Right place. Right time. RightAnswer.
RightAnswer.com Awarded Phase 1 Grant
September 29, 2016 – RightAnswer.com, Inc. has been awarded a Phase 1 $150,000 SBIR grant from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for the budget period September 30, 2015.
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“This project has the potential to enhance the assessment of clinical management options for pregnant women in ways that have never been done before.” Glen Markham, Principal Investigator |
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| In collaboration with an interdisciplinary team of University of Washington (UW) scientists, RightAnswer.com will be researching, designing, and developing a prototype mobile app to improve drug safety that delivers current and authoritative information about the risks associated with the use of prescription and over-the-counter medications during pregnancy. |  |
In the past three decades, the prevalence of medication usage during pregnancy in the United States has increased more than 60%. The implication of this increased usage is concerning because roughly 40,000 infants are born each year with birth defects directly attributed to medication exposure during prenatal development.
Eliminating medications, even those with known teratogenicity risk, is not always feasible for pregnant women because of medical necessity, such as those needing medication to treat epilepsy. The mobile application will help healthcare providers and pregnant women weigh the potential risks and benefits of medications immediately. They will also be able to consider drug warnings, potential alternative therapies, stage of pregnancy, dosage, and route of administration.
A significant component of the project involves utilizing the TERIS (The Teratogen Information System) database, which is located in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Washington. The TERIS database provides up-to-date, authoritative information regarding the effects of drugs and chemicals on the developing embryo. It also contains evidence-based information on the developmental toxicity of more than 1,600 agents, addressing 95% of the most frequently prescribed drugs which will provide valuable information during the research and development stage of this project.
Key Project Personnel:
- Glen Markham, RightAnswer.com, Inc., Corporate Business Development Executive/Project Principal Investigator
- Sarah Albee, RightAnswer.com, Inc., Director of IT/IT Project Manager
- Dr. Janine Polifka, Ph.D., University of Washington, TERIS Database Manager
- Dr. Gary Hsieh, University of Washington, Assistant Professor, Human Centered Design & Engineering
- Dr. Carol Collins, University of Washington, Clinical Associate Professor – Department of Pharmaceutics
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Disclaimer Required by Federal Law
Supported by the Grant or Cooperative Agreement Number, DD001127, funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention or the Department of Health and Human Services.
Financial Disclosure Required by Federal Law
- Percentage of the total costs of the program or project which will be financed with Federal money (100%).
- Percentage and dollar amount of the total costs of the project or program that will be financed by non-governmental sources (0% and $0).
