[Congressional Record Volume 150, Number 114 (Tuesday, September 21, 2004)]
[Senate]
[Page S9438]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         ADDITIONAL STATEMENTS

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              VA AND UF JOIN FORCES TO HELP STROKE VICTIMS

 Mr. GRAHAM of Florida. Mr. President, the Department of 
Veterans' Affairs, VA, has a long and distinguished history of 
collaboration with various universities across the country. No such 
partnership has yielded more successful results than that between the 
Malcom Randall VA Medical Center, VAMC, in Gainesville, FL, and the 
University of Florida, UF. In keeping with their long history together, 
these two notable institutions announced on July 6, 2004, that they 
will be working together to help stroke victims.
  The Translational Research in Rehabilitation Initiative, as it has 
been named, is a $2.7 million effort to improve the lives of those who 
have suffered from strokes and other brain injuries. Its goal is to 
drastically shorten the time between scientific discovery and the 
development of therapies used for the treatment of these patients. 
Currently, an average of 17 years go by before discoveries in clinical 
trials are routinely incorporated into medical treatment.
  Previous thinking was that the mature nervous system could not be 
repaired after injury. Since 1990, however, scientists have known this 
is not true. As such, the joint initiative will utilize the advanced 
skills of UF scientists and physicians to translate discoveries from 
animal research into quicker ways of reconstructing the damaged human 
nervous system. With VA's assistance, UF also will recruit three new 
faculty members, whose goal will be to accelerate brain-injury research 
to find combinations of drugs and rehabilitation therapies that will 
help stroke victims.
  The project is an extension of research that began 1999 with Leslie 
Gonzalez-Rothi, Ph.D., a neurology professor associated with UF's 
Evelyn F. and William L. McKnight Brain Institute and program director 
of the Brain Rehabilitation Research Center at the Gainesville VAMC. 
That year, Dr. Gonzalez-Rothi obtained the first rehabilitation 
research and development grant from VA to start the Brain 
Rehabilitation Research Center. At the center, UF scientists study 
combinations of drugs and rehabilitation techniques in people who have 
suffered strokes, focusing their efforts on rehabilitating patients and 
teaching them to relearn lost abilities. This new mission will explore 
the ways doctors can actually help heal the injury and is part of the 
July renewal of a 5-year, $4.25 million rehabilitation research and 
development grant to the center. In addition to the grant, the 
Gainesville VAMC will provide nearly 4,000 square feet of laboratory 
space in its medical center to support the effort.
  This new partnership between VA and UF is a shining example of what 
VA can and will accomplish through its impressive research 
capabilities, especially with the help of its university affiliates. 
The strides that result from the Translational Research in 
Rehabilitation Initiative will significantly improve patient care for 
the entire Nation, making a difference in the lives of veterans, as 
well as the general public. I am very proud that this project is being 
conducted in my home State of Florida.

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