Scholarships, fellowships, and grants. (Foundation for Physical Therapy).

Profiles in Excellence

This month the spotlight is on Anthony Delitto, PT, PhD, FAPTA, and the outstanding research team of the recently completed Center for the Study of Work Related Low Back Pain project at the University of Pittsburgh.

The Foundation for Physical Therapy extends congratulations to Dr Delitto and his research team on the completion of their Foundation-funded clinical research center (CRC). (For more on this CRC and published articles and other project outcomes, see PT--Magazine of Physical Therapy. 2002;10(5): 14-15.)

This is a list of the CRC team members and their current projects:

* Anthony Delitto, PT, PhD, FAPTA, the principal investigator and administrator of the center project, was awarded a 4-year, $1.4 million grant from the National Institutes of Health, National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS) in 2000 to conduct a randomized clinical trial to study surgical versus non-surgical treatment for lumbar spinal stenosis. The mechanisms put in place by the Foundation-funded CRC, especially the CRC's data management core, were identified by Dr Delitto as a factor that helped to make this grant application successful.

* Richard Erhard, PT, DC, was one of the original developers of the CRC. Dr Erhard was instrumental in the development of the classification system in 1995 that was later modified for use in the CRC study, and he also provided some of the interventions given to patients. Using a different sample of patients from his clinic, he compared fear-avoidance beliefs in patients with lumbar spine and cervical spine pain. His article, "A Comparison of Fear-Avoidance Beliefs in Patients With Lumbar Spine Pain and Cervical Spine Pain," appeared in the October 2001 issue of Spine (pp 2139-2145).

* Julie Fritz, PT, PhD, ATC, who began on the CRC project as a graduate student involved in data collection, developed into an outstanding researcher who has provided oversight for the CRC's day-to-day operations and clinical aspects. Dr Fritz coauthored 8 published or in-press articles from the project. She submitted a grant application to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) in January 2002 for a randomized clinical trial to study a combination of classification-based treatments and an approach designed to address and reduce fear of pain and avoidance of activities in patients with work-related low back pain. Dr Fritz's current research interests--integrating psychosocial principles into classification-based treatment--stem directly from her CRC findings about the influence of fear-avoidance beliefs and their influence on return to work.

* Steven George, PT, MS, came to the CRC project near its end. His work on fear-avoidance beliefs provided the basis for his doctoral dissertation in this area and his current research interest--the management of fear avoidance in patients during treatment. George will soon be defending his doctoral dissertation. His reserach consisted of a pilot randomized clinical trial in which all patients were treated using a classification approach, with one group also receiving education to deal with fear avoidance beliefs and behaviors. This pilot data was used in Dr Fritz's pending grant application to NIOSH.

* Gregory Hicks, PT, was a doctoral student when he came on board in the middle of the CRC project. He performed patient examination and evaluation and assisted in writing an article on the predictive validity of Waddell's non-organic signs and symptoms. The CRC project launched Mr Hicks' career in researching and managing patients in the immobilization category of classification-based management. His dissertation focuses on the treatment of patients in that category. His current research interest is on the best way to manage patients in this category and on determining which patients will most benefit from spinal stabilization.

* James Irrgang, PT, PhD, ATC, a part of the CRC's data management core, focused on the selection of outcome measures for the project and was involved in data storage. Dr Irrgang's current research interests are related to the use of new measurement theory (item response theory) to improve and shorten patient-reported outcome measures. This work is a direct outgrowth of the work that was done for the CRC. In addition, Dr Irrgang is interested in the management of individuals with disorders of the knee and shoulder. These conditions also lend themselves to a classification-based approach. Dr Irrgang was awarded a grant in 2000 from the Foundation for Physical Therapy for his research on the "Process of Care and Outcome in the Physical Therapy Management of Musculoskeletal Disorders of the Knee." Further research is needed in these areas to provide therapists with guidance regarding the selection of the most appropriate interventions for patients.

* Patrick Sparto, PT, PhD, spearheaded a sub-study in the CRC. Dr Sparto remains interested in issues of perception and balance and is currently focusing his work on patients with vestibular disorders. In 2001, Dr Sparto received a $512,914 Research Career Development grant from NIH's National Institute on Aging, for the project titled, "The Influence of Aging and Vestibular Disease on Postural Control."

* Robert Wainner, PT, PhD, ECS, OCS, who came to the project via the US Air Force as a first-year doctoral student, assisted in publishing the paper on the predictive validity of Waddell's signs and symptoms because of his expertise in the area of diagnostic tests. In 2000, the research team of Timothy Flynn, PT, PHD, OCS, FAAOMPT, Julie Fritz, PT, PhD, ATC, Stephen C Allison, and Dr Wainner was awarded a Foundation research grant for "Identification of Patients With Acute Low Back Pain Who Respond Best to Sacroiliac Region Manipulation." Dr Wainner is currently an Assistant Professor at the US Army-Baylor University Grad-uate Program in Physical Therapy, San Antonio, Tex.

"None of the work we did on the project would have been possible without financial support from the Foundation. Because of the Foundation, we had an opportunity to further research that helps the profession of physical therapy," noted Dr Fritz. She mentioned that she has gained "numerous insights that have led to additional research in the treatment of patients with low back pain."

Dr Fritz also noted the training and mentoring opportunities that the Foundation-funded Center provided for doctoral students and new clinician researchers.

PT 2002 Forum News

Presenting at this year's Forum, "Foundation Funding: How to Get It and Where It Goes," on Friday, June 7, 2002, from 1:00-2:45 PM at PT 2002: Annual Conference and Exposition in Cincinnati, Ohio, will be the following members of the Foundation's Scientific Review Committee: Richard Clendaniel, PT, PhD, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine; Mary McIntyre Rodgers, PT, PhD, University of Maryland; and Richard Shields, PT,, PhD, University of Iowa. Foundation funding recipients participating this year are: Judy Foxworth, PT, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; Chris Bickel, PT, University of Georgia; G Kelley Fitzgerald, PT, PhD, OCS, University of Pittsburgh; and Rose Marie Rhine, PT, PhD, University of Miami. Beginning in 2003, the Forum will be offered twice yearly--at APTA's Combined Sections Meeting in February and at APTA's Annual Conference in June.

Let Us Know About Your Accomplishments

Previous funding recipients who are beyond the time limits for reporting the results of Foundation-funded research in publications, abstracts, or presentations are strongly encouraged to let the Foundation know about any recently awarded grants from other sources or about any publications, presentations, or accomplishments. Send news to Lucy Dickson, Scientific Program Administrator, 1111 N Fairfax St, Alexandria, VA, 22314-1488 or [e-mail]. Also, if any of your recent grants or publications resulted from the development of ideas that originated with your Foundation-funded research, trace the development for us, and let us know!