Gross Paul, Reed Gavin T, Engelmann Rachel, Kestle John R W
Hydrocephalus Association, Bethesda, Maryland; and.
J Neurosurg Pediatr. 2014 Feb;13(2):145-50. doi: 10.3171/2013.11.PEDS13197. Epub 2013 Dec 6.
Funding of hydrocephalus research is important to the advancement of the field. The goal of this paper is to describe the funding of hydrocephalus research from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) over a recent 10-year period.
The NIH online database RePORT (Research Portfolio Online Reporting Tools) was searched using the key word "hydrocephalus." Studies were sorted by relevance to hydrocephalus. The authors analyzed funding by institute, grant type, and scientific approach over time.
Over $54 million was awarded to 59 grantees for 66 unique hydrocephalus proposals from 48 institutions from 2002 to 2011. The largest sources of funding were the National Institute of Neurological Disease and Stroke and the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development. Of the total, $22 million went to clinical trials, $15 million to basic science, and $10 million to joint ventures with small business (Small Business Innovation Research or Small Business Technology Transfer). Annual funding varied from $2.3 to $8.1 million and steadily increased in the second half of the observation period. The number of new grants also went from 15 in the first 5 years to 27 in the second 5 years. A large portion of the funding has been for clinical trials. Funding for shunt-device development grew substantially. Support for training of hydrocephalus investigators has been low.
Hydrocephalus research funding is low compared with that for other conditions of similar health care burden. In addition to NIH applications, researchers should pursue other funding sources. Small business collaborations appear to present an opportunity for appropriate projects.
脑积水研究的资金对于该领域的发展至关重要。本文的目的是描述美国国立卫生研究院（NIH）在最近10年期间对脑积水研究的资金投入情况。
使用关键词“脑积水”搜索NIH在线数据库RePORT（研究项目在线报告工具）。根据与脑积水的相关性对研究进行分类。作者分析了不同机构、资助类型和科学方法随时间的资金投入情况。
2002年至2011年期间，48个机构的66项独特脑积水研究提案获得了超过5400万美元的资助，资助了59名受资助者。最大的资金来源是国立神经疾病与中风研究所和国家儿童健康与人类发展研究所。其中，2200万美元用于临床试验，1500万美元用于基础科学，1000万美元用于与小企业的合资企业（小企业创新研究或小企业技术转让）。年度资金投入从230万美元到810万美元不等，在观察期后半段稳步增加。新资助的数量也从前5年的15项增加到后5年的27项。大部分资金用于临床试验。分流装置开发的资金大幅增长。对脑积水研究人员培训的支持一直较低。
与其他具有类似医疗负担的疾病相比，脑积水研究的资金投入较低。除了NIH的申请外，研究人员应寻求其他资金来源。小企业合作似乎为合适的项目提供了机会。
