April 15, 2004

BIRMINGHAM, AL — The University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) has received a four-year, $3.2 million grant renewal from the Agency for Health Care Research and Quality (AHRQ) to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of new therapies for musculoskeletal disorders such as arthritis. The funds, which total more than four times the original grant, will continue to support UAB’s Center for Education and Research on Therapeutics (CERT), one of seven such centers in the United States.

“Musculoskeletal disorders affect more than 40 million Americans and are the leading cause of activity limitations," said Dr. Kenneth Saag, associate professor of medicine at UAB and director of the new center. "Health care costs for arthritis and osteoporosis alone exceed $75 billion a year."

CERT evaluates the effectiveness and safety of new therapies for musculoskeletal disorders and guides physicians in the use of new therapies. "In just the past decade, there has been a dramatic increase in the number of new therapies marketed for the treatment musculoskeletal disorders," Saag said. "Physicians are faced with difficult questions about how best to use new versus existing therapies in an efficient and cost-effective manner."

The center serves as an information exchange, gathering the latest research and sharing it with practitioners, insurers, policy makers and the general public. "Our emphasis is on educating physicians using evidence-based guidelines, quality of care indicators and peer performance," Saag said. "The aim of the center is to make physicians aware of advances in therapeutics to improve the standard of care for patients."

The center works with researchers representing various disciplines across the university as well as other public and private research institutions. "From our partners in managed care organizations and the pharmaceutical industry, to other centers involved in the project, we use private and public information resources to build on the diversity of resources here at UAB," Saag said.

Dr. Jeroan Allison, associate professor of medicine at UAB, serves as the center's co-director. Other collaborating researchers within the university represent the schools Public Health, Nursing and Health Related Professions. “A multidisciplinary approach to our mission is one of the center’s greatest strengths,” Saag said.

CERT is a cooperative agreement with the Agency for Health Care Research and Quality and the FDA.