SIU School of Medicine - Division of Developmental Disabilities - Research Topics

Southern Illinois University School of Medicine - Division of Developmental Disabilities

Research in the Division of
Developmental Disabilities

Project title	Renal Insufficiency in Person’s with Neurodevelopmental Disabilities
Description	The current medical literature suggests that many people in the general population experience undiagnosed mild renal insufficiency. If this condition remains undiagnosed and untreated, most cases will progress and lead to severe morbidity and possibly early mortality. It is especially important to monitor for this condition in people with intellectual disabilities because of the potential risks involved with polypharmacy and drug interactions. The division is currently investigating the prevalence of undiagnosed renal insufficiency in this population.
Principal Investigator	Rod Curtis, MD
Co-Investigator/s	Klara Curtis, MD Steven Thornton, MD Mir Majeed, MD Antonio Mister, MSII Sandra Vicari, PhD
IRB Status	Waiver pending
Date Started	07-01-04
Date Completed	Approved retrospective study
Funding Source	Southern Illinois University School of Medicine
Eligibility	Closed retrospective study
Contact
Name	Rod Curtis, MD
Phone	217.479.2108
e-mail	rcurtis@siumed.edu

Project title	Spine Disease in People with Developmental Disabilities
Description	Spine disease is common in the general population. Signs and symptoms of the disease include pain, numbness, incontinence, and paralysis. People with intellectual disabilities that have limited communication abilities are unable to voice early symptoms and the disease progresses insidiously until severe complications are noticed by care providers. Unfortunately, because of additional risk factors, including- severe osteoporosis, physical aggression, abuse, self injurious behavior and other predisposing conditions such as cerebral palsy, many people with intellectual disabilities are at greater risk for developing severe complications of spine disease. Importantly, the pain associated with spine disease is usually manifested behaviorally and in some cases diagnosed as an underlying psychiatric condition.
Principal Investigator	Rod Curtis, MD
Co-Investigator/s	Par Freitag, MD James LaGuardia, MD Stephen Markwell, MS Steven Thornton, MD Sandra Vicari, PhD
IRB Status	Waiver Approved
Date Started	October 2002
Date Completed	November 2003
Funding Source	No Funding
Eligibility	Non applicable
Contact
Name	Rod Curtis, MD
Phone	217.479.2108
e-mail	rcurtis@siumed.edu

Project title	Vitamin E in Aging Persons with Downs Syndrome
Description	This is a multi-center clinical trial supported by the NIH. Individuals with Down syndrome are uniquely vulnerable to Alzheimer Disease. The goal of this project is to determine whether the administration of vitamin E, which has been shown to delay the progression of Alzheimer Disease, will slow the rate of cognitive/functional decline in older individuals with Down syndrome. All study services are provided free. This is a three-year phase III research study to evaluate the safety and efficacy of vitamin E (1000 IU) administered orally to slow the rate of cognitive/functional decline.
Principal Investigator	Robert Pary, MD
Co-Investigator/s	Rod Curtis, MD Kasturi Kripakaran, MD Sandra Vicari, PhD
IRB Status	Approved prospective study
Date Started	__/__/2003
Date Completed	On-going
Funding Source	NIH
Eligibility	-Men and women age 50+ with Down syndrome, with or without a diagnosis of Alzheimer Disease. -Medically stable -Involvement/cooperation of informant/caregive
Contact
Name	Sue Urish, RN
Phone	217.545.3935
e-mail	surish@siumed.edu

Project title	A validity study of the Cognitive Test for individuals with Mental Retardation
Description	The Cognitive Test for individuals with Mental Retardation (CTMR) was developed to study memory and other cognitive domains within an individual and to assess the cognitive changes over time in individuals with moderate or severe MR. The aim of this study is to determine the validity and reliability of the CTMR as an assessment tool to study cognitive changes in adults with moderate or severe MR
Principal Investigator	Geunyeong Pyo, Ph.D.
Co-Investigator/s	Robert Pary, M.D., Kasturi Kripakaran, M.D.
IRB Status	Approved
Date Started	8/1/2004
Date Completed	6/30/2006
Funding Source	Southern Illinois University School of Medicine Central Research Committee (CRC) and Department of Psychiatry
Eligibility	1. AD Patient group (n=30) Moderate MR (N=15) or severe MR (N=15) based on the medical record, 40 years or older, and having a clinical diagnosis of possible AD. 2. MR Control group (n=30) No history of cognitive or functional decline, have moderate MR (N=15) or severe MR (=15) based on the medical record, and 40 years or older.
Contact
Name	Geunyeong Pyo, Ph.D.
Phone	217-545-7661
e-mail	gpyo@siumed.edu

Project title	Monitoring of Side Effects Scale
Description	The MOSES is a reliable instrument used to help in the assessment of medication side effects experienced by people with intellectual disabilities. The division is currently developing protocols to address its efficacy and efficiency in the out patient environment.
Principal Investigator	Robert Pary, MD
Co-Investigator/s	Kasturi Kripakaran, MD Sandra Vicari, PhD.
IRB Status	In Progress
Date Started	__/__/03
Date Completed	On-Going
Funding Source	Non-funded
Eligibility	Closed Study
Contact
Name	Sandra Vicari, PhD
Phone	217.545.3935
e-mail	svicari@siumed.edu

Project title	Functional Decline in Person’s with Neurodevelopmental Disabilities
Description	By reviewing clinical applications at a large developmental disability center, it is anticipated that the efficacy of such applications will be determined and enable large scale determination of functional decline in the general DD population
Principal Investigator	Rod Curtis, MD
Co-Investigator/s	Klara Curtis, MD Par Freitag, MD James LaGuardia, MD Mir Majeed, MD Steven Thornton, MD Sandra Vicari, MD.
IRB Status	Application Pending
Date Started	May 1, 2004
Date Completed	On-going
Funding Source	Department of Psychiatry
Eligibility	Closed Study
Contact
Name	Rod Curtis, MD
Phone	217.479.2108
e-mail	rcurtis@siumed.edu

Project title	Do Physicians Receive Adequate Training in the Health Care of Persons with Mental Retardation: A Physician Survey
Description	A survey seeking information about health care services to persons with mental retardation was sent to a randomly selected group of practicing physicians of various specialties in Illinois
Principal Investigator	Klara Curtis, MD
Co-Investigator/s	Rod Curtis, MD Sandra Vicari, PhD.
IRB Status	Approved prospective study
Date Started	06-01-03
Date Completed	03-17-04
Funding Source	Private
Eligibility	Non-applicable
Contact
Name	Klara Curtis, MD
Phone	217.545.3935
e-mail	kcurtis@siumed.edu


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