Early Kick-off in Vienna – Setting the Frame for OSTEOproSPINE
New Horizon 2020 project sets out to develop a new bone regeneration therapy
Already at the beginning of the second project week, the partners of Horizon 2020 project OSTEOproSPINE met for the first time on January 8-9 in Vienna. Invited by the Coordinator, the University of Zagreb School of Medicine, and the local host, the Medical University of Vienna, the 13 partners – clinicians, research organisations and SMEs – came together to discuss the first steps for a successful cooperation in the new project.
After a warm welcome by project coordinator Dr Slobodan Vukicevic who also gave an overview over the main project activities, the consortium dived into the work. The 13 partners presented themselves and their responsibilities in the project. Afterwards, the work packages were outlined and discussed in the plenary. The first day ended with a joint dinner and a great Viennese specialty: “Tafelspitz”.
Day 2 focused on administrative topics as well as general and clinical trials management. The presentation and discussion of the action plan for the first project year was followed by a session of intense group work. Three different working groups discussed the clinical studies, the management of the clinical trials and project management topics to ensure a smooth project start.
More on OSTEOproSPINE:
OSTEOproSPINE is a novel bone regeneration therapy based on the therapeutic system developed in the course of the previous research project OSTEOGROW. It is designed to guide the formation of new bone at extra-skeletal site and replace autograft harvested from patient’s iliac crest for the fusion of lumbar vertebrae. By generating new bone, OSTEOproSPINE will restore the spine’s weight bearing function, reduce the severity of back pain and improve the success rate of posterolateral spinal fusion surgery. The project partners will conduct a Phase II, randomised, patient- and evaluator-blinded clinical trial of OSTEOproSPINE. Four clinical centres will enrol 180 patients suffering from degenerative disc disease to assess OSTEOproSPINE’s efficacy and safety in comparison with Standard of care (autograft) and Osteogrow.
After the successful participation in the OSTEOGROW project mentioned above, Eurice also supports the OSTEOproSPINE project as management and dissemination partner pursuing an integrated project management approach. Our team is in charge of the administrative, financial and contractual management as well as the organisational coordination. Additionally, Eurice creates the project website and dissemination materials and gives strategic advice on dissemination and exploitation activities.
