ARC PhD studentship examines global burden and determinants of hypoglycaemia

ARC PhD studentship to study at the University of Leicester: The global burden and determinants of hypoglycaemia: epidemiological analyses of the Hypoglycaemia Assessment Tool (HAT).

NIHR ARC East Midlands is pleased to announce funding for a doctoral studentship to commence May 2021. The PhD will be aligned to our Multimorbidity theme.  

NIHR ARC EM is an applied research centre working across the East Midlands. Our research aims to improve outcomes for patients and the public and to increase the efficiency, quality, accessibility and sustainability of health and care services: http://arc-em.nihr.ac.uk/about. 

Application deadline: 31 March 2021. Start date: 1 May 2021.

Supervisors: Dr. Francesco Zaccardi and Professor Kamlesh Khunti

Study overview:

Intensive glucose control results in higher rates of hypoglycaemia which negatively impacts the quality of life and prevents maintenance of a good glycaemic control. Risk factors for hypoglycaemia have been identified mainly for severe episodes in small cohorts of people with diabetes. It remains unclear, however, the impact of those factors on the absolute risk of hypoglycaemia; whether differences across geographical regions could be explained by phenotypical patients’ characteristics; or whether there are differences in the determinants of severe vs non-severe episodes of hypoglycaemia.   

This PhD project will undertake a series of epidemiological analyses of the Hypoglycaemia Assessment Tool (HAT) study database, the largest global hypoglycaemia study collecting information on hypoglycaemia from 24 countries worldwide. The student will:

  • work to identify key patterns of hypoglycaemia and related factors, such as age, gender, glucose control, diabetes duration. 
  • be embedded within a team of experts in clinical diabetes, epidemiology and statistics.
  • receive training in a broad range of statistical methods used to investigate cross-sectional and longitudinal real-world data, as well as methods for prognostic research (development and validation of prognostic models). 

The PhD project will be integrated into a vibrant postgraduate research community within the Real World Evidence Unit and the Diabetes Research Centre, University of Leicester and help advance the aims of the National Institute of Health Research Leicester Biomedical Research Centre (BRU) and Applied Research Collaboration East Midlands (ARC).  

Eligibility:

Applicants must have:

  • A UK undergraduate (Bachelors) degree with at least first class or upper second class honours, or an equivalent qualification from a recognised overseas institution
  • Knowledge of Stata or R is required. 
  • A Masters degree in Epidemiology/Medical Statistics would be an advantage, but is not a formal requirement. 

Funding: 

This is a 3 year, full-time studentship funded by Novo Nordisk. It offers:

  • an annual tax-free stipend at UKRI rates (currently £15,285 per year).
  • tuition fee waiver at UK/EU rates.
  • research training support grant (including travel allowance of £2,500 per year for 3 years).

How to apply:

Full details and how to apply can be found here: https://le.ac.uk/study/research-degrees/funded-opportunities/hs-zaccardi-novo-2020#

All informal enquiries to be addressed to: Dr Francesco Zaccardi (Email: fz43@leicester.ac.uk).