Abstract
Drawing upon extant data from existing pediatric cohorts and new follow-up of a diverse set of pediatric cohorts from across the United States, the Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) Program creates the opportunity for novel and innovative investigations of many previously inaccessible scientific questions in the area of child health. We describe how the large sample size, diversity of participants, emphasis on team science, and infrastructure for improving research methodology make the ECHO Program a major research resource for improving our understanding of early life determinants of childhood health and well-being. Pediatric researchers leverage the unique features of the ECHO Program to address research questions with the potential to yield far-reaching and long-term impacts on child health.
Impact
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The ECHO Program unites pediatric cohorts from across the United States, allowing for investigations of compelling research questions that were previously infeasible due to limited sample sizes or lack of participant diversity.
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The focus of the ECHO Program on team science, solution-oriented research, and methodological innovation propels novel scientific investigations that are responsive to the needs of a wide range of stakeholders.
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Features of the ECHO program’s infrastructure poise its investigators to rapidly launch research endeavors that are responsive to time-sensitive and critical needs within the realm of pediatric research.
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Acknowledgements
We wish to thank our ECHO colleagues, the medical, nursing, and program staff, as well as the children and families participating in the ECHO cohorts. We also acknowledge the contribution of the following ECHO Program collaborators: Coordinating Center—Duke Clinical Research Institute, Durham, N C: P.B. Smith, K.L. Newby, D.K. Benjamin; Data Analysis Center—Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD: L.P. Jacobson; Research Triangle Institute, Durham, NC: C.B. Parker. We would also like to acknowledge and thank the following: Peter Hoffmann, Beth Harris, and Michelle Schreiner. Research reported in this publication was supported by the Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) program, Office of The Director, National Institutes of Health, under Award Numbers U2COD023375 (Coordinating Center), U24OD023382 (Data Analysis Center), UH3 OD023275, UH3 OD023382, UH3OD023282, and UH3 OD023285. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.
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Romano, M.E., Buckley, J.P., Elliott, A.J. et al. SPR Perspectives: scientific opportunities in the Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes Program. Pediatr Res 92, 1255–1261 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41390-021-01577-5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41390-021-01577-5
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