Active clinical trials for "Fibrosis"

Lung transplant is an option for treating end-stage lung disease in cystic fibrosis (CF). In the United States, more people with CF and low lung function die each year than undergo lung transplant. More than half of people with CF who die without a lung transplant were never referred for consideration. Patient preference not to undergo lung transplant may account for 25-40% of decisions to defer referral. Patients' health discussion networks function to support individuals in health related matters and may provide critical support during the lung transplant journey. Increasing awareness of lung transplant, and promoting the process of deliberation and utilization of social support, could reduce the number of people with CF who die without lung transplant. Additionally, the most common patient-endorsed barrier to lung transplant discussions is a worry about being a burden on family and friends after lung transplant. For lung transplant recipients with complex post-operative courses, low social support is associated with increased mortality. Additionally, adequate social support is a requirement at all lung transplant programs in the US. Investigators are interested in understanding how caregivers may benefit from using lung transplant educational resources and how caregivers prepare for having discussions with their loved ones and/or helping them make decisions about lung transplant as a treatment option for advanced CF. The purpose of this study is to test whether an investigator-designed research website compared to no caregiver intervention reduces caregiver burden (assessed with the Brief Assessment Scale for Caregivers, BASC), caregiver preparedness for lung transplant discussions, and caregiver lung transplant knowledge as an ancillary study in a multicenter RCT. Further, investigators will assess patient perceptions of caregiver support as measured by the Social Support Effectiveness Questionnaire (SSE-Q) and evaluate caregivers' willingness to provide support through semi-structured interviews in patient-caregiver dyads. Study involvement will span 6 months and study activities will involve the following: Three Zoom research sessions (15-90 minutes each) Survey assessments and an interview Access to a research website that contains educational resources about lung transplant

With this study, the investigators first want to investigate the respiratory tract microbiome of cystic fibrosis patients. To achieve this, the investigators will collect longitudinal samples of saliva, throat and sputum and process these to determine the microbial composition and compare them over a timecourse of a year. Secondly, the investigators aim to study the influence of a topical microbiome therapy (throat spray) on the microbiome of the upper and lower respiratory tract in cystic fibrosis patients after administration for 6 weeks. Bacterial and cytokine profiles of salivary, throat and sputum samples will be monitored before, during and after intervention.

This study aims to investigate the effects of 12 weeks of resistance or endurance exercise on patients with cirrhosis. Cirrhotic patients are prone to muscle loss (sarcopenia) and ammonia build up due to liver dysfunction. The liver which in healthy patients is able to process ammonia through ureagenesis is unable to do so in cirrhosis and ammonia is taken up either by the brain causing confusion or the skeletal muscle causing muscle loss or sarcopenia. Primary sarcopenia occurs in older individuals and can be mitigated by exercise. Secondary sarcopenia occurs in response to disease such as cancer, chronic kidney disease, multiple sclerosis, and cirrhosis of all etiologies. Resistance exercise is an excellent stimulator for muscle protein synthesis and is widely used to build muscle mass and strength but has little benefit to cardiovascular function. Endurance exercise has shown to be safe in cirrhosis however there is no set prescription for cirrhosis as there is for other disease. Endurance exercise is known to promote improved cardiovascular health, improve fatigue, and generates less ammonia build up than resistance exercise. In patients with low muscle mass it is possible that endurance exercise alone will be enough to improve muscle mass. There have been few studies on exercise and cirrhosis, those that exist have shown benefits with endurance exercise. However there are even more limited studies on resistance exercise and few to no studies on the molecular mechanisms behind exercise in cirrhosis. Study visits are described fully in the protocol and consent form. After passing a screening visit patients will undergo a maximal exercise/fitness test (pre-baseline test) and other body composition measurements. After the screening and pre-baseline visit randomization will occur (2:2:1 endurance, resistance, or SOC) arrangements will be made to have the appropriate exercise equipment given to patients. Once the exercise equipment has arrived a baseline study visit will occur. After the baseline visit the endurance exercise group will cycle 3 days per week for 60 minutes under the supervision of the study team. The resistance exercise group will perform a whole body resistance workout 2 days per week for approximately 60 minutes under the supervision of a study team member. Patients in all groups will have the fitness test repeated at weeks 4, 8 and 12. After the 12 weeks of exercise the baseline visits will be repeated and after 2 weeks patients will complete one final fitness test to examine the effects of de-training.

