Addressing Health Disparities in NIDDK Diseases (R01) PA-13-183

Addressing Health Disparities in NIDDK Diseases (R01) PA-13-183

http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-13-183.html

Deadline: Standard dates http://grants.nih.gov/grants/funding/submissionschedule.htm

The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) seeks research to improve understanding of the causes of high priority diseases in the United States and to develop and test more effective interventions for reducing/eliminating health disparities. Research is encouraged in the following high priority diseases within the scientific mission areas of the NIDDK: diabetes, obesity, nutrition-related disorders, hepatitis C, gallbladder disease, H. Pylori infection, sickle cell disease, kidney diseases, urologic diseases, hematologic diseases, metabolic, gastrointestinal, hepatic, and renal complications from infection with HIV. 

Objectives and Scope:

The overall objective of this Funding Opportunity Announcement (FOA) is to understand and mitigate health disparities in the development, diagnosis, and treatment of diseases of high priority to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH). It is recognized that both biologic and non-biologic factors may be operating in these underrepresented populations.

Research approaches may include metabolic, genetic, clinical, behavioral, and/or epidemiologic studies in representative populations. Advantage might be taken of extant cohort studies that have been established for investigation of diabetes or other diseases. Collaboration among investigators of these established cohorts would be desirable, so that these studies might jointly develop protocols and evaluate findings. Alternatively, investigators may propose to start a new cohort, appropriately powered, to capture the current risks and outcomes in the era of new medications for some of the diseases. Such studies of current risks might appropriately be based in large HMOs or clinical practices with structure and data management practices conducive to efficient and cost-effective analyses.

Appropriate topics for investigation in NIDDK diseases would include but are not limited to:

• Testing approaches that influence healthcare delivery to reduce disparities in prevention and treatment;
• Better understanding of the racial and ethnic differences in screening, diagnosis, incidence, and prevalence of NIDDK diseases and whether there are differences among sub-groups in the rates of progression; with an emphasis on identifying factors that help inform treatment development, practice, or policy designed to reduce or eliminate disparities;
• State-of-the-art, hypothesis-driven mechanistic studies to determine whether there are biological differences that might influence disease outcomes;
• Studies to investigate environmental or behavioral factors, such as medical care, lifestyle, and socioeconomic status that may contribute to risk for development and progression of NIDDK diseases and related complications; and
• Studies of effects of medications or other therapies for prevention or treatment of NIDDK diseases in racial or ethnic minority populations, including differences across the lifespan in these populations.