Active clinical trials for "Fibrosis"

This is a prospective longitudinal study that will evaluate if changes (pre and post therapy) in indocyanine green (ICG) retention test and liver stiff ness (LS) and spleen stiffness (SS) as measured by acoustic radiofrequency impulse (ARFI) correlate with changes in portal pressure as determined by the hepatic vein pressure gradient (HVPG) in patients with compensated hepatitis C virus (HCV) cirrhosis undergoing antiviral therapy.

The purpose of this study is to assess whether the add of Rifaximin in patients with liver cirrhosis and esophageal varices treated with a standard therapy with beta blockers, leads to a significant reduction of portal hypertension.

The purpose of this study is to conduct a comparative study for the study of bone mineralization evaluated with Quantitative computed tomodensitometry (QCT) compared to the reference technique, Dual-emission X-ray absorptiometry (DXA).

An open label study in 40-60 subjects with diagnosed lung airway disease and in 10-20 normal controls. Each subject will receive PFP as a contrast agent to visualize the airway and alveolar spaces in their lungs using magnetic resonance imaging of inert gas/oxygen mixtures.

This study will be used to train an algorithm using Methacetin breath test (MBT) measures and to select a cut-off to determine presence or absence of Clinically Significant Portal Hypertension (CSPH) as defined by Hepatic Venous Gradient Pressure (HVPG) ≥ 10mmHg,

FibroScan® (Echosens, Paris, France) is an active non implantable medical device marketed in Europe since December 2003 and is currently used in many countries. FibroScan® is an ultrasound-based vibration-controlled transient elastography (VCTE™) device dedicated to liver stiffness measurement (LSM). Several clinical studies have shown the accuracy of LSM by FibroScan® to predict liver fibrosis. Some other studies have already shown the good correlation between LSM, assessed by FibroScan® based on VCTE™ technology, and the presence of portal hypertension (PHT). PHT is a clinical condition characterized by a high blood pressure in the portal vein and its tributaries and it is defined as a gradient between portal and systemic blood pressure > 6 mmHg. The development of oesophageal varices (OV) in cirrhotic patients, as well as their potential bleeding, represent one of the most severe and life-threatening complication of cirrhosis. Upper endoscopy is the best diagnostic tool for detecting the presence of OV, gastric varices or congestive gastropathy, for estimating the grade of OV and for the recognition of the presence of red color signs and wale marks or other indicators of high risk for bleeding. However these two methods are quite invasive and associated with some risks; at the same time, not all cirrhotic patients present OV at endoscopic screening. The aim of this study is the validation of SSM, assessed by a FibroScan® with acquisition parameters and algorithm optimized for SSM, as surrogate noninvasive marker for the presence of OV in liver cirrhosis patients.

To reduce portal pressure, the only recommended medication is nonselective beta blocker(NSBB). However, NSBB has some limitation to apply clinically because of poor response rate and compliance. Recent literature has supported the role of bacterial translocation as a mediator of splanchnic vasodilatation and portal hypertension. This stimulates the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines and the activation of the vasodilator NO resulting in a more pronounced deterioration of the baseline hyperdynamic circulatory state. Selective gut decontamination with Rifaximin can induce inhibition of bacterial translocation and associated worsening of portal hypertension. The investigators hypothesized that Rifaximin plus NSBB could result in decrease of portal pressure in cirrhotic patients with esophageal varices.

The purpose of this research study is to provide a novel method for the diagnosis of Cystic Fibrosis (CF). This protocol is designed to test the ability of the cells to regulate the movement of salt and water in people with features of CF in whom the diagnosis is not entirely clear. We will be studying these cells in the nose, by a technique called nasal transepithelial potential difference (NPD).

*The purpose of this study is to develop a more accurate, reliable, specific and more acceptable alternative clinical test to the 72-hour stool and diet collection for quantifying fat malabsorption in people with CF and pancreatic insufficiency.

Prospective comparison of standard therapy in liver cirrhosis versus standard therapy plus intensified hemodynamic monitoring using the PiCCO system.