Annual Fall Meeting of the
United States Critical Illness and Injury Trials Group
National Institutes of Health
Bethesda, Maryland
December 8-9, 2009
The US Critical Illness and Injury Trials Group (USCIIT Group) invites you to attend its Annual
Fall Meeting, December 8-9, 2009, Natcher Conference Center, NIH Campus, Bethesda,
Maryland. The dual missions of the USCIIT Group are to foster investigator-initiated hypothesis
testing and to plan strategically a national level, acting as a “network of networks” for critical
illness and injury investigators. The meeting is free and open to all those interested in
furthering research and clinical trials for the critically ill and injured.
Sessions at the annual meeting this year will include the following:
Clinical Proposal Updates –This session offers updates by Team Leaders from two of last year’s
group of 18 Clinical Projects (see the USCIIT Group web page for more details). These
presentations highlight the accomplishments of these Projects and the resources available to
USCIIT Group investigators. In addition, two new Clinical Projects will be presented from this
year’s proposals, providing an opportunity for direct exchange between investigators and
attendees.
NIH Reports – Speakers will present recent progress made in the clinical research domains of
emergency medicine and trauma. In addition, attendees will hear updates on the Clinical and
Translational Science Awards and the considerable resources they provide.
USCIIT Challenges – New for this year, five Challenges for the community will be presented, the
subjects of which were suggested by USCIIT Group investigators. These topics include the
following:
 Timing of tracheostomy: Determine the optimal timing for tracheostomy in patients on
mechanical ventilation with subacute and chronic respiratory failure
 Clinical phenotyping: Devise an accurate, cost-effective strategy for classifying organ
dysfunction and system failure secondary to critical illness and injury
 ICU metagenomics: Model environment-host-pathogen interactions to accurately
predict state transitions from colonization to infection to sepsis
 Informatics: For the purpose of coupling clinical research with performance
improvement, create software that allows individual clinicians to leverage real-time
analysis of critical illness and injury informatics across participating centers
 Predisposition: Discover genetic and environmental determinants to "good" outcomes
after critical illness and injury
To reach consensus on how best to approach these Challenges, presentations on the afternoon
of Day 1 will segue to dinner break-out discussions among small groups. The following day,
spokespersons for each Challenge will be asked to articulate overarching aims and an
organizational plan. It is hoped that from these discussions a consensus document (“white
paper”) will be communicated for the purpose of exploring funding opportunities for each of
these initiatives.
Comparative Effectiveness Research (CER) – Opportunities to pursue CER will be made from
representatives of the American Association of Critical Care Nurses (AACN), the Office of the
Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) in the Department of Health and Human
Services, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI), the Agency for Healthcare
Research and Quality (AHRQ), and the Emergency Care Coordination Center (ECCC). A panel
discussion will follow.
MORE INFORMATION
www.fgciitg.com
STEERING COMMITTEE
Scott D. Somers, PhD
National Institute of General Medical Sciences, NIH, DHHS
Anthony F. Suffredini, MD
Critical Care Medicine Department, NIH Clinical Center, DHHS
Robert L. Danner, MD
Critical Care Medicine Department, NIH Clinical Center, DHHS
Peter J. Munson, PhD
Center for Information Technology, NIH, DHHS
Ramona Hicks, PhD
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, NIH, DHHS
Andrea Harabin, PhD
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, NIH, DHHS
Carol Nicholson, MD
National Institute of Child Health and Development, NIH, DHHS
Mary Purucker, MD, PhD
National Center for Research Resources, NIH, DHHS
Basil A. Eldadah, MD, PhD
National Institute on Aging, NIH, DHHS
Charles B. Cairns, MD
University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
J. Perren Cobb, MD,
Massachusetts General Hospital
ORGANIZING COMMITTEE
Derek Angus, MD
University of Pittsburgh
Eileen Bulger, MD
University of Washington in Seattle
Nina Gentile, MD
Temple University
David Hoyt, MD
University of California at Irvine
Polly Parsons, MD
University of Vermont College of Medicine
Debra Schwinn, MD
University of Washington
Jeffrey Upperman, MD
Childrens Hospital-Los Angeles
Jeanine Wiener-Kronish, MD
Massachusetts General Hospital
Hector Wong, MD
Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center
Sponsors
National Institute of General Medical Sciences, NIH, DHHS
Scientific Interest Group – Critical Injury and Illness Group, NIH, DHHS
Co-Sponsor
Massachusetts General Hospital