Overview

The American Joint Replacement Research-Collaborative (AJRR-C) provides resources and brings together researchers from multiple fields to improve the care and outcomes for patients receiving total joint replacements, also called arthroplasty. The AJRR-C uses big data resources, such as registries and databases, to enhance total joint replacement research.

The AJRR-C shares its expertise and educational and data analytics resources across Mayo Clinic and with the research community at large. Its goals are to:

• Help researchers make the best use of existing databases and research networks.
• Train the next generation of orthopedic clinical investigators.
• Build productive scientific collaborations.

AJRR-C research projects involve linking existing and new data about patients receiving joint replacements. These data come from multiple data sources at Mayo Clinic and from national data drawn from the American Joint Replacement Registry (AJRR). The AJRR is part of a family of national orthopedic surgery subspecialty registries maintained by the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons. A major goal of this collaboration is to build cooperation between research centers to support a growing community of joint replacement researchers.

Addressing unmet clinical needs

Total joint replacement is one of the most common and fastest growing surgeries in the United States. To ensure that the high surgical demand is met with the best patient care, investigators need unique research resources. These include access to large, high-quality and rich data sources and registries, state-of-the-art clinical research standards, and information technologies to overcome methodological and practical challenges in their research.

The AJRR-C addresses clinical research needs by:

• Making it easier to access high-quality, rich data sources and national registry data.
• Offering customized consultations with researchers at Mayo Clinic and other institutions.
• Providing statistics, informatics and methodology support.
• Awarding pilot project grants to support early- and mid-career researchers.

The AJRR-C is funded by the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases as a Core Center for Clinical Research.