Active clinical trials for "Lung Diseases"

The aim of this study is to compare the effectiveness of two treatments for severe / very severe COPD patients: one, conventional medicine based on 2013 Global Initiative for Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease (GOLD) and Chinese Treatment Guidelines; the other, TCM treatments and conventional medicine, which have been evaluated and have certain effect.

The aim of this study is to determine whether noninvasive positive pressure ventilation with inspiratory muscle training can improve quality of life and respiratory muscle strength than noninvasive positive pressure ventilation or inspiratory muscle training alone.

AIM: To identify those mechanisms involved in the systemic and muscular response to exercise treatment, in two different Obstructive Chronic Pulmonary Disease (COPD) phenotypes (emphysema and non-emphysema). The investigators will evaluate the effect of exercise training, on exercise outcomes, peripheral muscle strength measures, dyspnea and quality of life indices, and markers of systemic inflammation and muscle repair. SUBJECTS: The investigators will study 30 COPD patients in GOLD II-IV stages, with symptomatic disease. Patients will be differentiated into 2 different phenotypes: predominant-emphysema and non-predominant emphysema (15 subjects for each group), according to high resolution computed tomography (HRCT) scanning images, and after the specific analysis with the MeVisPulmo software. After patients are typified, they will be included in the 12- wk training programme. MEASURES(pre&post-training):Basic blood analysis, EKG, spirometry, blood gases, pletysmography, gas diffusion, maximal inspiratory and expiratory pressure (MIP,MEP), bioimpedanciometry, 1RM test and isometric strength determination, 6-min walking test (6MWT), maximal and submaximal cycle-ergometry, and dyspnea using the Mahler's Basal and Transitional Dyspnoea Indexes (BDI/TDI) and quality of life (Chronic Respiratory Disease Questionnaire [(CRDQ]) evaluation. Besides, the investigators will measure blood PCR and cytokines levels (IL6, IL8, IL10, IL12, TNF-α, IGF-1, and MIC-A & MIC-B). Muscle biopsies will be made (quadriceps) for detection of TNF-α, TNFR-I, TNFR-II, IGF-1Ea and MGF, IGF-1R, genes bound to biogenesis, markers of cell lesion-stress and myosin heavy chains (MyHC) type I and II, N-CAM/CD56 and Met & Desmin

The purpose of this study is evaluate the effects and safety of Traditional Chinese medicine for prevention and management of mild/moderate chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

Trial to evaluate the dose response of SCH 527123 in reducing inflammation from an ozone-induced sputum neutrophilia in both healthy subjects and subjects with COPD.

Introduction: With the rapid development in technology telemedicine has become a tool with the potential to improve and optimize the treatment of different diseases and to make diagnostics, treatment and counseling possible over shorter or longer distances. Home based telemedicine is a new method that leads to a series of important questions that needs to be answered. This study is designed to answer questions concerning patient safety in telehomecare, the patients´ quality of life, efficiency and a cost benefit analysis of implementing this technology. This study is about patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) who are admitted to the hospital with an acute exacerbation. Approximately 24 hours after admission half of the patients are randomized to be admitted to their own home supported by telemedical equipment while the other half remain admitted at the hospital (typically between 5-7 days). Primary Aim: To investigate if telemedical surveillance and treatment in the recovery period of an acute exacerbation is just as safe as conventional admission of patients with COPD measured on treatment failure. Secondary Aims: To evaluate if telemedical surveillance and treatment in the recovery period of an acute exacerbation compared to conventional treatment of COPD: Is comparable in reestablishing Forced Expiratory Volume in 1 second (FEV1). Demands the same number of treatment days/time before discharge/cessation of telemedical surveillance. Is comparable in quality of life in the two groups of treated patients. Have comparable adverse event profiles. leads to a lower total cost in health services (health economical analysis) Is possible to do for the patients (drop-outs because of the technical equipment or the patient does not know how to use the equipment.) 7 Is better seen from the physician's perspective when it comes to: The virtual patient contact / communication Technology The work process compared to the conventional work process Time spent with the patient Usability Improvement potentials ("the doctors view") 8. The equipment is satisfactory for the patient to use Method For this study a telemedical platform has been developed on which it is possible to treat patients in their own homes. The platform consists of a videoconference part that allows the patients to make contact to qualified medical staff and a technology part that can transfer vital indicators of the patients´ health condition (lung function, oxygen saturation, pulse etc.) 175 patients will be included with an expected drop-out of 20 % or 35 patients. The patients will be equally recruited from two hospitals (Frederiksberg and Herlev Hospital). All patients must have an exacerbation in their COPD that requires hospitalization to be included in this study. Each patient participates in the study for 6 months after discharge with follow-up at 1, 3 and 6 months.

