Research center comes to TIRR in med center

A research center devoted to finding new ways to treat and rehabilitate patients opened on the campus of TIRR Memorial Hermann in the Texas Medical Center.

The facility is called the NeuroRecovery Research Center and is part of a more than 42,000-squarefoot building.

The center houses a number of labs where different studies and trials are conducted, said Dr. Gerard E. Francisco, TIRR Memorial Hermann’s chief medical officer who also serves as director of the new research center.

TIRR Memorial Hermann treats people with a range of disabilities and conditions such as brain and spinal cord injury, stroke, multiple trauma, amputation and neurodegenerative diseases.

Its NeuroRecovery Research Center is a collaborative project among clinicians, scientists and engineers, according to a news release.

Currently TIRR Memorial Hermann is one of three sites in the United States taking part in a clinical trial aimed at assessing Vagus Nerve Stimulation during rehabilitation for improved upper limb motor function following a stroke.

TIRR Memorial Hermann is one of a dozen sites in the U.S. participating in a stroke trial aimed at improving the quality of life for stroke survivors.

Researchers use a noninvasive device to map the brain to deliver targeted magnetic stimulation that can suppress or enhance specific brain activity.

Researchers are then able to determine the therapeutic effects of the navigated magnetic pulses for stroke rehabilitation.

“It was important that our research building be connected to TIRR Memorial Hermann and the bridge is symbolic of how we want to do research,” Francisco said.

“We do research to answer real-world clinical questions so we can do better in our clinical care.”

To learn more about the NeuroRecovery Research Center and the clinical trials and studies currently underway, visit www.tirr.memorialhermann.org or call 713-7995000.