The University of Mississippi Medical Center has received a $1.9 million grant from the National Institutes of Health which will be used to fund research on the effects of environmental factors on children’s growth and development.
The award will be dispersed over a four-year period to build a framework for research at the medical center. This will allow for more pediatric clinical trials in Mississippi, benefiting areas in the state that have not been able to receive help in the past.
The grant is part of a $157 million award from the National Institute of Health that will be used to create a seven-year research program called Environmental Influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO). This program will research several environmental factors and the role they play in children’s health.
The program will focus on four major areas including neurodevelopment, pre, peri- and post-natal outcomes, obesity and upper and lower airway health.
There are many problems with health care in Mississippi, which can negatively impact the growth and development of children. Dr. Rick Barr, professor and chair of pediatrics at medical center, said the grant will be used to address these issues.
“The grant really focuses on specific areas that Mississippi children are challenged by – asthma and respiratory ailments, obesity, developmental disabilities including autism and prematurity and the effects of prematurity,” Barr said. “The network will focus on environmental challenges in these key areas, hence the acronym ECHO, or Environmental Influences on Child Health Outcomes.”
In addition to Barr, Dr. Robert Annett, professor of pediatrics and director for research and education at UMMC’s Center for the Advancement of Youth, will lead a team of pediatric clinical researchers to pinpoint key issues in children’s health.
Annett said this research will be a collaborative effort, not just by the medical center’s research team, but by other organizations as well.
“We are bringing together the best minds and are embracing experts from around the state,” Annett said in a statement.
Part of ECHO’s research plan is to attack current issues in the ability to access health care by rural children and their families, Annett said in a statement. This will be achieved by creating a network of pediatric clinical trials which will utilize Children’s of Mississippi pediatric clinics comprised of Batson Children’s Hospital and UMMC pediatric care.
“Environmental influences, ranging from chemical to behavioral, can have effects that stretch into the adolescent years and adulthood,” Annett said. “This grant will allow UMMC to facilitate study into areas including pre-, peri and post-natal development, neurodevelopment, upper and lower airway health and obesity that have far reaching public health consequences.”
ECHO Program Director Dr. Matthew W. Gillman said he is very optimistic about the future success of the program and the benefits it will create for children.
“I believe we have the right formula of cohorts, clinical trials and supporting resources, including a range of new tools and measures, to help figure out which factors may allow children to achieve the best health outcomes over their lifetimes,” Gillman said in a statement.
