Active clinical trials for "Atherosclerosis"

Cardiological complications of oncological treatment, including the most serious of them cardiotoxicity and heart failure, constitute a significant and still unsolved clinical problem. A history of hypercholesterolaemia and coronary artery disease in cancer patients, is one of the risk factors for cardiotoxicity. In recent years, a protective effect of statin treatment on the development of heart failure in cancer patients has been observed. ANTEC (Atherosclerosis iN chemoTherapy-rElated Cardiotoxicity) is a prospective observational study aimed at assessing the impact of the advancement of atherosclerotic lesions in the coronary arteries assessed in computed tomography on the development of left ventricular systolic dysfunction in cancer patients at high risk of myocardial damage. A group of 80 patients diagnosed with cancer before starting high-dose anthracycline chemotherapy (doxorubicin ≥ 240 mg / m2 or epirubicin ≥ 600 mg / m2 body weight), without a history of heart failure and coronary artery disease, will be included in the study. The total follow-up of patients was planned for 12 months. The primary endpoint is time to onset of left ventricular systolic dysfunction as assessed by echocardiography. The secondary composite endpoints include all-cause death, cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction, and stroke. Additionally, the assessment will include: the severity of atherosclerotic changes in the coronary arteries and the calcification index in computed tomography, the percentage decrease in left ventricular ejection fraction, GLS (global longitudinal strain) in echocardiography, and changes in the concentration of biomarkers involved in inflammatory and atherosclerotic processes. This is the first study of this type, which we hope will contribute to a better understanding of the pathophysiology of cardiotoxicity development and to changing the standards of management of oncological patients and improving survival in this group of patients.

This study will evaluate people with dyslipidemias - disorders that affect the fat content in the blood. Fats, or lipids, such as cholesterol and triglycerides, are carried in the blood in particles called lipoproteins. These particles are involved in causing blood vessel diseases that can lead to conditions like atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries) or heart attack. Participants will undergo accepted medical tests and procedures to evaluate their condition. Most of the test results are helpful in making a diagnosis and in guiding treatment. People with lipid disorders are eligible for this study. Representative types of patients include those with: Plasma cholesterol levels greater than 200 mg/dl or less than 120 mg/dl Plasma LDL-C levels greater than 130 mg/dl or less than 70 mg/dl Plasma HDL-C levels greater than 70 mg/dl or less than 25 mg/dl Unusual cholesterol deposits or xanthomas (nodules of lipid deposits on the skin) Children under 2 years of age are excluded from the study. Participants will undergo some or all of the following procedures: Plasma evaluation. Apolipoproteins (plasma proteins involved in metabolism of cholesterol, triglycerides, phospholipids, and proteins in the blood) and enzymes involved in lipid metabolism are measured. Fat biopsy. A small sample of fat tissue is collected for examination. For this test, an area on the buttock or abdominal wall is numbed. A needle is inserted into the fat, and a small amount of tissue is sucked out by a syringe. Leukapheresis. White blood cells are collected to help diagnose the lipid disorder. For this test, blood is collected through a needle in an arm vein, similar to donating blood. The blood circulates through a machine that separates it into its components, and the white cells are removed. The rest of the blood is returned to the body, either through the same needle or through another needle in the other arm. Skin biopsy. Skin cells are collected for study. The cells are grown in the laboratory and the amount of cholesterol that enters or leaves the cells is measured, providing information on abnormalities in cholesterol transport. For this test, an area of skin is numbed with an anesthetic and a small circular area is removed, using a skin punch instrument similar to a sharp cookie cutter. Heparin infusion study. Heparin, a blood thinner, releases enzymes that break down fat in the blood. Lipase activity (breakdown of fats) in the blood is measured following the injection of heparin into a vein.

The objective of this study is to validate 2 multi-contrast sequences, namely the Multi-contrast ATherosclerosis Characterization (MATCH) and Bright-blood and black-blOOd phase SensiTive (BOOST) inversion recovery sequence for the quantification of atherosclerotic plaque components with conventional multi-sequence MRI and histology.

