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The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) convened a multidisciplinary working group of hypertension researchers on December 6–7, 2018, in Bethesda, Maryland to share current scientific knowledge in hypertension andto identify barriers to translation and implementation.
The working group is responsive to NHLBI Strategic Vision Objectives 1–6 and 8.
Despite extensive research and the existence of several effective therapeutic interventions, hypertension remains an important public health challenge in the United States. Over the past 3 decades, NHLBI has made significant investments in hypertension research; however, translation of knowledge of pathophysiology and basic science discoveries into better treatments that can reach diverse patient population groups remains inefficient.
The goals of this working group were: (1) to provide an overview of recent discoveries that may be ready for translation in pre-clinical and clinical studies; (2) to identify barriers to moving basic science discoveries into translation and clinical studies and trials; and (3) to identify barriers to effective dissemination and implementation in real-world settings.
The working group brought together 16 extramural experts in hypertension research from broad backgrounds in basic, translational, clinical, population, and implementation sciences. The members were selected from diverse areas in hypertension research in order to facilitate cross-cutting discussion to spark innovative ideas for future research pathways and to identify major areas of barriers in hypertension research and clinical application. NHLBI staff organized and participated in the meeting.
The working group focused on key challenges and barriers that hinder the progress of basic science translation through clinical trials and implementation. Five sessions were followed by a general group discussion. Session topics included: barriers to basic science discovery that could lead to new drugs or treatments; barriers to moving forward from animal studies to human studies; barriers to moving from translation to patients; barriers to advancing from clinical studies to clinical practice; and barriers to moving from clinical findings and guidelines to real-world settings and implementation.
The working group identified the following barriers:
The working group’s recommendations are to:
The working group plans to prepare a manuscript for publication in a peer-reviewed journal.
Young S. Oh, PhD
Division of Cardiovascular Sciences (DCVS), NHLBI
Email: yoh@nhlbi.nih.gov
Phone: 301-435-0560