COBRA-BPS (Control of Blood Pressure and Risk Attenuation – Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka) is a cluster randomised trial studying primary care strategies to reduce high blood pressure and risk of cardiovascular disease, an escalating problem in South Asia. The study is led by:
Professor Tazeen Jafar (Principal Investigator)
Duke-National University of Singapore Medical School, Singapore
Dr Aliya Naheed
icddr,b, Bangladesh
Dr Imtiaz Khan
Aga Khan University, Pakistan
Dr Asita de Silva
Kelaniya University, Sri Lanka
Other international collaborators include:
Professor Shah Ebrahim
London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, UK
Professor John D. Clemens
icddr,b, Bangladesh
Dr Aamir Hameed
Aga Khan University, Pakistan
Dr Anuradhani Kasturiratne
University of Kelaniya, Sri Lanka
Dr Pryseley Assam
Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore
Professor Eric Finkelstein
Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore
Dr Marcel Bilger
Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore
Dr Elizabeth Turner
Duke Global Health Institute Biostatistics Core, Duke University, North Carolina, USA
Steering Committee Members -
Dr Joep Perk (Chair), MD, FESC
Senior Professor
School of Health and Caring Sciences, Linnaeus University
Dr Richard Smith, CBE, FMedSci, FRCPE, FFPHM, FRCGP
Director Ovations-UnitedHealth Chronic Disease Initiative, and London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine
Dr Anne Mills, MA, DHSA, PhD, FMedSci, FRS
Deputy Director & Provost and Professor of Health Economics and Policy
London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, UK
Dr Elizabeth Allen, MA, MSc, PhD
Senior Lecturer
G35, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, UK
Dr Jennifer O’Callaghan (Wellcome Trust representative)
Clinical Trials Data Manager
The Wellcome Trust Limited, UK
Dr Tien Wong (Sponsor representative), MBBS, MMED (Ophth), MPH, PHD, FRCSE, FRANZCO, FAMS
Vice Dean, Clinical Sciences
Duke-NUS Medical School
DSMB Independent Members -
Prof. Andrew Farmer (Chair), DM, FRCGP
Professor of General Practice
Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences
University of Oxford, UK
Dr. Bruce Neal, MB ChB, PhD, FRCP, FAHA
Senior Director
Professor of Medicine, University of Sydney
Chair, Australian Division of World Action on Salt and Health
The George Institute for Global Health, Australia
Prof. Doris Young, MBBS, MD, FRACGP
Professor and Chair of General Practice
Melbourne Medical School
Associate Dean China Programs
Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences
The University of Melbourne, Australia
Dr. Say Beng Tan (DSMB statistician), PhD
Senior Associate Dean, Clinical Sciences
Duke-NUS Medical School, Singapore
The study is funded by the UK Department for International Development (DFID), Medical Research Council and Wellcome Trust through their joint global health trials scheme.
