Building a Stroke Patient Research Network in Athens and Northeast Georgia (GaCTSA Pilot Project)

The short-term objective of this pilot project is to develop effective and sustainable patient recruitment strategies for conducting a UGA-based translational research project on motor skill recovery after stroke. The long-term goal is to establish UGA as a site for interdisciplinary collaborations across multiple institutes in Georgia to conduct research aimed to improve stroke prevention, treatment, recovery, and education.

Sponsor
Emory University
$49,970.30
Principal investigator
Jing Xu
Assistant professor, Department of Kinesiology
Co-principal investigator
Steven L. Wolf
Professor, Emory University
Senior research scientist, Center for Visual and Neurocognitive Rehabilitation, Atlanta VA Health Care System
Co-investigators
Deborah Barany
Assistant professor, Department of Kinesiology
Samir Belagaje
Assistant professor, Emory University
Director of stroke rehabilitation, Marcus Stroke and Neuroscience Center, Grady Memorial Hospital
Michael Borich
Associate professor, Emory University
Active since
September 2022

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Abstract

The state of Georgia is part of the “stroke belt.” According to the Georgia Department of Health, in 2019, stroke was the fourth-leading cause of death and a leading cause of disability in Georgia. However, a lack of patient recruitment infrastructure hinders future large-scale longitudinal stroke research projects that require participation of investigators with diverse expertise from multiple institutes across Georgia.

As part of the mission of the Georgia Clinical and Translational Science Alliance (Georgia CTSA), the proposed project will use GaCTSA as a platform to build a stroke patient recruitment network to facilitate UGA-based rehabilitation research, drawing upon the extensive experience in human motor control, neurology, stroke rehabilitation research, and clinical trials from our co-PI and co-Is at Emory University, Atlanta VA, and Grady hospitals, leveraging existing resources at GaCTSA and UGA Clinical Translational and Research Unit, and connecting with two major local hospitals: the Stroke Center at St. Mary’s Healthcare System and Piedmont Athens Regional Medical Center.