Emotional stress is associated with future cardiovascular events. However, the biological interconnection between brain emotional neural activity and acute plaque instability is not fully understood. Optical coherence tomography-Fluorescence Lifetime (OCT-FLIM) dual modal intravascular imaging is a novel technique that enables comprehensive assessment of structural and biochemical characteristics of coronary atheroma and estimates the level of plaque instability. 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose-positron emission tomography/computed tomography (18F-FDG-PET/CT) enables simultaneous estimation of multi-system activities including emotional stress, arterial inflammation, and hematopoiesis. The present study aims to prospectively investigate mechanistic linkage between coronary plaque instability, stress-associated neurobiological activity, and macrophage hematopoiesis using OCT-FLIM and 18F-FDG PET/CT imaging assessment.

Atherosclerosis is a civilization disease, which pathophysiology is based on chronic inflammatory response in the wall of vessels that is caused by increase of pro-inflammatory substances. It is a significant challenge for diagnostics and pharmacology. This disease occurs in over 60% of the population over 70 years old. There are many factors that are responsible for this process including group of the arachidonic acid metabolism products - leukotriens, especially leukotriene E4 (LTE4). The effect of these factors was described as the base of pathology not only cardiovascular diseases but also the base of development of asthma and other allergic diseases. The substance which blocks the activity of these factors - montelukast - is a common method of treatment in asthma. The aim of this project is to investigate the influence of cysteinyl leukotriens receptor antagonists on lower limb arteries reocclusion rate in patients with peripheral artery disease (PAD) after endovascular treatment. During previous years we conducted a prospective study, which helped us evaluating the dynamics of leukotriens and thromboxane levels in patients with PAD, who underwent endovascular treatment - peripheral transluminal angioplasty (PTA). We established for the first time the dependence between the increased level of LTE4 in urine (uLTE4) and restenosis or reocclusion occurrence, which translates to the necessity of further procedures and a decrease in the quality of life. We should ask ourselves a question: Is blocking of cysteinyl leukotriens reaction as proinflammatory and proliferative factors, by the use of receptor CysLT1 antagonists going to decrease the quantity of restenosis and reocclusions after endovascular treatment? Within the project performed in the Angiology Department of Jagiellonian University among the patients suffering from PAD and fulfilling all inclusion criteria, the randomized double-blinded clinical study will be performed. Patients will be assigned to two groups: Treatment Group (which will be receiving cysteinyl leukotriene antagonist (montelukast) in a dose of 10mg/day for 12 months) and Control Group to which placebo will be administered. Among all patients population, at every visit at 1., 3., 6., and 12-month clinical state, ultrasound, hemodynamic parameters, and endothelium imaging will be performed as well as uLTE4 measurements. A comparison of the results between both groups will give us an answer if blocking uLTE4 receptors may become a breakthrough in future atherosclerosis treatment. The mechanisms, which lead to restenosis is still not fully understood, and currently used methods of treatment - antiplatelets, anti-proliferative drugs, and anticoagulants - are not fully effective. Thanks to this research the knowledge about treatment and prevention of atherosclerosis will be increased, which will be connected with future better patient care, especially patients with PAD.

In adult patients presenting to emergency departments within 24 hours of symptom onset with suspected acute stroke, we aim: to identify early brain- and pathology-specific circulating, whole blood, plasma and serum panorOmic biomarkers that enable early acute stroke detection, diagnosis, dynamics, differentiation, monitoring, prediction and prognosis. to identify early brain- and pathology-specific, panorOmic biomarkers in saliva that enable early acute stroke detection, diagnosis, dynamics, differentiation, monitoring, prediction and prognosis. to derive biomarker platforms of models for early acute stroke detection, diagnosis, dynamics, differentiation, monitoring, prediction and prognosis to validate these models in independent and external datasets

Background: Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is a common chronic inflammatory disease with a prevalence up to 670 every 100,000 subjects. Patients with PsA has an increased risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) which is one of the major causes of death. The investigators hypothesize that metformin in combination of a treat-to-target (T2T) strategy aiming at tight disease control is more effective in preventing progression of subclinical arthrosclerosis than T2T strategy alone in non-diabetic PsA patients. Objective: To investigate the vascular effects of metformin in PsA patients without diabetes mellitus. The metabolic and anti-inflammatory roles of metformin will also be explored. Study design: This is a 1-year, single-centered, pilot, open-labelled, randomized controlled trial. A total of 24 enrolled patients with PsA being followed at the Prince of Wales Hospital rheumatology clinics will be recruited and randomized to either metformin group or control group in a 1:1 ratio. Participants randomized to the metformin group will be instructed to take 500 mg metformin daily for 1 week before titrating up to twice a day (one with the morning meal, one with the evening meal) to reduce gastro-intestinal adverse events. Expected outcomes: The data from this study will support that there will be significant difference in the proportion of subjects with carotid plaque progression between the metformin group and control group over a period of 1 year.