Large population-based studies suggest that patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are 2 to 3 times at risk for cardiovascular mortality, which accounts for a large proportion of the total number of deaths. How COPD increases the risk of poor cardiovascular outcomes is largely unknown. However, there is growing evidence that persistent low-grade systemic inflammation is present in COPD and that this may contribute to the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis and cardiovascular disease among COPD patients. Inflammation and more specifically, C-reactive protein (CRP), has been linked with all stages of atherosclerosis, including plaque genesis, rupture and subsequent thrombo-fibrosis of vulnerable vessels. Recently, our group has demonstrated in a relatively small study that short-term inhaled corticosteroid (ICS) therapy can repress serum CRP levels in stable COPD patients. Conversely, withdrawal of ICS leads to a marked increase in serum CRP levels. Although very promising, these data cannot be considered definitive because the study was small in size and scope (N=41 patients). Additionally, this study did not address the potential effects of combination therapy with ICS and long-acting β2 agonists (LABA). This is an important short-coming because combination therapy of ICS and LABA have been shown to produce improved clinical outcomes over ICS monotherapy and is commonly used by clinicians in the treatment of moderate to severe COPD. We hypothesize that inhaled fluticasone (Flovent®) reduces systemic inflammation and that combination therapy (Advair®) is more effective than steroids alone in reducing systemic inflammation in COPD. In this proposal, we will implement a randomized controlled trial to determine whether ICS by themselves or in combination with LABAs can: reduce CRP levels in stable COPD patients and reduce other pro-inflammatory cytokines, which have been linked with cardiovascular morbidity and mortality such as interleukin-6 (IL-6) and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (MCP-1)

Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is among the most common chronic respiratory diseases (CKD). Millions of people of all ages suffer from these diseases. COPD is between the fifth and sixth of the leading causes of death in Brazil. It generates an inflammatory pulmonary response that is softened by non-curative treatments and that present serious side effects. Low intensity laser (LBI) or laser therapy has been used for about 50 years to help the healing process, revealing efficient anti-inflammatory and analgesic responses, as well as experimental models of acute and chronic inflammation. However, little is known about its response in inflammatory lung diseases, especially COPD. Some reports indicate that laser therapy may interfere positively by relieving clinical signs, the onset, and the final symptoms of pulmonary inflammation. The present project aims to study the effects of LBI on Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease in patients with pulmonary processes, determine their mechanisms of action and evaluate its effect on patients' functional capacity.

The Investigator would like to study the effect of yoga exercises and meditation on lung volume, respiratory impedance, 6-minute walk distance and quality of life in COPD patients.

In addition to chronic airflow obstruction, patients with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) suffer from skeletal muscle dysfunction which is a prominent and disabling feature and also an independent determinant of survival. Muscular impairment involves loss of muscle oxidative phenotype (OXPHEN: a slow-to-fast shift in fibre types and reduced oxidative capacity). Since hypoxia obviously is a key feature of COPD, the aim of this study is to elucidate the role of hypoxia in loss of muscle OXPHEN. Thus, OXPHEN and expression levels of its key regulators will be determined in the baseline biopsies for association with the degree of hypoxemia. In addition, expression levels of the key OXPHEN regulators will be measured in pre/post exercise biopsies.