Active clinical trials for "Heart and Blood Diseases"

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the role of stress echocardiography, compared to standard echocardiography in the early identification of pulmonary arterial hypertension in systemic sclerosis. To evaluate the role of BNP in this setting.To analyze data recorded with respect to the parameters commonly used for SSc evaluation (eg thorax HRCT, pulmonary function tests + DLCO, nailfold capillaroscopy, etc); these parameters are available starting for 1999.

To compare mitral valve area in rheumatic mitral valve stenosis with cardiac magnetic resonance imaging and conventional transthoracic echocardiography.

The purpose of this study is to determine whether polymorphisms in G protein subunits, namely Galphas and Galphaq, are associated with altered cardiac performance in heart failure patients.

Trouble breathing (dyspnea) is a nonspecific symptom associated with many diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (lung disorder in which the flow of air to the lungs is blocked), asthma, pneumonia, pulmonary hypertension (high blood pressure in the lungs), congestive heart failure (fluid build-up in the lungs because the heart is not pumping normally) and pulmonary embolism (blood clot in the lungs). The purpose of this study is to test two blood markers called ST2 and IL-33. Blood markers are proteins or other compounds in your blood that physicians use to diagnose different diseases and to determine what the course of an illness will be. In preliminary research studies, ST2 and IL-33 have been elevated in patients with a wide variety of diseases where the lungs are the primary organs involved. This research study will further investigate the ability of ST2 and IL-33 to predict the severity of disease and the possible use of ST2 and IL-33 in the diagnosis of various lung diseases.

OBJECTIVE: To retrospectively analyze the results of ambulatory treatment on Taiwanese patients with primary varicosities of the lower extremities including the use of endovenous laser, phlebectomy, and sclerotherapy. METHODS: We routinely used tumescent anesthesia and ultrasound-guided approaches for the application of endovenous laser. Vein access was achieved by either a percutaneous or stab wound. The laser power was usually 10 - 20 watts; laser treatment usually was begun from 4-10 cm below the saphenofemoral junction, and stopped around the knee, not over 10 cm below the knee. In the same operation, we used Mueller's phlebectomy and/or sclerotherapy if there were prominent branch varicosities. We instructed each patient to walk around immediately after the operation, to go home, and to come back 1-3 days later for follow-up. Ultrasound scan and venous function follow-up was scheduled at 1 month, 6 months, 12 months, and then annually.

24 hour Holter monitoring (24HM) is commonly used to assess cardiac rhythm after surgical therapy of atrial fibrillation. This "snapshot" rhythm documentation leaves a large diagnostic window of non recorded atrial arrhythmias and as such a large amount of uncertainty in follow-up result assessment. To improve accuracy of rhythm surveillance thus gaining a more "real-life" scenario of post surgical ablation therapy cardiac rhythm a new insertable cardiac rhythm monitor device (Reveal® XT 9525, Medtronic Inc., Minneapolis, MN, USA) with full observational continuous heart rhythm documentation is implanted. In order to verify different follow-up strategies after surgical atrial fibrillation therapy, a comparison of different follow-up scenarios (symptoms, different cardiac documentation devices i.e. ECG and 24 hour Holter monitor, at different follow-up time points) is performed intraindividually. Thus the reliability of these devices and follow-up strategies to define success after ablation therapy is evaluated.

Chest pain, illness perception compliance and psychosocial outcome after coronary arteriography. A comparison between patients which were diagnosed with slow coronary flow and patients who have been diagnosed with coronary artery occlusion. We hope to prove that the more knowledge and awareness the patient has about his disease the better his compliance and rehabilitation.

Less than 10% of all ischemic stroke patients are treated by intravenous thrombolysis (IVT) as most present later than the accepted 3 hour time window. Intra-arterial thrombolysis (IAT) is possible 3-6 hours post ictus, but is infrequently used. Mechanical thrombectomy (MT) with a MERCI device is a new intervention possibility but lacks large randomized studies. Although it is desirable to treat more stroke patients, clinical information and plain CT alone are insufficient to discriminate which patients are most likely to benefit or be harmed from treatment. Advanced imaging techniques can help predict patient outcome and provide the necessary information to weigh expected benefit against associated risk of treatment. Visualizing the penumbra, the hypoperfused tissue at risk of infarction around the irreversible infarct core, is one way of identifying patients most likely to benefit from intervention. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) based selection of patients with sufficient penumbra for thrombolysis is possible, however, MR has less 24-hour availability than CT in the acute setting. Plain CT is mostly used to exclude intracerebral hemorrhage, and can easily be extended with CT perfusion (CTP) and CT angiography (CTA). CTP compares well to MRI for imaging penumbra and infarct core, and it is faster and more feasible than MRI. Other image findings such as infarct core size and leakage of the blood-brain-barrier (permeability) on CTP, and site and extent of the occlusion and collateral circulation on CTA also influence stroke outcome but have not been combined in one study to assess their combined predictive value. Hypothesis: The investigators hypothesize that combined CTP and CTA parameters can predict patient outcome in acute ischemic stroke.

The aim of the study is to compare the diagnostic value of this non-invasive vascular imaging tool with the established vascular diagnostic methods for PAD in order to get prognostic data. A higher sensitivity of Fluorescence angiography in order to recognize progression of critical limb ischemia could lead to earlier therapeutic interventions and thereby increase limb salvage. A diagnostic gap would be closed.

The purpose of this study is to observe delayed neuronal death of hippocampus after middle cerebral artery infarction in human beings.