November 9, 2007

NTM Info & Research (NTMir), a not-for-profit organization that supports education and research for nontuberculous mycobacterial (NTM) lung disease announces the implementation of Rapid Information Pilot Studies (RIPS™), an innovative program to provide guidance about pressing issues regarding NTM host vulnerability, sources of infection, and clinical and treatment issues.  Small pilot studies will be conducted so that information will be available within 12 months of grant approval, and will justify large-scale, multi-centered studies to explore the issues identified by the RIPS™ program.

NTMir is pleased to announce that it has awarded a RIPS™ grant to Dr. Joseph Falkinham, III, at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, Virginia to study household water systems as a source of pulmonary NTM infection.  This project will be initiated and completed during 2008, providing important information regarding the risk factors associated with household water and NTM lung infection.  This study will be the first in a series designed to better understand both environmental and host factors of human infection with NTM.

NTMir is pleased to announce that it has awarded a RIPS™ grant jointly to National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID) and Kaiser Permanente of Southern California (Kaiser), a private healthcare provider, to study the prevalence, prevalence trends, and co-morbidities of pulmonary NTM disease.  This study represents an opportunity to evaluate the prevalence of NTM within a closed healthcare system and a unique partnership between a federal government agency (NIAID), a private healthcare system (Kaiser), and a disease-centered not-for-profit organization (NTMir).

For further information please contact Philip Leitman at philipleitman@aol.com.