Academy of Spinal Cord Injury Professionals 2013 Meeting is Soon Approaching

The Academy’s Annual Meeting will be held Sunday, September 1, 2013 - Wednesday, September 4, 2013 at Bally's Las Vegas Hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada. The meeting includes healthcare professionals representing a variety of specialties involved in the management of spinal cord injury/disorder (SCI/D). Professionals attending include, but are not limited to: physicians, basic scientists and clinical researchers, physician assistants, nurses, psychologists, social workers, rehabilitation counselors, physical and occupational therapists, as well as residents, fellows, and students from various professions. To learn more visit the conference website and register!

SCI Model System Hosts Grand Rounds on the State of Spinal Cord Injury

The Northern New Jersey Spinal Cord Injury System Center (NNJSCIS) hosted The State of Spinal Cord Injury: Latest News on Clinical Trials of Interventions to Promote Neurological Recovery, a Special Grand Rounds on April 17th at Kessler Conference Center. There were more than 200 spinal cord injury researchers, professionals, and consumers that attended the event, where presenters discussed a range of US-based and international research from stem cell studies to activity-based therapy. The Grand Rounds were presented in collaboration with the Spinal Cord Injury Project of the W.M. Keck Center for Collaborative Neuroscience at Rutgers University. For the next Grand Rounds announcement follow SCIResearch at Kessler on Facebook.

NERSCIC Seeks Individuals to Participate in Study

The New England Regional Spinal Cord Injury Model System Center (NERSCIC) is seeking individuals living with spinal cord injury (SCI) in Massachusetts (MA) to participate in a survey of health needs. The survey is also open to anyone with an interest in the health of people with disabilities living in MA. The survey is anonymous and will be active until May 31st. This survey is being conducted in collaboration with the Health and Disability Program of the Office of Health Equity at the MA Department of Public Health.

SCI Model Systems Co-Director Elected President of ISRN

Keith Tansey, from the Southeastern Regional Spinal Cord Injury Model System, was recently elected President of the International Society for Restorative Neurology (ISRN) through 2014. The MSKTC congratulates and thanks Dr. Tansey for his many contributions to the field of spinal cord injury.

Model System Researchers will Present at the American Spinal Injury Association 40th Anniversary Scientific Meeting

A host of SCI model systems researchers will participate in the 2013 ASIA 40th Anniversary Scientific Meeting  in Chicago, Illinois from May 6-8, 2013. Lesley M. Hudson, MA, of the Southeastern Regional Spinal Cord Injury Model System will receive the ASIA Lifetime Achievement for her professional achievement and contributions to the advancement of the field of rehabilitation. Keith Tansey, MD, PhD, also from the Southeastern Regional SCIMS will become the Secretary Treasurer at this year's meeting. Ralph J. Marino, MD, of the Regional Spinal Cord Injury Center of the Delaware Valley will receive The Apple Award at the 2013 ASIA meeting for the article Development of an Objective Test of Upper-Limb Function in Tetraplegia, published in the American Journal of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation in 2012. The Apple Award is for excellence in publishing in spinal cord injury rehabilitation research. Additionally, numerous model systems researchers will present papers and deliver lectures to advance the field of spinal cord injury. Information about these presentations can be found in the conference program. A list of model systems researchers that will be participating in the conference can be found below:

Participating Spinal Cord Injury Model Systems

Midwest Regional Spinal Cord Injury Care System

Rehabilitation Institute of Chicago

·         Allen W. Heinemann, PhD, ABPP (RP), FACRM, will present Development and Evaluation of Environmental Factor Items for Persons with SCI.  Improving the Measurement Properties of Depressive Symptom Instruments for Use after Spinal Cord Injury, Patient-Reported Outcome Instrument Advances for Spinal Cord Injury Applications and Venlafaxine XR for Major Depressive Disorder after Spinal Cord Injury: Rationale, Results and Recommendations.