Pregnancy is considered a cardiovascular (CV) stress test, and complicated pregnancies are associated with an increased risk for cardiovascular disease (CVD) later in life. Moreover, it is known that often the pregnancy induced CV adaptation does not resolve completely after a short postpartum (PP) period and it is not clear whether these induced changes will resolve over a longer period of time (i.e. in the upcoming months/years after delivery). Understanding the cardiac adaptation during pregnancy and the reversal process in the postpartum period, as well as the factors that influence this these processes, may provide us not only insight in this mechanism, but may help us in identifying factors that may be target points for modification.

Patients with diabetes with clinical feature of Xanthelasma will show increased Atherosclerosis. Objectives: Primary To correlate xanthelasma and its severity to pulse wave velocity and atherosclerosis as see in carotid doppler. Secondary To correlate xanthelasma to liver fat and fibrosis. Methodology: T2DM patient will be recruited from endocrine OPD Clinical History and Examination: a. General Physical Examination: Height, weight, waist circumference, hip circumference, BMI, Blood Pressure, Hand grip. Xanthelasma. Biochemical Test: The biochemical analysis will be done using ELISA kit or commercially available kits Fasting blood Glucose Haemoglobin A1C: The estimation of average blood sugar level over a period of two to three months will be analysed with the patient's blood sample for haemoglobin A1C based on turbidimetric inhibition immunoassay method (using COBAS 6000 analyser) Lipid Profile: Fasting samples shall be analysed for lipid profile. Levels of total cholesterol (TC), serum triglyceride (TG) and high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-c) will be estimated using commercial kits (Randox Laboratory, USA). Value of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-c) will be calculated according to Friedewald's equation. Liver Function Tests: Fasting samples shall be analysed for liver function test. Levels of alkaline phosphate, Aspartate aminotransferase, Alanine aminotransferase and Gamma-glutamyl transferase will be estimated by using commercial kits (based on kinetic method). Assessment of sub-clinical atherosclerosis: Pulse wave velocity and carotid Doppler will be done Pulse wave velocity: Arterial stiffness indices will be analyzed by measuring carotid femoral pulse wave velocity. Carotid Doppler: (based on kinetic method) FibroScan Estimation: It is a medical diagnostic tool. Liver stiffness (LSM in kPa) and controlled attenuation parameter (CAP in dB/m) measurements will be done by transient elastography (FibroScan® 430 Touch, Echosens, FR) in order to quantify severity of liver fibrosis (LSM 7-10 kPa for F1, 10.1-13 for F2 and >13kPa for F≥3

Although there are numerous studies that have demonstrated the impact of systemic inflammation on coronary plaque vulnerability, there are few literature data regarding the influence of coronary plaque localization within the coronary tree (right and left coronary artery, proximal, mid-coronary and distal), on plaque composition, morphology and degree of vulnerability, in relation with systemic inflammation and coronary hemodynamics. The aim of this study is to identify: (1) the impact of plaque topography in different sites within the coronary tree (right versus left, proximal distal) on their vulnerability degree evaluated with CCTA; (2) the relationship between degree of plaque vulnerability, systemic inflammatory biomarkers and specific hemodynamic characteristics quantified by coronary shear stress computations. The study will include 100 patients with stable coronary artery disease for which data collection will be perform on: (1) Clinical, echocardiographic and ECG data; (2) cardiovascular risk assessment; (3) 128 slice CCTA evaluation of coronary tree anatomy, plaque morphology, composition and vulnerability degree; (4) systemic inflammation based on serum levels of hsCRP, IL-6, MMP-9, periostin, adhesion molecules (5) shear stress via coronary flow computational simulations.