DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE - CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED MEDICAL RESEARCH PROGRAMS
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NEWS RELEASE

Released: May 28, 2015

Defense Health Program
Department of Defense Peer Reviewed Orthopaedic Research Program
Funding Opportunities for Fiscal Year 2015 (FY15)

The FY15 Defense Appropriations Act provides $30 million (M) to the Department of Defense Peer Reviewed Orthopaedic Research Program (PRORP) to support innovative, high-impact orthopaedic research. As directed by the Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense for Health Affairs, the Defense Health Agency, Research, Development, and Acquisition (DHA RDA) Directorate manages and executes the Defense Health Program (DHP) Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation (RDT&E) appropriation. The executing agent for the anticipated Program Announcements/Funding Opportunities is the Congressionally Directed Medical Research Programs (CDMRP).

The PRORP is providing the information in this pre-announcement to allow investigators time to plan and develop applications. FY15 PRORP Program Announcements and General Application Instructions for the following award mechanisms are anticipated to be posted on the Grants.gov website in late June or early July 2015. Pre-application and application deadlines will be available when the Program Announcements are released. This pre-announcement should not be construed as an obligation by the government.

Focus Areas: The PRORP encourages applications that specifically address the critical needs of the orthopaedic research community in one or more of the FY15 Focus Areas. The PRORP will solicit research applications that address at least one of the following FY15 Focus Areas:

Acute Care Focus Areas:

  • Treatment strategies to improve outcomes from segmental peripheral nerve defects
  • Techniques to retard or prevent the development of human post-traumatic heterotopic ossification in the upper extremity
  • Techniques to regenerate functional, innervated muscle units in treatment of volumetric muscle loss
  • Optimal time to weight bearing for lower extremity fractures
  • Economic impact of innovations in orthopaedic trauma research
  • Biomarkers and clinical parameters to guide the decision to perform early total care versus damage control orthopaedics
  • Outcomes of complex pelvic ring injuries requiring advanced resuscitation

Rehabilitation Focus Areas:

  • Development of a pain management strategy to allow optimal fracture rehabilitation post-operatively. The primary outcome measure should relate to rehabilitation endpoints and not focus solely on pain scores or opioid use.
  • Development and optimization of novel and/or innovative technologies to improve prosthetic and/or orthotic device function and durability, including intuitive efferent and afferent user interfaces and considerations to interoperability.
  • Techniques or technologies that improve prediction, identification, and reduction of secondary physical health effects (e.g., obesity, arthrosis, osteoporosis, cardiovascular disease) following severe/high-energy traumatic neuromusculoskeletal injury. The focus should be on injuries sustained between the ages of 18-50 and secondary physical health effects that develop within 5 years of injury.
  • Development and/or validation of optimal physical and occupational therapy treatment strategies and sequence of progression throughout the rehabilitation continuum following severe neuromusculoskeletal injury, excluding central nervous system (e.g. optimal dose, timing, frequency, duration, and intensity of rehabilitation interventions) in order to maximize functional outcomes.
  • Development of validated, standardized measures to objectively assess and improve rehabilitation outcomes following severe neuromusculoskeletal injury, including multi-extremity trauma and/or psychosocial resiliency and reintegration.

Award Mechanism Eligibility Key Mechanism Elements Funding
Applied Research Award Independent investigators at all academic levels (or equivalent)
  • Preproposal is required; application submission is by invitation only.
  • Supports work that refines concepts and ideas into potential solutions with a view toward evaluating technical feasibility of promising new products, pharmacologic agents, behavioral and rehabilitation interventions, diagnostic and therapeutic techniques, clinical guidance, and/or emerging approaches and technologies.
  • Funding Level 1: Research that is already supported by preliminary data and has the potential to make significant advancements toward clinical translation.
  • Funding Level 2: Advanced translational studies that have the potential for near-term clinical investigation.
  • Clinical trials are not allowed under this award mechanism.
    Funding Level 1:
  • Maximum funding of $500,000 for total costs
  • Maximum period of performance is 3 years
    Funding Level 2:
  • Maximum funding of $1 Million for total costs
  • Maximum period of performance is 3 years
Clinical Trial Award Independent investigators at or above the level of Assistant Professor (or equivalent)
  • Preproposal is required; application submission is by invitation only.
  • Supports rapid implementation of clinical trials that will have a significant impact on military combat-related orthopaedic injuries
  • Preliminary data are required.
  • Military/Veteran study population highly encouraged.
  • Investigational New Drug (IND) or Investigational Device Exemption (IDE) applications, if needed, should be submitted to the Food and Drug Administration before the PRORP Grants.gov application submission deadline.
  • Maximum funding of $3 Million for total costs
  • Maximum period of performance is 4 years
Orthopaedic Care and Rehabilitation Consortium Award Independent investigators at or above the level of Assistant Professor (or equivalent)
  • Preproposal is required; application submission is by invitation only.
  • Provides support to develop the collaborations, resources, and infrastructure necessary for a consortium to rapidly execute multi-institutional clinical studies focused on improving both acute surgical care and rehabilitation of military combat-related orthopaedic injuries
  • All applications must have a direct relevance to orthopaedic injuries sustained during military combat or combat-related activities.
  • Requires collaboration with military treatment facilities
  • One award will be made to a Coordinating Center with superior expertise in clinical orthopaedic research studies, and with the experience to lead a major consortium.
  • All applications must address at least four (two acute care and two rehabilitation) Focus Areas.
  • Maximum funding of $18 Million in total costs
  • Maximum period of performance is 5 years

A pre-application is required and must be submitted through the electronic Biomedical Research Application Portal (eBRAP) at https://eBRAP.org prior to the pre-application deadline. All applications must conform to the final Program Announcements and General Application Instructions that will be available for electronic downloading from the Grants.gov website. The application package containing the required forms for each award mechanism will also be found on Grants.gov. A listing of all CDMRP funding opportunities can be obtained on the Grants.gov website by performing a basic search using CFDA Number 12.420.

Applications must be submitted through the federal government's single-entry portal, Grants.gov. Submission deadlines are not available until the Program Announcements are released. Requests for email notification of the Program Announcements release may be sent to help@eBRAP.org. For more information about the PRORP or other CDMRP-administered programs, please visit the CDMRP website (https://CDMRP.HEALTH.MIL).



Point of Contact:

CDMRP Public Affairs
301-619-9783
usarmy.detrick.medcom-cdmrp.mbx.cdmrp-public-affairs@mail.mil