National Spinal Cord Injury Statistical Center

University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL

·         Amie Jackson McLain, MD, will present The Use of Neurologic Examination to Predict Awareness and Control of Lower Urinary Tract Function post SCI.

·         Danielle Powell, MD, will present Analysis of Neurological Level Effect on the Rate of Weight Gain in Individuals with Spinal Cord Injury.

·         Hwasoon Kim, MS, will present Modeling to Predict Loss to Follow-up in the Spinal Cord Injury Model Systems Database.

·         Michael J. DeVivo, Dr. P.H., will present Causes of Death Following Spinal Cord Injury: Trends and Competing Risks, Longitudinal Trends in Pediatric-Adolescent SCI – Injury Characteristics, Morbidity and Mortality, and Standardization in Reporting Data Related to the International SCI Core Data Set.

·         Victoria Allen, BS, will present Traumatic SCI Etiology Trends for African Americans.

·         Ying Tang, MS, will present Aging with SCI: Current Trends in External Causes.

Rocky Mountain Regional Spinal Injury System

Craig Hospital, Englewood, CO

·         Dan Lammertse, MD, will present SCOPE course titled Procedures, Products, and Pragmatism: The Evolution of Inclusive Human Study Protocols.

·         Susan Charlifue, Ph.D., will present in Course 4: International SCI Data Sets.

Southern California Spinal Injury Model System
Rancho Los Amigos National Rehabilitation Center, Downey, CA

·       Lisa Lighthall Haubert, MPT, will present Factors Influencing Car Transfer Performance in Persons with Paraplegia.

·       Patricia Hatchett, DPT., will present Effect of Body Mass Index on Community Mobility for Adults with Paraplegia.

·       Ramzi Ben-Youssef, M.D., will present Sleep Disturbances in Paraplegics within a Large Urban Community: Prevalence and Associated Co-morbidities.

Southeastern Regional Spinal Cord Injury Care System

Shepherd Center, Inc., Atlanta, GA

·         Keith Tansey, MD, Ph.D., will present Course 3: Restorative Neurology of Upper Extremity Function in Tetraplegia: Neurobiology, Assessment, Clinical Research, and Novel Treatment and second course on Methods to Use the ISNCSCI Exam to Score “Central Cord-ness” and “Brown-Sequard-ness” in SCI. Dr. Tansey will also present posters on Improving Walking Metrics after Severe SCI using Sensory Electrical Stimulation: An Optimization Approach and Neurophysiological Assessment of Motor Control and Clinical Characterization after Spinal Cord Injury: Early Data from a SCI Model Systems Study.

University of Michigan Spinal Cord Injury Model System

University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI

·         David Tulsky Ph.D., will present Validation of the SCI-QOL and SCI-FI Measurement System for Persons with SCI.

·         Denise G. Tate Ph.D., will present Placebo Response with and without Placebo? Tales of a Depression Trial for Persons with SCI/D.

·         Martin Forchheimer, MPP, will present Subject Retention in a Clinical Trial of an Antidepressant for Treatment of Mild to Moderate Depressive Symptoms in People with SCI, as well as, The International SCI Data Sets for Bowel and Bladder: Development of Interview Forms.

Model Systems Researcher Appointed as Editor in Chief of the Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation

Dr. Allen Heinemann from the Midwest Regional Spinal Cord Injury Care System (MRSCICS) was recently appointed as Editor in Chief of the Archives of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation. The MSKTC congratulates and thanks Dr. Heinemann for his many contributions to the field of spinal cord injury.

Model Systems Researcher Published in Physical Therapy

Dr. T. George Hornby, principal investigator from the Midwest Regional Spinal Cord Injury Care System (MRSCICS), recently published a paper in Physical Therapy titled Kinematic, Muscular, and Metabolic Responses During Exoskeletal-,Elliptical-, or Therapist-Assisted Stepping in People With Incomplete Spinal Cord Injury. Access the abstract here.