IMHA On The Move – March 2013

Table of Contents

• A Message Form the Interim Scientific Director
• CIHR Funding Opportunities
• Good News Stories
• Partner Corner
• Juvenile Arthritis Awareness Month
• Meetings of Interest
• Contact Us

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A Message Form the Interim Scientific Director

March is Juvenile Arthritis Awareness Month. CIHR is recognizing the outstanding work and dedication of juvenile arthritis researchers this month by featuring some of their work online. Content will be available throughout the month on the CIHR website and through the social media channels including Facebook (Health Research In Canada), and Twitter (@CIHR_IRSC).

At the end of February, IMHA held its Institute Advisory Board (IAB) meeting in Calgary, AB. The evening before the IAB we hosted a Café Scientifique in partnership with TELUS Spark, the McCaig Bone and Joint Health Institute and the University of Calgary, entitled Healthy Bones and Joints: New strategies for maintaining your mobility. Drs. Derrick Rancourt, Carolyn Emery, and Linda Woodhouse discussed their fascinating research about tissue engineering, injury prevention and models of care. Expertly moderated by Karen Owen from CTV News, this Café was highly informative and drew thoughtful questions from the audience. For more information about upcoming Cafés please visit the Café Scientifique website.

To connect with our various research communities and partner organizations, IMHA is on the move across North America to major conferences and meetings within our mandated research areas. Last month, IMHA attended the Canadian Rheumatology Association Annual (CRA) Scientific Meeting and Arthritis Health Professions Association Annual Meeting and The Power of Movement.

The CRA Annual Scientific Meeting was an opportunity for us to meet established researchers and trainees just entering the field. The Power of Movement is the largest yoga fundraiser in Canada and has raised over $1.3 million towards arthritis research. It is an annual event that is organized by the Arthritis Research Foundation and takes place nationally from Vancouver to St. John’s, NL. The Arthritis Research Foundation raises, manages and invests funds for arthritis and related autoimmune disease research taking place in labs and clinics across University Health Network (UHN).

Next month, IMHA will attend the International Association for Dental Research (CADR) meeting in Seattle, Washington, USA.

If you have any questions about our newsletter, or if you would like to submit content, please contact us at imha.iala.cihr.irsc@utoronto.ca.

Sincerely,

Phillip Gardiner PhD, Interim Scientific Director
Institute of Musculoskeletal Health and Arthritis

CIHR Funding Opportunities

For information on current funding opportunities, please visit IMHA's Funding Opportunities.

China-Canada Joint Health Research Initiative
Application deadline: March 19, 2013

Catalyst Grant - Environments, Genes and Chronic Disease
Application deadline: April 2, 2013

CIHR Partnership Award
Nominations deadline: May 1, 2013

CIHR Barer-Flood Prize for Health Services and Policy Research
This new prize is a career achievement award that honours and recognizes an exceptional researcher in the area of health services and policy research who has created an influential body of work that has had a substantial impact on health services and policy research, policy and/or care delivery. The prize consists of $25,000 in research grant funding.

A nominee must:

• be an independent researcher;
• be registered at an eligible institution;
• have at least 10 years of experience as an independent investigator and currently hold a full-time position within a Canadian academic, hospital, not-for-profit or governmental institution or affiliated research institution. Application deadline: May 1, 2013

Learn how to get your research into the media spotlight

Communications Workshop for population and public health researchers

If you are a researcher with an interest in communications and population and public health you are encouraged to apply to this full-day workshop.

Date: Thursday, June 6, 2013
Location: Montreal, QC

This workshop will provide you with:

• Communications skills for pitching your research to editors and journalists
• Expert feedback on how you currently frame your messages and how to do it better
• Networking opportunities with like-minded researchers from across Canada

Eligibility: To be eligible for this workshop, applicants must:

• Be working in the field of population and public health research and have an interest in communications
• Hold a Master's degree or higher
• Be Canadians studying within Canada and abroad or non-Canadians affiliated with a Canadian Institution.

Deadline for application: Friday, March 15, 2013 at 5:00pm PST.

Good News Stories

Working your muscles to “failure” the key to making gains, not weight

Conventional wisdom says that you need to lift heavy weights to build bigger, stronger muscles. But paradigm changing research by Dr. Stuart Phillips and his team at McMaster University is challenging convention. They have shown that lifting lighter weights can produce the same increases in muscle size and very similar strength gains as heavier weights. The key they found is lifting the weights until you reach or come near to the point of muscular failure – where you can’t lift the weight anymore. This research is good news for people who want to increase their muscle size or strength, but who may be uncomfortable lifting heavy weights or unable to because of injury or limited mobility.

Partner Corner

Canadian Pain Coalition (CPC) highlights pain issues in CTV 3 Part Series on Chronic Pain that achieves national exposure!

The Canadian Pain Coalition is delighted to announce a three part CTV news series on chronic pain that improves awareness of pain issues facing Canadians and highlights the need for multidisciplinary management of chronic pain. To view the series visit the CTV station website. Share the links with family, friends, and colleagues to help improve pain awareness in your region.

Visit the Canadian Pain Coalition website for more information.

Juvenile Arthritis Awareness Month

Helping kids with arthritis be kids!

LEAPing into Juvenile Arthritis Awareness Month 2013

In Canada, approximately 61,500 children live with arthritis

Juvenile idiopathic arthritis is the most common rheumatic disease in childhood. It is characterized by inflammation that causes pain, stiffness and swelling in the joints. Effective treatments are available and children with arthritis can lead active lives.

In fact, physical activity is important for children with arthritis. These children can develop weak muscles and low bone strength because of their condition and because they tend to be less physically active than children who don’t have arthritis.

The link between physical activity and childhood arthritis is being studied by a national research team funded by CIHR’s Institute of Musculoskeletal Health and Arthritis. The LEAP study is the first research program to look at how active children with arthritis are at different levels of disease activity. It is also the first program to study bone and muscle development and biomarkers of inflammation in the blood.

The work of the LEAP team will provide information to help us better understand the interaction between inflammation, physical activity, and bone development in children with arthritis. It will help develop safe and effective exercise programs to keep children with arthritis healthy and improve their quality of life.

In the end, it’s about helping kids with arthritis be kids!

Photo Gallery

Take a look inside to see these inspirational kids in action!

Patient Story

Read about a patient’s firsthand experience with her diagnosis of JA

Resources

• LEAP – Keeping Kids With Arthritis Active
• The Arthritis Society of Canada
• Trusted Answers from The Hospital for Sick Children

Meetings of Interest

Update on Psoriatic Arthritis, July 11, 2013
This is a CME accredited event hosted by Dr. Dafna Gladman and Dr. Vinod Chandran of the University of Toronto and is open to all rheumatologists and dermatologists across Canada.

The 10th International Congress on SLE – Lupus 2013
April 18-21, 2013
Buenos Aires, Argentina

Canadian Pain Society Conference
May 8-10, 2013
Winnipeg, MB

Canadian Physiotherapy Association Congress
May 23-26, 2013
Montreal QC

Canadian Association of Occupational Therapists Annual Meeting
May 29-June 1, 2013
Victoria, BC

Canadian Connective Tissue Conference
May 29-June 1, 2013
Montreal QC

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