in SCI and implications for clinical practice guidelines. The project continues to operate an efficient data collection system, facilitating research and contributions to the National SCI Database. Descriptors: Clinical trials, Depression, Model Systems, Pain, Rehabilitation medicine, Spinal cord injuries. Northern New Jersey Spinal Cord Injury System.
Kessler Medical Rehabilitation Research and Education Corporation (KMRREC). 1199 Pleasant Valley Way. West Orange, NJ 07052-1499.
E-mail:dtulsky@kesslerfoundation.net. URL(s):http://www.kmrrec.org/nnjscis. Principal Investigator: David S. Tulsky, PhD. Public Contact Phone: 973/243-6849, 973/243-6916. Fax: 973/243-3527. Project Number: H133N060022. Start Date: October 1, 2006. Length: 60 months. NIDRR Officer: Dawn Carlson, PhD, MPH. NIDRR Funding: FY 06 $457,417; FY 07 $457,417; FY 08 $457,417; FY 09 $457,417; FY 10 $457,417. Abstract: The Northern New Jersey Spinal Cord Injury System (NNJSCIS) provides a comprehensive continuum of state-of-the-art care for persons with spinal cord injury (SCI) and their significant others from time of injury through long-term follow-up in the community and conducts spinal cord research, including clinical research and the analysis of standardized data. NNJSCIS conducts both a site-specific research study and a collaborative module. These studies contribute to evidence-based rehabilitation interventions and clinical and practice guidelines that improve the lives of individuals with SCI and consist of the following: An innovative rehabilitation intervention utilizing technology to prevent respiratory disease in persons with SCI, now the leading cause of death and the third leading cause of hospitalizations in this population; a collaborative module that adapts, develops, and validates an innovative and promising outcome system for use in SCI intervention research; and the NNJSCIS coordinates with the NIDRR-funded Model Systems Knowledge Translation Center to provide scientific results and information for dissemination to clinical and consumer audiences. This project is a cooperative effort of the Kessler Medical Rehabilitation Research and Education Corporation (KMRREC), the Kessler Institute for Rehabilitation (KIR), the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey - The New Jersey Medical School (UMDNJ-NJMS), and UMDNJ-University Hospital. Descriptors: Model Systems, Outcome, Rehabilitation, Rehabilitation medicine, Respiratory disease, Spinal cord injuries. Mount Sinai Spinal Cord Injury Model System.
Mount Sinai School of Medicine. One Gustave L. Levy Place, Box 1240. New York, NY 10029-6574.
E-mail:marcel.dijkers@mssm.edu. URL(s):http://www.mssm.edu/rehab/spinal. Principal Investigator: Kristian T. Ragnarsson, MD. Public Contact Phone: 212/659-8587. Fax: 212/348-5901. Project Number: H133N060027. Start Date: October 1, 2006. Length: 60 months. NIDRR Officer: Dawn Carlson, PhD, MPH. NIDRR Funding: FY 06 $452,541; FY 07 $452,541; FY 08 $452,541; FY 09 $452,541; FY 10 $452,541. Abstract: The purpose of the Mount Sinai Spinal Cord Injury Model System (MS-SCI-MS) is to (1) demonstrate and evaluate a multidisciplinary system of rehabilitation care for persons with spinal cord injury (SCI) in the New York City metropolitan area, including innovative programs for community integration; (2) contribute longitudinal data to the SCI National Database; (3) create and evaluate SCI quality of life assessment and participation assessment measures, and collect information on the labor force and economic impacts of SCI; and (4) evaluate the treatment of neuropathic pain using modified-release morphine. There are three major components of the MS-SCI-MS: (1) comprehensive clinical care, (2) research (site-specific, module projects and contributions to the national database); and (3) dissemination, education, and training. The comprehensive clinical program consists of the following components: (1) The NYC Emergency Medical Service (NYC-EMS), which ensures the early and safe extrication of individuals with SCI from the site of injury; (2) acute medical/surgical