The Defense Department has awarded a $2 million grant to a Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation consortium of university hospitals for joint research into spinal cord injury treatments.The two-year grant is intended for translational research into possible treatments for soldiers living with spinal cord injuries, the foundation said Tuesday.
Recently, the foundation’s North American Clinical Trials Network has concluded drug safety tests on a Food and Drug Administration-approved neuroprotective drug called Riluzole and the new funds will help start efficacy tests.
“Our goal is to bring effective treatments from the lab to the servicemen and women on our frontlines,” said Dr. Robert Grossman of the Methodist Neurological Institute, principal investigator for NACTN.
“This is critically important because presently there are few treatment options for these patients other than standard medical care,” Grossman said.
The NACTN gathers and documents patient medical information in a data registry to understand how the human body recovers after an injury, develops new patient assessment protocols, uses current protocols and conducts new trials of therapies for spinal cord injuries.
