The state of patient-oriented research in neurology

Patient-oriented or clinical research as defined by the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) is “research conducted with human subjects, or research on the causes and consequences of disease in human populations involving material of human origin for which an investigator or colleague directly interacts with human subjects in an outpatient or inpatient setting to clarify a problem in human physiology, pathophysiology or disease. This area of research includes epidemiologic or behavioral studies, clinical trials, studies of the mechanisms of human disease, the development of new technologies, and health services and outcomes research.” The 2001 AAN Member Survey indicated that the proportion of US neurologists conducting any research was estimated as 52.5%, which is an increase from 41.4% in 1996–97 and similar to the 51.4% observed in 1998.1 Research, both basic and clinical, is a major part of the life of many neurologists and an important area of concern of the AAN. Despite the major advances in biomedical neuroscience research over the last quarter century, there has been a lag in the application of these breakthroughs to the practice of neurology. Translational research, described as the “process of translating discoveries in the laboratory into clinical interventions for the diagnosis, treatment, prognosis, or prevention of disease with a direct benefit to human health,” is a major thrust of clinical research and has not grown at the same pace as basic research.2,3⇓ The discordance between the promise of basic research and the practical application to the bedside has been described as a national crisis.4 The 2003 AAN strategic plan calls for the support of research in clinical and translational neuroscience, health services, disease prevention, and other relevant areas of investigation. The Clinical Research Subcommittee (CRS) of the Science Committee was set up by the AAN in 1990 to help …