Research Center Profile:
Allergy Asthma Research Institute
Endocrinology
Immunology
Infections and Infectious Diseases
Pulmonary/Respiratory Diseases
The Allergy Asthma Research Institute is an experienced, physician-owned, fully-staffed and equipped research center in Central Texas. The research center, established in 1997, is a branch of a large allergy practice. The staff includes 4 full-time coordinators, two of which have CCRC/LVN license and two CRC’s with medical experience, a data manager, a director, an assistant director, and an administrator. The research institute and allergy practice occupy a combined 10,000 sq. ft. of office space. The research institute and the private monitoring areas are equipped with data ports for broadband internet connections, computers and telephones. The entire building is Wi Fi accessible. This sharing of a central location has led to successful patient recruitment, high retention rates of patient participation and a great degree of patient satisfaction.
This area of Texas experiences very intense and long pollen seasons, including very high Mountain Cedar pollen in the winter. The research institute performs daily pollen counts which are submitted to the National Allergy Bureau. Please see our Pollen Graph under Other Information.
Our mission is to conduct clinical trials expeditiously under strict GCP guidelines with data integrity and subject safety as paramount goals. Our skilled coordinators are experienced and motivated with the ability to complete large numbers of allergy and asthma studies simultaneously. Our history includes successfully completing a number of Mountain Cedar studies involving a large number of subjects in a short period of time. In many cases, we either meet or exceed the enrollment goals. Our coordinators are also familiar with electronic records and remote data entry.
The medical director, N.J. Amar M.D. CPI is board-certified in Allergy & Immunology and Pediatrics and has vast experience in medical research.
We seek additional clinical research trials involving all phases of studies in both adult and pediatric fields of allergy, asthma, antibiotics and dermatology.
N.J. Amar, M.D., CPI and staff have extensive experience in
conducting various phases of clinical trials. The institute has
been involved in clinical trials since 1997. Our finished product
is a synergistic result of excellent teamwork. We have exceeded
enrollment goals and are often high enrollers. We have done a
number of Mountain Cedar studies, some of which involved over 200
subjects. We do both adult and pediatric studies. We have a large
practice of over 20,000 patients and also a separate study
database.
We specialize in the following therapeutic
areas:
Seasonal Allergic Rhinitis
Perennial Allergic Rhinitis
Asthma
Bronchitis
COPD
Allergic Conjunctivitis
Urticaria
Dermatitis (Atopic & Contact)
Sinus Headaches
Migraines
Acute Bronchitis
Acute Sinusitis
Cold and Flu
Other Infectious Diseases
GERD
Some of the sponsors/CRO that we have worked with
are:
Allied
Alcon
Alpha Betiz
Amphastar
AstraZeneca
Aventis
Bristol-Meyers Squibb
Clinical Research Management
Clinsys
Cobalis
Concentric
Covance
DEY
Forest Research, Inc.
Genetech
GlaxoSmithKline
ICON
Ingenix
Inspire
ITGI
MDS
MEDA
MedPointe
Merck
Omnicare
Pfizer
Pharma Atlanta
Pharma Research Corporation
PPD
PRA
Quintiles
Sanofi Aventis
Schering-Plough
Sepracor
SkyePharma
Teva
UCB
The Allergy Asthma Research Institute is dedicated to the
highest quality of research striving for excellence in all aspects
of trial conduct. Our facility has approximately 10,000 square feet
with a dedicated research area. Our building was designed to house
both a private practice and a research department adjacent to each
other. We offer outpatient clinical trials of all phases. We have
private monitor rooms with data ports, Wi Fi connections and
phones. We have secured lockable cabinets for the study drugs and a
dedicated storage area for the lab supplies. We have a secure room,
in house, for storing of source documents and other study related
materials.
Our facility is equipped with the following:
Allergy skin test equipment
KOKO computerized spirometer
Methacholine Challenge
Centrifuge
Microscope
Rotorod pollen sampler
EKG
Holter monitor
Stadiometer
Professional refrigeration units
Dedicated Freezer
High-Speed Internet (Wi Fi Wireless)
Dial-up Modem
Pulse oximetry
We are able to perform the following procedures at our
office:
Daily pollen counts
Allergy skin tests
EKG
Pulmonary Function Tests
Methacholine Challenge
Holter Monitor
Phlebotomy and lab-handling
Urine Pregnancy test
Bone densitometry
Oximetry
N.J. Amar, M.D., CPI is board-certified in
Allergy, Asthma, Immunology, and Pediatrics. He obtained his
allergy training from Columbia University in New York City. He
started his allergy and asthma practice in Waco in 1982 and has
built a patient population greater than 20,000. He and his wife,
Dr. Meera Amar an endocrinologist, have constructed a two-story
building with approximately 10,000 sq. ft. on each floor. Dr. Amar
has been in medical research for 11 years.
N.J. Amar, M.D., CPI
Medical Director - Allergy Asthma Research Institute
Board-Certified in Asthma, Allergy and Immunology, and Pediatrics
Over 30 years experience in private practice
14 years experience in research
Meera Amar, M.D., F.A.C.E.
Medical Director – Diabetes and Endocrine Research Center
Board-Certified in Endocrinology
Over 20 years experience in private practice
16 years experience in research
Jerry Gersbach, B.B.A.
Administrator
19 years as Medical Office Manager/Administrator
Vice President/Cashier/Comptroller at Financial Institution
Dana Neilson, LVN, CCRC
Certified Clinical Research Coordinator
20 years Clinical Experience
13 years Research Experience
Texas Asthma Educator
Certified Pollen Counter
Dianna Villarreal, CCRC
Certified Clinical Research Coordinator
11 years Clinical Experience
3 years Research Experience
Daphney Robinson, MA, CCRC
Certified Clinical Research Coordinator
13 years Clinical Experience
9 years Research Experience
Corey Richardson, EMTP
Clinical Research Coordinator
22 Years Clinical Experience
7 years Research Experience
Evelyn Kile, B.S.
Clinical Research Coordinator
6 Years Clinical Experience
8 years Research Experience
Stephanie Jones
Assistant Research Coordinator
8 Years Clinical Experience
April Smith, B.S.
Site Support Specialist
1 year Research Experience
Janice Villa
Administrative Assistant
1 year Research Experience
Waco is centrally located in Texas on Interstate 35. It is a
suburb with a county population of over 250,000. Waco is easily
accessible from major Texas cities (2 hrs from Dallas and Fort
Worth, 1½ hrs from Austin. 3 hrs from Houston and San Antonio). The
local airport (Cooper Madison "ACT") is serviced by
American Eagle connecting at DFW and Continental connecting in
Houston. There are 3 colleges in the area (Baylor, McLennan
Community College and Texas State Technical College) that provide a
healthy pool of subjects.
Our facility uses a central IRB and our laboratory is CLIA
certified. Our facility is privately-owned and not affiliated with
a hospital resulting in quick response time.
Waco has a year-round allergy season. For the past 18 years, we have had daily pollen counts collected and counted in our office. Our office is one of the official pollen counting stations in the area for the National Allergy Bureau of the American Academy of Allergy Asthma and Immunology (AAAAI) that maintains the national allergy data base.
If you are interested in contacting this center to discuss placing a clinical
trial there, please complete and send the email form below. A representative from
the research center will then follow up with you.