care at Elmhurst Hospital Center or at Mount Sinai Hospital (MSH), both of which provide state-of-the-art emergency and medical/surgical services; and (3) comprehensive inpatient medical rehabilitation services on the 25-bed, CARF-accredited SCI inpatient rehabilitation unit of MSH. The program stresses interdisciplinary care, and employs a primary team model to enhance coordination among caregivers. The research program of MS-SCI-MS is designed to advance the understanding of SCI and its consequences, and to develop better methods of treatment of secondary conditions of SCI, especially pain. The site-specific project studies modified-release formulation of morphine sulfate for neuropathic pain after SCI through a randomized, double-blind crossover trial of modified-release morphine and placebo for patients with uncontrolled neuropathic pain of three types. In addition, three module projects are executed in collaboration with SCI model systems elsewhere. Dissemination, education, and training for individuals with SCI, their families, students, and health professionals, constitute the third component of the MS-SCI-MS, and include publications in scientific journals, presentations at national and local meetings, publication of a newsletter for consumers, expanded web-based information, a variety of educational and training programs, including an SCI medicine fellowship, and training of physical medicine and rehabilitation residents from various residency programs. Descriptors: Evaluation, Model Systems, Outcome, Pain management, Rehabilitation medicine, Spinal cord injuries. Northeast Ohio Regional Spinal Cord Injury System.
MetroHealth System. 2500 MetroHealth Drive. Cleveland, OH 44109.
E-mail:mroach@metrohealth.org. URL(s):http://rehab.metrohealth.org/norscis. Principal Investigator: Gregory A. Nemunaitis, MD. Public Contact Phone: 216/778-8781. Fax: 216/778-8782. Project Number: H133N060017. Start Date: October 1, 2006. Length: 60 months. NIDRR Officer: Dawn Carlson, PhD, MPH. NIDRR Funding: FY 06 $449,417; FY 07 $449,417; FY 08 $449,417; FY 09 $449,417; FY 10 $449,417. Abstract: The Northeast Ohio Regional Spinal Cord Injury System (NORSCIS) at MetroHealth Rehabilitation Institute of Ohio in collaboration with Case Western Reserve University and the Cleveland FES Center conducts research to further develop the effectiveness of an innovative Model Spinal Cord Injury Care System and to demonstrate how the application of advanced assistive technology can benefit persons with disabilities. Efficiency and effectiveness of care (and research potential) are enhanced as all components of the continuum of care (from trauma/emergency care to acute medical/surgical treatment, inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation, and community support services) are all available on the NORSCIS campus. A site-specific project studies advances in functional electrical stimulation (FES) technology to document improvements in function, health, and wellness. An innovative focus on trunk muscle stimulation targets specific clinical problems, including seated stability and mobility, reachable workspace, and pulmonary function. A collaborative research project with UPMC-SCI, is directed at testing and collecting the data needed to understand the impact of coverage changes and to fully explore the issue of disparity in assistive technology for mobility prescription. A collaborative project with Craig Hospital involves the development of a reliable, valid measurement tool to assess community participation. The goal of these hypothesis-driven research and demonstration projects is to develop and measure the effectiveness of new intervention strategies at both the individual patient level and overall systems of care for persons with spinal cord injury. Descriptors: Assistive technology, Evidence-based practice, Functional electrical stimulation (FES), Rehabilitation medicine, Spinal cord injuries. Regional Spinal Cord Injury Center of the Delaware Valley.
Thomas Jefferson University. 132 South 10th Street 375 Main Building. Philadelphia, PA 19107-5244.
