08/24/2010 0 Comments

Outcome Sciences, Inc., a provider of patient registries, studies and technologies for evaluating real-world outcomes, has been selected by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality as the center for a study designed to compare the effectiveness of medications versus surgery for the treatment of open-angle glaucoma.

Outcome is part of the AHRQ’s “Developing Evidence to Inform Decisions about Effectiveness” initiative, or DEcIDE.

The prospective, observational cohort study is expected to enroll 2,600 patients located in approximately 30 sites across the United States from April 2011 through October 2012. Data from the study will be collected over a 12-month period and will include demographic characteristics, medical history, glaucoma severity, patient outcomes and patient quality of life. Analyses will compare patients who underwent surgical procedures with patients who were treated with medication and will also examine the treatment effect by race ethnicity, given the current lack of information for minority populations. The goal of the study is to provide new scientific information about the effects of different treatment approaches in individuals who have open-angle glaucoma.

Open angle glaucoma was among the 100 topics identified in the 2009 Institute of Medicine report on comparative effectiveness research priorities. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 charged the IOM to recommend the national priorities for the $400 million designated to the Secretary of Health and Human Services. Outcome’s proposal was selected by AHRQ in response to a request that listed the IOM nominated topics.

The Outcome DEcIDE Center will be responsible for the day-to-day operations of the study, the design of the protocol and case report forms, building the study database, handling data collection, data management and database quality assurance. Richard Gliklich, MD, president and CEO of Outcome, will serve as the study’s principal investigator. His co-investigators include Anne Coleman, MD, PhD; Fran and Ray Stark, professor of ophthalmology at the UCLA Jules Stein Eye Institute and director of the American Academy of Ophthalmology’s H. Dunbar Hoskins Center for Quality Eye Care; and Flora Lum, MD, executive director of the Hoskins Center.

“Outcome is honored to have been chosen by AHRQ to conduct a study in collaboration with the UCLA Jules Stein Eye Institute and Academy’s Hoskins Center. This work has the potential to improve the standard of care for patients diagnosed with open-angle glaucoma, especially within minority populations,” said Dr. Gliklich. “This study further demonstrates the important role comparative effectiveness data can play in providing healthcare providers with critical treatment information during the decision-making process.”

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