AHRQ selects Outcome Sciences to study effects of different treatments for open angle glaucoma

Outcome Sciences, Inc. (OUTCOME), the leading provider of patient registries, studies, and technologies for evaluating real-world outcomes, today announced that the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) has selected Outcome as the DEcIDE Center for a study designed to compare the effectiveness of medications versus surgery for the treatment of open-angle glaucoma. The study will enroll 2,600 patients from 30 sites across the United States and is intended to provide new scientific information about the effects of different treatment approaches in individuals who have glaucoma.

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Open angle glaucoma was among the 100 topics identified in the 2009 Institute of Medicine (IOM) report on comparative effectiveness research priorities. The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009 charged the IOM to recommend the national CER 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 (Hoskins Center), 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."

"As one of the original research centers to participate in the DEcIDE Network, Outcome Sciences has demonstrated its commitment to gathering important new knowledge and information to improve health outcomes," said Jean R. Slutsky, director of AHRQ's Center for Outcomes and Evidence. "AHRQ's Effective Health Care Program funds research done by investigators and research centers like Outcome, and we look forward to the results of this important project."