MAPP Research Network Sites Now Recruiting prostatitis patients.

The Multidisciplinary Approach to the Study of Urologic Chronic Pelvic Pain (MAPP) Research Network has been established by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to focus on a broader approach to the study of Chronic Prostatitis (CP)/Chronic Pelvic Pain Syndrome (CPPS) in men and Interstitial Cystitis (IC)/Painful Bladder Syndrome (PBS) in men and women, than previously undertaken.

Patients with CP or IC are now being recruited for a new research study called the “MAPP Network Epidemiology and Phenotyping Study.” By taking part in these studies, participants may help doctors gain a better understanding of how CP and IC affect individuals’ overall health and aid them in developing better treatments.

Like many chronic pain disorders, CP and IC are poorly understood and treatments are often not helpful. Our goal in the MAPP Network is to better understand the underlying causes of CP or IC. Through this study we also hope to better understand how CP and IC relate to other chronic pain conditions, including irritable bowel syndrome (IBS), fibromyalgia (FM), and chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS).The MAPP Network studies are observational, which means we will ask questions and gather information about your health and life for research purposes, but we will not treat you or change any current treatments you may have for your condition. During this study, you will remain under the care of your usual physicians. The MAPP Network plans to enroll a total of 360 patients with some form of CP or IC at nine medical centers across the country, as well as a number of patients with IBS, FM, and CFS.

This is a 12 month study. After the first visit (Screening/Baseline visit), participants will be asked to come back to the clinical center twice during the next 12 months, as well as complete a brief biweekly (every other week) and bimonthly (every other month) computer questionnaires at home in between clinic visits. In addition to the clinic visits and online assessments, during the next 12 months participants will be asked to collect a maximum of 4 home urine samples to aid in our study of how symptoms change over time. Participants will also be given the option to enroll in additional network research studies that will provide new and important information for the main study.

To learn more about participating in the MAPP Network study at the below locations, check out the “Recruiting Sites” tab on the MAPP Research Network website at http://www.mappnetwork.org

Research Sites Informatin For Mapp Network

University of Miami Miller School of Medicine
Miami, FL
Principal Investigator: Thomas M. Hooton, MD
Contact: Gabriel Blaschke gblaschke@med.miami.edu

University of Alabama at Birmingham
Birmingham, AL
Principal Investigator: Timothy J. Ness, MD, Ph.D.
Contact: Beverly Corbitt (205) 934-3751 bcorbitt@uab.edu

University of Michigan
Ann Arbor, MI
Site Directors: Daniel J. Clauw, MD and Quentin Clemens, MD, MSCI
Contact: Megan Halvorson (734) 765-8856 meganeb@med.umich.edu

Northwestern University, Feinberg School of Medicine
Chicago, IL
Principal Investigators: David J. Klumpp, Ph.D. and Anthony J. Schaeffer, MD
Contact: Darlene Marko (312) 695-3898 d-marko@northwestern.edu

Washington University in St. Louis
St. Louis, MO
Site Directors: Gerald L. Andriole, MD and H. Henry Lai, MD
Contact: Rebecca Bristol (314) 454-7325 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting (314) 454-7325 end_of_the_skype_highlighting bristolr@wudosis.wustl.edu
Vivien Gardner (314) 996-8285 gardnerv@wudosis.wustl.edu

University of Iowa
Iowa City, IA
Site Director: Karl Kreder, MD, MBA
Contact: Mary Eno (319) 384-9265 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting (319) 384-9265 end_of_the_skype_highlighting mary-eno@uiowa.edu

University of Washington
Seattle, WA
Site Director: Dedra Buchwald, MD
Contact: T. J. Sundsvold (206) 616-4497 mapprc@uw.edu

Stanford University
Palo Alto, CA
Principal Investigator: Sean Mackey, MD, Ph.D.
Contact: Noorulain Noor (650) 724-0522

David Geffin School of Medicine at University of Southern California
Principal Investigators: Emeran A. Mayer, MD and Larissa V. Rodriguez, MD
Contact: Suzanne Smith (310) 206-0310 srsmith@mednet.ucla.edu
Jennifer Soh (310) 206-1757 jsoh@mednet.ucla.edu