Active clinical trials for "Asthma"

Breathlessness is a symptom of asthma that occurs in relation with lower airway obstruction. However, this sensation is not specific of asthma and may be the expression of other disorders. In particular, it can testify to anxiety or hyperventilation, two disorders frequently associated with asthma. The systematic interpretation of dyspnea as a manifestation of asthma in asthmatic patients may lead to an inappropriate increase in asthma controllers. Identifying the cause of dyspnea in asthmatic patients (airway obstruction, anxiety or hyperventilation) is therefore crucial for the clinician. This could be facilitated by a multidimensional assessment of dyspnea, evaluating the kind of sensation felt by the patient (for example chest tightness, air hunger etc.) and emotions associated to respiratory sensations (for example anxiety, fear etc.). The objectives of this project are to assess: (1) the sensory and affective dimensions of dyspnea in asthma and, (2) their connection to asthma control, anxiety and depression.

Asthma is a common pathology (prevalence 6.4% in 2018, in France), currently managed by the general practitioner in general practice. It is a chronic disease at risk of exacerbation, which can lead to the use of care. The treatment of asthma is based on a basic treatment, to be taken every day, the purpose of which is to avoid acute exacerbations and lead a normal life. There is also an emergency treatment, to be taken in case of sudden worsening of the respiratory state. The asthmatic patient is the first actor in his care. He must be able to react in case of emergency. A good knowledge of the disease and its treatment as well as training in self-management of crises are thus fundamental and must be part of its medical care. The existence of an exacerbation represents a criterion of non-control of the disease, thus a failure of the long-term care of the patient. The optimization of this care includes individual issues aimed at improving the quality of life and collective by reducing the avoidable use of care and thus the expenses related to this disease. It relies on therapeutic education sessions as well as the provision of written information, clear and detailed by the doctor. This information consists of the writing of a detailed medication prescription as well as the dispensing of a written action plan. The action plan must describe the actions to be taken by the patient in case of exacerbation of his asthma, to regain control. Regarding the format, it can be coupled to the prescription drug (action plan and prescription on the same prescription) or distinct from the prescription drug (a prescription for drugs and a prescription for the action plan). In some countries, "ready-to-use" action plans have been validated by learned societies, which is not the case today in France. In Canada, a study demonstrated in 2006 that 46% of asthmatic patients followed in hospital had an action plan, while the national average was estimated at about 10% in 2010. There is little data in France on the proportion of patients with asthma action plans. Unlike the action plan, which is little distributed to the patient, the prescription drug for asthma is always given to the patient at the end of the consultation and specifies the procedures for taking treatments. As part of this work, the investigators are interested in evaluating the written information given to the adult asthmatic patient by their general practitioner: the action plan but also the prescription medication.

The objective of this protocol is to pilot an innovative approach to medication adherence to determine if such an approach will improve inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) medication adherence, a critical gap in improving the health of children with asthma. SNAPP incorporates monitoring, reminders, and dynamic feedback through a smartphone that will improve ICS medication adherence and that the investigators believe will influence the child's future independence and chronic disease-management skills.

This study focuses on severe asthmatics and their asthma symptoms. 40% of asthma patients continue to experience symptoms and up to 5% of these have difficult-to-control asthma despite continually improving treatments. Severe asthmatics experience clinically-significant worse health-related quality of life than those than those with less severe asthma. Poorer health-related quality of life can be as a consequence of frequent, severe symptoms, which prevent the patient from continuing a normal, active lifestyle. The Royal Brompton Hospital uses the treatment regimen of intravenous (IV) Aminophylline and IV Hydrocortisone which appears to improve symptoms and reduce exacerbations. At present there is anecdotal evidence to support these assumptions. The objective of this study is to determine whether there is any objective evidence of improvement, in particular looking at lung function, symptoms and cardiovascular function.

This study will look for a relationship between asthma and factors released from the lungs in exhaled breath. If a relationship can be established, the identified factors may be used as biomarkers to predict episodes of increased asthma symptoms so that medications can be given to prevent the onset of an asthma attack. Healthy volunteers and people who have had asthma for at least 1 year may be eligible for this study. Candidates must be between 18 and 75 years of age. Participants undergo blood tests and breathing tests. For the latter, participants breathe into a machine before and after inhaling an asthma medication called albuterol. The machine measures the volume of air the subject can breathe out. Participants also provide a sample of exhaled breath by breathing normally for up to 30 minutes while wearing a mask devised for the procedure. Pulse rate, oxygen saturation and wheezing are monitored during the breath collection.

The goal of this research is to determine whether 10-weeks of exercise training can benefit asthmatic children and young adults with a history of exercise-induced bronchoconstriction (EIB). The investigators will also study an exciting newly discovered aspect of gene expression regulation in the white blood cells known as epigenetics: a process that takes place when genomic changes happen as a result of exposure to the environment. This study is based on emerging exciting new data from this and other laboratories demonstrating that (a) white blood cells play an important role in bronchoconstriction in children, (b) gene and cytokine expression in circulating white blood cells are abnormal in asthma and (c) brief exercise may change genomic and inflammatory- profiles of these cells.Physical activity is an essential component of growth and health in children, thus, this research will lead to improved clinical uses of exercise as preventive and adjunctive therapy in the current epidemic of childhood asthma

This is a prospective, observational clinical cohort study involving children born very preterm at less than 31 weeks and six days gestation. The purpose of this study is to investigate the microbiome (the collection of microbes in a biological site) alternations resulting from preterm birth and associations with the risk of immune dysregulation, asthma and allergies.

The purpose of this study is to estimate the sensitivity, specificity and positive and negative predictive values of a positive Aridol challenge with respect to a specialist pulmonologist diagnosis of asthma in corticosteroid naive subjects with asthma-like symptoms and no previous diagnosis of asthma. The comparator is methacholine provocation

Investigational device: AKITA 2 device versus conventional metered-dose inhaler (MDI) Objectives: To explore if inhalative fluticasone application by means of the AKITA technology would result in a better symptom control in patients with severe persistent asthma as compared to inhalative application of fluticasone by a conventional MDI. Study design: open label, cross-over (one AKITA, one MDI arm) Patients: 20 Patients with severe persistent asthma

The primary goal of this study is to identify a gene or panel of genes which are differentially expressed in lung cells and tissue from asthmatic patients following administration of Ipratropium bromide and eiTher nebulised Albuterol or saline. Each subject in this study will undergo two bronchoscopies.