E-mail:Mary.Patrick@jefferson.edu. URL(s):http://www.spinalcordcenter.org. Principal Investigator: Ralph J. Marino, MD. Public Contact Phone: 215/955-6579. Fax: 215/955-5152. Project Number: H133N060011. Start Date: October 1, 2006. Length: 60 months. NIDRR Officer: Theresa San Agustin, MD. NIDRR Funding: FY 06 $464,417; FY 07 $464,417; FY 08 $464,417; FY 09 $464,417; FY 10 $464,417. Abstract: The Regional Spinal Cord Injury Center of the Delaware Valley (RSCICDV) provides and evaluates a comprehensive program of coordinated patient care, education, and research activities for individuals who have sustained a traumatic spinal cord injury (SCI). Clinical activities are directed at promoting evidence-based practice to improve outcomes and reduce medical complications in persons with SCI. Research activities are designed to develop and validate upper and lower extremity outcome measures for use in clinical trials. Specifically, RSCICDV: (1) contributes to the National Database by enrolling an estimated 50 new subjects per year into the database and by collecting follow-up data on previously enrolled subjects; (2) conducts an on-site research project whose focus is to develop and validate the Capabilities of the Upper Extremity Test (CUE-T), an objective test of arm and hand functional capabilities needed to conduct clinical trials for neurological recovery in SCI; (3) participate in a collaborative module on investigating the impact of policy changes on customizability and features of wheelchairs and investigate distance traveled, time spent active and speed traveled in a wheelchair and its relationship to wheelchair customizability and features, wheelchair breakdown, and quality of life; (4) participates in a collaborative module on validation of an outcome measure for motor recovery in incomplete SCI; and (5) develops educational resources for patients, healthcare providers, and researchers. Descriptors: Evidence-based practice, Measurement, Model Systems, Rehabilitation medicine, Research, Spinal cord injuries. University of Pittsburgh Model Center on Spinal Cord Injury.
University of Pittsburgh. 1400 Locust Street Bldg B, Suite 11516. Pittsburgh, PA 15219.
E-mail:greekk@upmc.edu. URL(s):http://www.upmc-sci.org http://www.rehabmedicine.pitt.edu. Principal Investigator: Michael L. Boninger, MD. Public Contact Phone: 412/232-7949. Fax: 412/232-7535. Project Number: H133N060019. Start Date: October 1, 2006. Length: 60 months. NIDRR Officer: Theresa San Agustin, MD. NIDRR Funding: FY 06 $449,417; FY 07 $449,417; FY 08 $449,417; FY 09 $449,417; FY 10 $449,417. Abstract: The UPMC-SCI continues its research focus on assistive technology (AT) for mobility. Pilot data collected during the previous funding cycle highlighted disparity in wheelchair prescription. Individuals from minority groups and people with low socioeconomic status received less and lower quality equipment. So that interventions can be developed, the project continues and expands this research to delve into the reasons for disparity. In addition, it investigates the impact of recent Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) changes for AT reimbursement. These changes will likely have a critical impact on the AT provided to individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI). Finally, the project develops a tool to determine how far, how fast, and when people travel in their wheelchairs. This data is related to the type of wheelchairs used, to the number of wheelchair failures, and to measures of participation. From these findings, researchers determine how the wheelchair prescribed impacts participation, and if greater use leads to greater failures. This data can be used to push for improvements in manufacturing and changes in coverage. UPMC-SCI also conducts a randomized, controlled trial to determine if following the Consortium of Spinal Cord Injury Medicine Guidelines on Upper Limb Preservation leads to decreased pain. These guidelines are applied to acutely injured patients who are followed for the first six months after injury. Validation of the guidelines' effectiveness helps assure that they become the standard of care across the country. SCI care at the University of Pittsburgh is provided in a multidisciplinary manner with a high level of communication among the constituent services. The project has fully implemented a system of continuity of treatment that begins with the emergency response at the scene of injury and continues with comprehensive treatment and rehabilitation from medical/surgical to acute stage rehabilitation through utilization of assistive technology services and vocational rehabilitation. UPMC-SCI continues to enroll and collect long-term follow-up data on SCI subjects for the National Spinal Cord Injury Statistical Center. Descriptors: Assistive technology, Model Systems, Rehabilitation medicine, Spinal cord injuries, Wheelchairs. Texas Model Spinal Cord Injury System.
The Institute for Rehabilitation and Research (TIRR). 1333 Moursund Street. Houston, TX 77030-3408.
