Providence VA researcher gets $1.5M contract to study prostheses

A RESEARCH scientist with the Providence VA Medical Center was awarded a $15 million DOD contract. Above, from left, are Matthew Borgia, Rachel Underwood, Josephine Airoldi, Dr. Linda J. Resnik, Eileen Small and Sarah Biester of the Providence VA Medical Center. Led by Resnik, the team will study and compare the effectiveness of different prostheses types. / COURTESY WINFIELD DANIELSON
A RESEARCH scientist with the Providence VA Medical Center was awarded a $1.5 million DOD contract. Above, from left, are Matthew Borgia, Rachel Underwood, Josephine Airoldi, Dr. Linda J. Resnik, Eileen Small and Sarah Biester of the Providence VA Medical Center. Led by Resnik, the team will study and compare the effectiveness of different prostheses types. / COURTESY WINFIELD DANIELSON

PROVIDENCE – A research scientist with the Providence VA Medical Center’s VA Rehabilitation Research and Development Service Center for Neurorestoration and Neurotechnology has been awarded a nearly $1.5 million contract to examine how well types of prosthetic limbs work.

The three-year U.S. Department of Defense contract was awarded Monday to Ocean State Research Institute Inc., a nonprofit associated with the Providence VA.

Dr. Linda J. Resnik, the study’s lead investigator, will work with researchers across the country as they examine the effectiveness of various prostheses.

“This will be the largest, most comprehensive study comparing upper limb prostheses and components,” Resnik said in a statement. “Providing prostheses that are optimally matched to the patient will improve satisfaction, reduce abandonment rates and improve overall quality of life for people with upper-limb amputations.”

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Resnik is also a professor in the Department of Health Services, Policy and Practice at Brown University.

Researchers involved in the study will help guide prosthesis prescription by comparing the effectiveness of upper limb prostheses and analyzing whether specific types of patients are more likely to benefit from certain types of devices.

The work builds on an existing study, and is expected to allow for comparisons between 300 upper limb prosthesis users.

Study collaborators include Brown University, the University of South Florida, the Brooke Army Medical Center in Texas, the Audie L. Murphy VA Medical Center in Texas, the James A. Haley VA Medical Center in Tampa, the Hunter Holmes McGuire VA Medical Center in Virginia and the VA Puget Sound Health Care System in Seattle.

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