Shared Facilities Spotlight: Heart Institute Research Core

Post Date: April 22, 2025 | Publish Date:

heart institute

Photo of Stuart Goldstein, MD, co-director of the Heart Institute Research Core, with a patient

The Heart Institute Research Core (HIRC) is a full-service, academic, clinical and translational research unit within the Cincinnati Children’s Heart Institute. Developed in 2009, its vision is to establish the Heart Institute as a global leader in improving pediatric and adult congenital cardiovascular related outcomes by advancing innovative clinical and translational research.

Co-directed by Stuart Goldstein, MD, Richard Czosek, MD, and Alexander (Sasha) Opotowsky, MD, MMSc, the core supports researchers by assisting with project design, data management, implementation, mentoring, and fostering academic excellence. The team is made up of project managers, coordinators, regulatory specialists and statistical support.

Project managers and business partners oversee the feasibility, budgetary considerations, staffing, and equipment needs of research studies.
Coordinators (clinical research coordinators and research nurses) handle daily operations such as planning, screening, informed consent, and study visits.
Regulatory specialists facilitate protocol development, Institutional Review Board submissions, adverse event reporting, and maintenance of regulatory documents.
Biostatisticians guide study design, develop statistical analysis plans, analyze data, and assist in preparing manuscripts.

HIRC also provides specialized services such as the Heart Institute Biorepository. This is a pediatric cardiology focused biobank that facilitates investigator-initiated and programmatic research by combining tissue specimens with clinical phenotype information. Samples such as blood and other body fluids are collected from patients at Cincinnati Children’s, often at the time of surgery or catheterization. In addition, adolescents and adults seen in ambulatory clinics, including those with muscular dystrophy or congenital heart disease, are enrolled in a parallel biobank with collection of blood, urine and saliva. Biospecimens have been collected from approximately 4,000 patients to date.

Main Contact: HIRC@cchmc.org
Phone: 513-803-0366

Learn more about our Shared Facilities in this new video.