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Carl Koller Memorial Research Grant

American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine

ASRA Pain Medicine will support research related to Regional Anesthesia and Acute Pain in the following areas:

Basic and Laboratory Sciences
Population Sciences
Outcomes Research
Clinical Sciences
Methodology Research
Drug/Protocol Development
Patient Safety
Education
Policy Research
Health Services Research

For more detail, click here.

General Information

The applicant and co-investigators must be North American, physician members of ASRA Pain Medicine.
The amount of the award will not exceed $75,000.
All requests for funds will be considered, and the committee retains the right to divide the available funds in any manner it deems appropriate with agreement of the investigators involved.
The research proposal must be concerned with an original idea or concept (i.e., has not been done before). The research must be carried out primarily by the applicant. Assistance by or collaboration with other academic faculty or staff anesthesiologists is permitted; these secondary investigators must be identified in the application.
The grant requests can be for clinical research projects or research using laboratory animals.

Letter of Intent Process and Guidelines

Please refer to the Carl Koller Memorial Research Grant Priorities, determined by ASRA Pain Medicine leadership for this cycle, which are recommended but not required. This does not mean that you cannot apply for an area of research outside the scope of the priorities listed.

Letters of intent are limited to 1 page, not including biosketch. This high-level, succinct overview will encompass critical objectives, resources requested, and outcomes to be achieved. The ASRA Pain Medicine Research Committee will review all LOIs to ensure they meet grant objectives. Submitters of accepted projects will then be asked to submit a full grant proposal.

Narrative Requirements:

Objectives of the proposed clinical trial and hypothesis to be tested
- Background
- Hypothesis
- Objectives
ASRA Pain Medicine priority addressed in this application
Research environment
Research team (include biosketch max 100 words per applicant)

Timeline and Process

July 1, 2026 – October 1, 2026 – LOIs are due by 11:59 pm ET on October 1, 2026, to asraassistant@asra.com. Late or incomplete submissions will not be considered. Complete the Narrative Requirements in 10 pt Times New Roman font, no longer than 1 page, not including biosketch, and submitted as a single file only PDF format.
By mid-November 2026 – The ASRA Pain Medicine Research Committee will notify those selected to submit grant proposals. The Committee will also respond to those not selected to submit a full grant proposal.
February 1, 2027 – Invited grant proposals are due by 11:59 pm ET.
At the Spring Board of Directors meeting – Board of Directors will determine final awardee based upon recommendations from ASRA Pain Medicine Research Committee.
May 15, 2027 - Announcement of Koller grant winner(s) at ASRA Pain Medicine Spring Meeting.

AI Based Application Success Predictor

1. Direct ASRA relevance ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

This is the most important factor.

High-fit research includes:

Regional anesthesia
Peripheral nerve blocks
Neuraxial anesthesia
Acute postoperative pain
Chronic pain
Interventional pain procedures
Perioperative pain management
Ultrasound-guided regional anesthesia
Pain-related patient outcomes
Opioid-sparing strategies
Neuropathic pain
Cancer pain
Musculoskeletal pain
Pain education and delivery

A general anesthesiology project with no meaningful regional-anesthesia or pain component would have weaker fit.

2. Important unmet clinical need ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The proposal should identify a meaningful problem in pain or anesthesia care.

Examples:

Inadequate postoperative analgesia
Opioid-related adverse effects
Persistent postsurgical pain
Failed or incomplete nerve blocks
Block-related complications
Difficult pain control
Chronic neuropathic pain
Ineffective pain interventions
Health disparities in pain treatment
Lack of evidence for a particular regional technique

The strongest proposals clearly connect:

Clinical problem → knowledge gap → intervention/research question → patient benefit.

3. Patient outcomes and pain control ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

ASRA-aligned research should ultimately improve outcomes such as:

Pain intensity
Functional recovery
Patient satisfaction
Opioid consumption
Recovery time
Hospital length of stay
Postoperative nausea/vomiting
Mobility
Chronic pain development
Quality of life
Procedure-related safety

A proposal becomes much stronger when the primary scientific endpoint has a clear clinical meaning.

