2 Ontario Institutes Partner to Better Understand Prevalence of Brain Disorders Like CP

The Ontario Brain Institute (OBI) and the Institute for Clinical and Evaluative Sciences (ICES) are collaborating on initiatives that aim to address certain knowledge gaps into brain disorders like cerebral palsy in that Canadian province.

According to a news release, these initiatives have the support of a $75 million grant provided by the Ontario government.

OBI and the ICES released a report, “Brain Disorders in Ontario: Prevalence, Incidence and Costs from Health Administrative Data,” in 2015 with estimates on the prevalence and incidence of 13 brain disorders across Ontario, and providing an overview of healthcare costs associated with these conditions. The report also provided data to inform program and resource planning, policy, and decision-making regarding brain disorders in the Ontario health system.

OBI, a nonprofit research center, is a world leader in brain research, commercialization, and care, with five pan-Ontario research programs focused on cerebral palsy, epilepsy, depression, neurodevelopmental disorders, and neurodegenerative disorders like Alzheimer’s.

OBI shares its data on a platform named Brain-CODE, which encompasses information covering multiple brain disorders and data from a wide range of disciplines — including behavioral science, imaging and genomics — gathered from across the province and according to standardized measures and methods.

BRAIN-CODE provides researchers with information to help them study the underlying mechanisms of brain disorders and predict treatment outcomes.

ICES leads studies that evaluate healthcare delivery and outcomes, and its researchers can securely access an array of health records on more than 13 million people in Ontario, including population-based health surveys, anonymous patient records, as well as clinical and administrative databases.

OBI data are standardized to simplify comparisons across different brain disorders. However, medical history and demographic data from participants remains incomplete. The OBI and the ICES partnership aims to fill this gap by providing a broad view of health and healthcare delivery in Ontario.