Active clinical trials for "Autoimmune Diseases"

Exploration of pathophysiological mechanisms in chronic inflammatory rheumatism and rare systemic autoimmune diseases with the objective of identifying therapeutic targets.

A randomized clinical trial that treats vitiligo patients with oral vitamin D and Narrow-Band Ultraviolet B (NB-UVB) phototherapy (intervention group); or placebo and NB-UVB phototherapy (control group). We will evaluate if the group supplemented with vitamin D achieves a higher repigmentation rate than the control group, proving the relevance of vitamin D as an immunomodulator in the pathophysiology of vitiligo. These findings may support the use of vitamin D as an economic, safe, and adjuvant treatment for vitiligo.

Primary Sjögren syndrome is one of the most prevalent autoimmune diseases that present with dry eye and dry mouth. But there is no proven effective treatment for Sjögren syndrome patient. The relation between toll-like receptor (TLR) and the pathogenesis of Sjögren syndrome has been reported. Hydroxychloroquine is TLR7 and TLR9 antagonist. A few studies have been reported the effectiveness of Hydroxychloroquine for Sjögren syndrome but no randomized controlled study has been done. So the investigators evaluate the effectiveness and safeness of Hydroxychloroquine for primary Sjögren syndrome by randomized controlled study (Hydroxychloroquine 300 mg once daily p.o. group (N = 30) versus placebo group (N = 30).

Type 1 diabetes (T1D) is one of the most common chronic childhood diseases requiring lifelong insulin therapy. Children and adolescents with T1D need regular insulin injections or the continuous insulin delivery using an insulin pump in order to keep blood glucose levels normal. We know that keeping blood sugars in the normal range will help prevent longterm diabetes-related complications involving the eyes, kidneys and heart. However, achieving treatment goals can be very difficult as the tighter we try to control blood glucose levels, the greater the risk to develop symptoms and signs of low glucose levels (hypoglycaemia). This is a particular problem at night and one solution is to develop a system whereby the amount of insulin injected is controlled by a computer and is very closely matched to the blood sugar levels on a continuous basis. This can be achieved by what is known as a "closed-loop system" where a small glucose sensor placed under the skin communicates with a computer containing an algorithm that drives an insulin pump. We have been testing such a system in Cambridge over the last five years in children and have found that this system is effective at maintaining tight glucose control and preventing nocturnal hypoglycaemia. More recently the system has been tested in real life conditions in the home setting for three weeks during a pilot single-centre study. The next step is to extend the evaluation of closed-loop over a prolonged period of three months. In the present study we are planning to study 24 young people aged 6-18 years on insulin pump therapy. During three months glucose will be controlled by the computer and during the other three months the subjects will make their own adjustments to the insulin therapy using real-time continuous glucose monitoring. We aim to determine the effect of the computer algorithm in keeping glucose levels between 3.9 and 8 mmol/L (normal levels). Safety evaluation comprises assessment of the frequency of severe hypoglycaemic episodes. Participants' response to the use of the system in terms of lifestyle change, daily diabetes management and fear of hypoglycaemia will be assessed. We will also test for longer term glucose control by measuring glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c).

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the efficacy and safety of switching rheumatoid arthritis (RA) participants who have an inadequate response to their current treatment with either etanercept + methotrexate or adalimumab + methotrexate to treatment with golimumab 50 milligram (mg) subcutaneous (SC) injection (a needle inserted under the skin in the back of upper arm, upper thigh or stomach area) every 4 weeks + methotrexate. This study is also designed to evaluate the benefit and safety of switching participants from treatment with golimumab 50 mg subcutaneous injection every 4 weeks + methotrexate to golimumab 2 milligram per kilogram (mg/kg) intravenous every 8 weeks + methotrexate, for those who do not achieve a marked improvement of their RA at Week 16.

The purpose of this SLE study is to evaluate the efficacy, safety and tolerability of two different doses of LY2127399 administered in participants with active SLE.

Background: - Some children experience a sudden onset of symptoms similar to those found in obsessive-compulsive disorder that may be caused by the body s reaction to an infection with streptococcal bacteria, most commonly seen as strep throat or scarlet fever. When the body s immune system reacts against brain cells following a streptococcal infection, the condition is known as PANDAS (pediatric autoimmune neuropsychiatric disorders associated with streptococcal infections). The immune system response can be inactivated by treatment with a drug known as intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG). Because there is insufficient research on IVIG s effects on the immune system of children with PANDAS, including whether IVIG is helpful in treating obsessive-compulsive symptoms related to PANDAS, researchers are interested in examining whether IVIG is an appropriate treatment for PANDAS and its associated symptoms. Objectives: - To test the safety and effectiveness of intravenous immunoglobulin for the treatment of obsessive-compulsive disorder in children with PANDAS (pediatric autoimmune neuropsychiatric disorder associated with streptococcal infection). Eligibility: - Children between 4 and 12 years of age who have obsessive-compulsive disorder (with or without a tic disorder) with sudden onset of symptoms following Group A streptococcal bacterial infections. Design: Participants will be screened by telephone to obtain medical history and other information, followed by in-person screening at the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center. Participants will be admitted to the hospital to receive 2 days of infusions of either IVIG or a placebo. Frequent blood samples, imaging studies, and other tests will be performed during this visit. Six weeks after the inpatient stay, participants will return for further blood samples and other tests. Participants who did not receive the study drug, or who received the drug but did not respond to the initial IVIG infusion, will have the option to receive IVIG at this time. Followup visits will take place 3 months and 6 months after the first evaluation, followed by yearly follow-ups for 5 additional years.

The purpose of this study is to determine the effects of glatiramer acetate (Copaxone) alone compared to Copaxone plus albuterol in patients with Multiple Sclerosis (MS). MS is thought to be an autoimmune disease of the central nervous system. Certain white blood cells of the immune system become abnormally active and mistakenly attack the myelin of nerve fibers. Myelin is a fatty sheath that surrounds nerve fibers and insulates the nerve like insulation around an electrical wire. Without proper myelin insulation, messages sent between the brain and other parts of the body may be confused or fail completely. Damage to myelin causes the symptoms of MS. The most common form of MS is known as relapsing-remitting (RR), where partial or total recovery occurs after attacks. Four therapies are currently approved for the treatment of MS. These therapies, however, are only moderately effective and can cause undesirable side effects. For this reason, there is a need to find new therapies that have minimal side effects and may stop the disease from getting worse.

The purpose of this study is to determine whether LJP 394 (abetimus sodium) is safe and effective in delaying and reducing renal flares in patients with lupus nephritis.

OBJECTIVES: I. Determine the safety and long term complications of total body irradiation in combination with cyclophosphamide, anti-thymocyte globulin, and autologous CD34-selected peripheral blood stem cell (PBSC) transplantation in children with refractory autoimmune disorders. II. Determine the efficacy of this treatment regimen in these patients. III. Determine the reconstitution of immunity after autologous CD34-selected PBSC transplantation in these patients. IV. Determine engraftment of autologous CD34-selected PBSC in these patients.