Active clinical trials for "Atherosclerosis"

The purpose of this trial is to evaluate the safety and efficacy of sonodynamic therapy (SDT) in reducing atherosclerotic plaques inflammation and increasing peak walking time (PWT) among peripheral artery disease (PAD) patients with symptom of intermittent claudication.

Sonodynamic therapy (SDT) is a new treatment for carotid atherosclerotic plaque. The aim of this study is to assess the safety and efficacy of this technique.

Ticagrelor and clopidogrel are FDA-approved drugs for inhibition of platelet hyper-reactivity in certain clinical situations. The platelet inhibition and patient outcomes (PLATO) trial showed that in patients with acute coronary syndromes, ticagrelor significantly reduced the primary endpoint (cardiovascular death, myocardial infarction or stroke), all-cause mortality and cardiovascular mortality compared to clopidogrel. It has been suggested that in addition to its anti-platelet effects, ticagrelor has additional unique effects, including anti-inflammatory effects that are not shared by clopidogrel. In the present study the investigators will assess whether ticagrelor, as compared to clopidogrel, increases serum levels of 15-epi-lipoxin A4, a potent endogenous anti-inflammatory mediator.

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effect of preoperative remote ischaemic preconditioning (RIPC) on organ damage and the functional characteristics of arteries in patients undergoing vascular surgery. In addition, we investigate the connection between RIPC and changes in the functional characteristics of arteries and low molecular weight metabolites.

Contrast-induced nephropathy (CIN) has remained significant and severe complication of angiographic procedures despite the increasing use of preventative methods. It has been associated with prolonged hospital stay, high morality and the need for dialysis. Since classically used creatinine for diagnosing of CIN does not reflect the degree of tubular injury before 24-48 hours after exposure to contrast media alternative earlier biomarkers and preventative methods are needed. Remote ischemic preconditioning is a non-invasive and safe method which in some studies has been reported to protect against contrast-induced nephropathy. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effect of remote ischemic preconditioning (RIPC) (1) as an additional method to standard treatment to prevent subclinical and clinical contrast-induced acute kidney injury and (2) to assess its effect on functional properties of arterial wall, organ damage biomarkers and low molecular weight metabolites.

Current oral anti-coagulation for atrial fibrillation is most commonly performed with warfarin. Warfarin is a vitamin K antagonist that has been shown in non-randomized trials to increase vascular calcification. Increased vascular calcification has been tied to increased cardiovascular events (CVE). This study will randomize patients currently taking warfarin to either continue on warfarin or be switched to rivaroxaban. Rivaroxaban is an oral anti-coagulant that works by inhibiting Factor Xa, and has no interaction with vitamin K. This study is a randomized, open label study that will randomize 120 patients and have them undergo blood tests and a calcium scan at baseline, and again after 12 months. Patients will be seen quarterly for examinations, safety checks and supply of rivaroxaban, as well as follow up INR testing for warfarin.

The purpose of this study is to investigate the effect of 4 days of sitting and moderate exercise on plasma triglyceride elevation after a meal.

The study was designed to test whether short-term treatment with a very low-dose combination of fluvastatin and valsartan could induce improvement of endothelial function, arterial stiffness, vascular inflammation, oxidative stress and expression of protective genes in subjects with moderate cardiovascular risk.

Patients undergoing cardiac surgery frequently develop neurologic complications, ranging from subtle cognitive changes to evident confusion, delirium, and stroke. This continuum of complications is commonly caused by embolization in the brain due to manipulation of atherosclerotic parts of the aorta ascendens (AA) during surgery. Timely detection of AA atherosclerosis before surgery enables the surgeon to consider changes of the surgical plan, to reduce the risk of embolization and thus subsequent neurologic complications. Various methods exist to visualize the AA to detect atherosclerosis. Epiaortic ultrasound scanning has become the gold standard, but is seldom used as it interferes often with surgical plan and can only be used after sternotomy. Transesophageal echocardiography (TEE) is a widely used imaging method permitting evaluation of the aorta preoperatively, but assessment of distal AA is hampered by interposition of air-filled trachea between esophagus and AA. The A-View® (Aortic-view) method, a modification of conventional TEE using a fluidfilled balloon, overcomes this limitation. The safety and diagnostic accuracy of the A-View® have successfully been shown in previous studies. The hypothesis of this study is that the use of A-View will reduce cerebral embolization secondary to a change of surgical technique.

This study is to investigate the possible positive effects of lutein and lycopene supplementation on early atherosclerosis in Beijing.