LURN II: Enhanced Characterization of Patients with LUTS Using Biopsychosocial Approaches

About This Grant

ABSTRACT This application is in response to PA-20-272: Administrative Supplements to Existing NIH Grants and Cooperative Agreements (Parent Admin Supp Clinical Trial Optional). Summary of parent-award Specific Aims. The Symptoms of Lower Urinary Tract Dysfunction Research Network (LURN) was assembled in 2012 to increase the understanding of lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS). Related to this goal was the improvement of patient-centered assessment of LUTS. This work involves improving the self-report measurement of LUTS using new, high-quality items to be used in questionnaire assessments. These items were created with qualitative input from patients, community participants, internists, urologists, urogynecologists, and clinical researchers. This set of items is referred to as the Comprehensive Assessment of Self-Reported Urinary Symptoms (CASUS). The original aims of the grant were Aim 1: To refine and expand a clinically-relevant cluster model across a cohort of patients with LUTS. Relative to LURN I, participants will have a wider range of symptom severity and be characterized using novel measures of bladder and urethral function; Aim 2: To identify protein biomarker signatures contained within plasma of specific subgroups of men and women with LUTS; Aim 3: To determine phenotypic characteristics of women with LUTS by measuring the functional components of the lower urinary tract; Aim 4 To validate comprehensive outcome tools for men and women with LUTS; and Aim 5: To determine influences of stress and mental health on LUTS. In this supplement, we will focus on an orderly closeout of the project, which includes completion of manuscripts as well as curation of data consistent with open science.