@article{af6938aeb4d64e00b7f450eb3ea5fe4f,
title = "Comprehensive National Institutes of Health funding analysis of academic cardiac surgeons",
abstract = "Objective: To determine trends in National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding for cardiac surgeons, hypothesizing they are at a disadvantage in obtaining funding owing to intensive clinical demands. Methods: Cardiac surgeons (adult/congenital) currently at the top 141 NIH-funded institutions were identified using institutional websites. The NIH funding history for each cardiac surgeon was queried using the NIH Research Portfolio Online Reporting Tools Expenditures and Results (RePORTER). Total grant funding, publications, and type was collected. Academic rank, secondary degrees, and fellowship information was collected from faculty pages. Grant productivity was calculated using a validated grant impact metric. Results: A total of 818 academic cardiac surgeons were identified, of whom 144 obtained 293 NIH grants totaling $458 million and resulting in 6694 publications. We identified strong associations between an institution's overall NIH funding rank and the number of cardiac surgeons, NIH grants to cardiac surgeons, and amount of NIH funding to cardiac surgeons (P < .0001 for all). The majority of NIH funding to cardiac surgeons is concentrated in the top quartile of institutions. Cardiac surgeons had a high conversion rates from K awards (mentored development awards) to R01s (6 of 14; 42.9%). Finally, we demonstrate that the rate of all NIH grants awarded to cardiac surgeons has increased, driven primarily by P and U (collaborative project) grants. Conclusions: NIH-funded cardiac surgical research has had a significant impact over the last 3 decades. Aspiring cardiac surgeon-scientists may be more successful at top quartile institutions owing to better infrastructure and mentorship.",
keywords = "NIH funding, cardiac surgery research, surgeon scientists",
author = "Narahari, {Adishesh K.} and Cook, {Ian O.} and Mehaffey, {J. Hunter} and Chandrabhatla, {Anirudha S.} and Hawkins, {Robert B.} and Zachary Tyerman and Charles, {Eric J.} and Tribble, {Curtis G.} and Kron, {Irving L.} and Teman, {Nicholas R.} and Roeser, {Mark E.} and Gorav Ailawadi",
note = "Funding Information: Meanwhile, impactful surgical research in the United States appears to be on the decline. An analysis of the New England Journal of Medicine found a significant decrease in the amount of research being published related to surgery. 4 Based on this evidence, evaluating the historical ability of cardiac surgeons to obtain NIH funding and their current status of NIH funding is crucial before the championed cardiac surgeon-scientist becomes extinct. In 2008, Ratcliffe and colleagues reported that cardiothoracic surgery faculty are applying for and receiving fewer NIH awards. 5 Economic pressure from university systems, time pressure from increasing clinical productivity demands, and time away from research are cited as reasons for this decline in research by cardiothoracic surgeons. 5 However, even given these clinical demands, we hypothesized that cardiac surgeons are still able to obtain NIH funding and perform either basic science or translational research. We also hypothesized that cardiac surgeons are able to successfully use the training paradigm established by the NIH: F32s (Individual Postdoctoral Fellowships), K awards (Mentored Scientist Research Career Development Awards), and R01s (Research Project Grant Program). Funding Information: Funding for this study was provided by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Grants F30 CA236370 (to Narahari) and UM1 HL088925 (to Dr Ailawadi). The views presented in this article are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the NIH. Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2019 The American Association for Thoracic Surgery",
year = "2020",
month = jun,
doi = "10.1016/j.jtcvs.2019.08.032",
language = "English (US)",
volume = "159",
pages = "2326--2335.e3",
journal = "Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery",
issn = "0022-5223",
publisher = "Mosby Inc.",
number = "6",
}