4. Scientific merit ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The study should have a clearly defined question or hypothesis.

A strong proposal should explain:

What is already known?
What remains uncertain?
Why is the uncertainty clinically important?
What hypothesis will be tested?
What new knowledge will the project produce?

For example:

Uncertain optimal nerve-block strategy → randomized comparison → pain/opioid outcomes → evidence for clinical practice

5. Methodological rigor ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Particularly important for ASRA clinical research are:

Appropriate study design
Randomization where appropriate
Appropriate comparator
Adequate sample size
Blinding where feasible
Standardized anesthesia/analgesia protocols
Clearly defined pain endpoints
Opioid-consumption measurements
Appropriate statistical analysis
Safety monitoring

For procedural studies, the technique should be described sufficiently to permit reproducibility.

6. Innovation ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Potentially competitive areas include:

Regional anesthesia

Novel nerve blocks
New block techniques
Improved block duration
Ultrasound-guided approaches
Continuous peripheral nerve catheters

Pain medicine

Novel interventions
Neuromodulation
Non-opioid therapies
Multimodal analgesia
Personalized pain management

Technology

AI-assisted ultrasound
Automated nerve identification
Digital pain assessment
Wearable pain monitoring
Imaging-guided interventions

Pharmacology

Novel local-anesthetic approaches
Adjuvants
Opioid-sparing regimens
Long-acting analgesic strategies

Innovation is strongest when it addresses a specific clinical limitation.

7. Clinical/translational potential ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

ASRA-relevant research should ideally move toward actual clinical practice.

A strong pathway is:

Research finding → clinical validation → practice change → improved pain/anesthesia outcome

Examples:

New nerve-block technique → lower opioid use → faster recovery

Pain biomarker → patient-risk stratification → individualized analgesia

Novel analgesic strategy → reduced opioid exposure → improved recovery

8. Feasibility ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The proposal should demonstrate access to:

Appropriate surgical patients
Regional anesthesia expertise
Ultrasound equipment
Pain clinics
Anesthesia research infrastructure
Clinical research coordinators
Statistical support
Appropriate follow-up systems

A focused study that can be completed within the grant period is preferable to an overly ambitious project.

9. Investigator qualifications and mentorship ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆

Reviewers are likely to value evidence that the research team can successfully execute the study.

Relevant qualifications include:

Anesthesiology
Regional anesthesia
Pain medicine
Perioperative medicine
Clinical research
Biostatistics
Relevant laboratory expertise

For trainees and early-career researchers, a strong senior mentor can strengthen the application considerably.

10. Future research potential ⭐⭐⭐⭐☆

A smaller ASRA project becomes more compelling if it establishes the foundation for:

Pilot data → larger study → multicenter trial → practice-changing evidence

The proposal should therefore explain what the investigators intend to do after the initial study.

Specialties

Pain Medicine

Eligibility Requirements

The applicant and co-investigators must be North American, physician members of ASRA Pain Medicine.
The amount of the award will not exceed $75,000.
All requests for funds will be considered, and the committee retains the right to divide the available funds in any manner it deems appropriate with agreement of the investigators involved.
The research proposal must be concerned with an original idea or concept (i.e., has not been done before). The research must be carried out primarily by the applicant. Assistance by or collaboration with other academic faculty or staff anesthesiologists is permitted; these secondary investigators must be identified in the application.
The grant requests can be for clinical research projects or research using laboratory animals.

Eligible Countries:

Canada

Mexico

United States

Sponsor Details

Sponsor Institute/Organizations: American Society of Regional Anesthesia and Pain Medicine

Sponsor Type: Corporate/Non-Profit

Address: 3 Penn Center West, Suite 121, Pittsburgh, PA 15276

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