E-mail:dgraves@bcm.tmc.edu. URL(s):http://www.texasmscis.org. Principal Investigator: Daniel Graves, PhD; William Donovan, MD. Public Contact Phone: 713/797-5946 (V), 713/797-5790 (TTY). Fax: 713/797-5982. Project Number: H133N060003. Start Date: October 1, 2006. Length: 60 months. NIDRR Officer: Theresa San Agustin, MD. NIDRR Funding: FY 06 $464,417; FY 07 $464,417; FY 08 $464,417; FY 09 $464,417; FY 10 $464,417. Abstract: The Texas Model Spinal Cord Injury System (TMSCIS) provides services along the entire continuum of care for spinal cord injury (SCI) from emergency medical service to long-term follow-up and management of secondary conditions. The TMSCIS includes a site-specific research project that is designed to provide high level evidence of the efficacy of a novel treatment to prevent bladder complications. The project is a randomized, double-blind, placebo controlled, parallel groups investigation of the effects of Botulinum toxin A treatment of detrusor external sphincter dyssynergia (DESD) during early spinal cord injury. Many patients with SCI develop neurogenic bladder dysfunction associated with detrusor hyperreflexia and DESD that can lead to long-term complications in up to 50 percent of patients. These complications include hydronephrosis, vesicoureteral reflux, nephrolithiasis, sepsis, renal insufficiency or failure, and even death. This investigation is intended to determine if the prevention of DESD in the early phase of recovery can prevent some of these complications. In addition, the TMSCIS includes a module designed to develop an outcome measure of trunk and postural control to be utilized in activity-based therapy programs like locomotor training. The outcomes of large scale clinical trials of locomotor training highlight the need for outcome measures that are designed to capture changes brought about by translational research that may not have been necessary for more traditional therapy programs. This scale development project incorporates item response theory methods as well as reliability and validity investigations in a minimum of four model systems. Descriptors: Bladder function, Evaluation, Measurement, Model Systems, Rehabilitation medicine, Spinal cord injuries. Northwest Regional Spinal Cord Injury System.
University of Washington. Box 356490. Seattle, WA 98195-6490.
E-mail:scirehab@u.washington.edu. URL(s):http://sci.washington.edu. Principal Investigator: Charles H. Bombardier, PhD. Public Contact Phone: 206/685-3999. Fax: 206/685-3244. Project Number: H133N060033. Start Date: October 1, 2006. Length: 60 months. NIDRR Officer: Theresa San Agustin, MD. NIDRR Funding: FY 06 $464,417; FY 07 $464,417; FY 08 $464,417; FY 09 $464,417; FY 10 $464,417. Abstract: The University of Washington's Northwest Regional Spinal Cord Injury System (NWRSCIS) serves a critical mass of patients with spinal cord injury (SCI) and has all the necessary disciplines to provide state-of-the-art medical, surgical, and rehabilitation care. One site-specific project is a randomized controlled intervention study evaluating the effect of proactive, structured, telephone-based counseling and care management on rehospitalization rate and quality of life during the first year after discharge from acute rehabilitation. This study builds upon successful experiences with telephone counseling for both people with traumatic brain injury and multiple sclerosis. This research is particularly important because the lifestyle changes and health care behaviors required for successful living after SCI are tremendously challenging, rates of rehospitalization are high, and many people (especially in rural regions) lack ready access to knowledgeable advice, behavior change support, and specialty care sufficient to maintain their health. A modular project studies the natural history of major depression under conditions of usual care during the first year after SCI. This project establishes reliable and valid means of screening and diagnosing major depression soon after SCI. It examines the impact of depression on rehabilitation efficiency and compares the effect of standard treatment to clinical practice guideline level care of depression. This study describes depression treatment preferences among people with SCI and lays the foundation for a multi-site clinical trial. The NWRSCIS also includes a collaborative, multisite, randomized, double-blind, placebo controlled trial of venlafaxine XR (Effexor XR) in adults with SCI and major depressive disorder (MDD). The purpose of the study is to examine the efficacy and tolerability of venlafaxine XR as a treatment for MDD. NWRSCIS contributes to the national statistics database at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Descriptors: Depression, Model Systems, Outcome, Rehabilitation, Rehabilitation medicine, Spinal cord injuries.
