Visit news hub
Plans to partner with Children’s Hospital Colorado as part of network to improve children’s heart health
Getty Images
Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis has been selected as one of nine core institutions in the Pediatric Heart Network, a national network of leading hospitals and research institutions working to improve outcomes and quality of life for children with heart disease. .
The Pediatric Heart Network (PHN) is funded by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and has seven facilities, including the University of Washington, along with Children’s Hospital Colorado, as a core facility. and will support it with $2.4 million. Year.
This network focuses on pediatric heart disease, particularly pediatric congenital heart disease, and more recently adult congenital heart disease, and brings together a somewhat fragmented research community. Over the past 22 years, multicenter efforts have supported 25 large-scale studies, including 10 clinical trials, that have added treatments and improved care for children with heart disease.
Until now, the University of Washington has been an auxiliary site in the network and has been invited to participate if more patients are needed for a particular study. Today, as a center of excellence, the University of Washington participates in all PHN-led clinical research, has a seat at the table of executive committees and all other PHN committees, supports decision-making, and guides the future of the network and its work. We will help you shape it. .
The new core site will be led by Andrew C. Gratz, MD, Louis Larrick Ward Professor of Pediatrics and Chief of the Department of Pediatric Cardiology at the University of Washington. Jennifer N. Silva, MD, is a professor of pediatrics in the division of cardiology. The primary facility leader at Children’s Hospital Colorado is Dr. Sherry Miyamoto, Chief of Pediatric Cardiology. and Emily Bucholtz, MD, assistant professor of pediatrics. The two centers will collaborate as the Gateway to the West consortium to hold regular virtual and in-person meetings, as well as shared plans to increase the diversity of research participants and train the next generation of pediatric cardiology clinical researchers. Implement a shared instructional model for .
“For the past 20 years, the Pediatric Heart Network has produced highly impactful research in the fields of pediatric cardiology and congenital heart disease,” Gratz said. “Joining this initiative demonstrates the University’s clinical and research excellence. Together with our site partners, we have the infrastructure and expertise to be valuable participants in this network. Masu.”
Congenital heart disease is a birth defect that affects the structure of the heart and may require medical, surgical, or transcatheter intervention to address problems with blood flow and heart function. . One in every 100 babies is born with this disease, and it is one of the most common causes of birth defect-related infant death in the United States.
Gratz said the University of Washington represents the Midwest region, which has historically been under-represented in the network.
Other UW researchers involved in the new core facility are Charles E. Canter, MD, professor of pediatrics in the Division of Cardiology, and the Lois B. Tuttle and Jeanne B. Hawk Professor of Pediatrics. Kory J. Lavine, MD, PhD, Associate Professor of Medicine, Developmental Biology, Pathology and Immunology. Dr. Philippe R.O. Payne, Director of the Institute of Informatics, Data Science and Biostatistics; Janet and Bernard Becker Professor, Associate Dean of Health Informatics and Data Science; Chief Data Scientist, School of Medicine; Dr. Adam Wilcox, professor of medicine and director of the Center for Applied Clinical Informatics;