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National Trauma Institute Awards $225,000

to Martin A. Croce, MD, at  

 The University of Tennessee Health Science Center for

Study of Pneumonia in Trauma Patients

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Memphis, Tenn. (May 19, 2010) – Martin A. Croce, MD, professor of Surgery at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC) is the recipient of a $225,000 research grant from the National Trauma Institute (NTI).  Dr. Croce’s study is one of seven awarded grants this month by NTI, a non-profit organization dedicated to funding trauma research in the United States. 

Dr. Croce’s study will evaluate a recommended bundle of care maneuvers designed to help prevent ventilator associated pneumonia (VAP) in injured patients.  Approximately 20 percent of those who develop VAP die, and there is little evidence showing that the use of these “care bundles” reduces the occurrence of VAP.  The prospective observational study will examine data from six institutions both before and after bundle implementation to determine which factors affect the incidence of VAP.

In addition to his academic role, Dr. Croce serves as chief of Trauma and Surgical Critical Care and medical director for the Elvis Presley Memorial Trauma Center in the Regional Medical Center at Memphis (The MED).  UT Health Science Center physicians staff and fully operate the Presley facility, a Level 1 Trauma Center that annually treats about 5,000 cases of penetrating injuries and blunt trauma.  UTHSC trauma specialists are among the leading trauma physicians in the country in generating research that changes entire patterns of care.

“Ventilator associated pneumonia is a life-threatening problem for trauma patients.  Prevention is an important way to improve the outcome of trauma patients, but the methods for VAP prevention are not well studied,” Dr. Croce said.  “We hope to identify strategies that are effective for VAP prevention.  We are especially grateful to the NTI for recognizing the impact of VAP on patient outcome and allowing us to learn more about optimal interventions to prevent VAP in seriously injured patients.”

NTI is committed to facilitating translational research — that is, research whose results may affect the practice of medicine and patient outcomes in the near-term. Croce’s study and the other six funded by NTI will get under way this year and may be completed in as little as one year.  Preliminary results from the principal investigators may be presented at NTI’s Annual Trauma Symposium as early as 2011.

NTI’s next Request for Proposals will be released later this month. To sign up to receive announcements related to research funding opportunities, visit the website at www.nationaltraumainstitute.org and go to the Research page.

 

About the National Trauma Institute

The National Trauma Institute (NTI) is a non-profit organization that assembles funds from a variety of public and private sources to support trauma research across the country, set a national trauma research agenda, and support military and civilian innovation and collaboration in trauma care and research.  NTI’s goal is to reduce death and disability resulting from traumatic injury.  Learn more about NTI at www.nationaltraumainstitute.org.

 

About the University of Tennessee Health Science Center

As the flagship statewide academic health system, the mission of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center is to bring the benefits of the health sciences to the achievement and maintenance of human health, with a focus on the citizens of Tennessee and the region, by pursuing an integrated program of education, research, clinical care, and public service.  Offering a broad range of postgraduate training opportunities, the main campus is located in Memphis and includes six colleges: Allied Health Sciences, Dentistry, Graduate Health Sciences, Medicine, Nursing and Pharmacy.  UTHSC has additional colleges of Medicine and Pharmacy plus an Allied Health Sciences unit in Knoxville, as well as a College of Medicine campus in Chattanooga.  For more information, visit www.uthsc.edu.

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