Fibrosing interstitial lung diseases or pulmonary fibrosis represent a heterogeneous group of progressive pulmonary pathologies, responsible for a significant morbi-mortality. They are defined by an infiltration of the pulmonary interstitium associating in a variable way an inflammatory component (deposit of inflammatory cells) and a fibrosing component (deposit of collagen). Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is the most common and most severe pulmonary fibrosis. Other pulmonary fibroses are mainly represented by non-specific interstitial lung disease, pulmonary fibroses associated with connectivites, hypersensitivity pneumonitis, certain pneumoconiosis (occupational diseases) and sarcoidosis. The process of fibrosis is responsible for a loss of elasticity of the lung, leading to a decrease in lung volumes associated with an alteration of gas exchange. In these diseases, the clinician must be able to rely on reliable means to assess the severity of the disease based mainly on the measurement of lung volumes and gas exchange, at diagnosis and in the follow-up of the patient, in order to propose the most appropriate management. Lung volumes are assessed by respiratory function tests. Forced vital capacity is the reference volume value used. Impaired gas exchange is assessed at rest by measuring carbon monoxide diffusion capacity, arterial oxygen saturation and arterial blood gases. The functional capacity to exercise is also a very important evaluation criterion in terms of prognosis and in the follow-up of the patient. It is assessed by means of ergocycle tests which mainly determine the maximal oxygen consumption. These are relatively complex tests that require special equipment and are not routinely performed. Simpler field tests have been developed to assess functional capacity during exercise, the most widely used and validated being the 6-minute Walk Test (TM6). Other field tests to assess functional capacity to exercise have been developed, such as the 30-second, 1-minute, and 3-minute chair lift tests, stepper tests, and step and stair tests. Among them, the 1-minute chair lift test (TLC1) is the best evaluated. It consists of sitting down and getting up from a chair as many times as possible in 1 minute. The criteria measured are mainly the number of lifts and desaturation. Thus, the fundamental advantage of the TLC1 over the TM6 is the exemption from temporal and spatial constraints since it takes only a few minutes and can be performed in a medical office. While TLC1 seems to be the most suitable, there are still a few pitfalls in substituting TLC1 for TM6 during diffuse interstitial lung disease. First, there is only one study reporting the results of TLC1 in a healthy population. It provides a chart of results according to age. Unfortunately, only the number of lifts is reported without any data on heart rate, SaO2 or sensation of dyspnea. In respiratory pathologies, TLC1 has been studied mainly in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and little in PID. Unlike TM6, TLC1 is reproducible and has no learning effect in this population. Interestingly, one study found that peak desaturation and peak oxygen consumption occurred during the recovery phase some seconds after the end of the test. Studies on TLC1 during SID do not allow us to conclude that this test can substitute for TM6. However, investigators may note certain limitations, in particular the small number of patients studied and the retrospective nature of the 2 largest of them. Above all, it seems that the use of TLC1 could be optimized by taking into account the recovery phase in the evaluation of desaturation. The hypothesis of our study is that the TLC1 taking into account the recovery phase can replace the TM6 in the management of fibrosing PID for prognostic evaluation, patient follow-up and indication of oxygen therapy. It is more accessible and its use by all practitioners in face-to-face or telemedicine would allow a better management of these patients. Finally, the investigators hypothesize that the TLC1 will result in lower costs in the management of these patients.

Exercise testing has become clinically important in the management and ongoing evaluation of patients with Cystic Fibrosis (CF) with higher rates of exercise tolerance and participation previously linked to lower mortality risk (1). Lower exercise capacity generally correlates with more severe lung disease (2,3) and landmark studies suggest that low exercise capacity as measured by peak oxygen capacity (VO2peak) and rate of decline in lung function (FEV1) are strong predictors of mortality (1,4). However not all studies have found pulmonary function tests (PFTs) to be reliable predictors of maximal exercise capacity (5), especially in relatively well preserved lung function (6,7). The wide distribution in physical capacity between fit individuals and end stage disease adds to complexity of assessment. Independent factors of age, genetics, habitual exercise, nutritional status and musculoskeletal conditions are all known to influence physical capacity in patients with CF (8,9). Maximal exercise testing places additional stress on cardiovascular, respiratory and peripheral systems providing more information around multiple influences on disease progression including degree of limitation in these major systems (10,11) and is useful for assessment of exercise desaturation, more common (but not always present) in advanced lung disease (5,12). With prediction of exercise performance and functional capacity from PFTs unreliable and the understanding that health status correlates better with exercise tolerance there has been an increase in maximal exercise testing for patient management (13). Many international centers now regard exercise testing as highly important with many assessing maximal exercise capacity annually to monitor disease progression, identify physical status and drive changes in medical, physiotherapy or nutritional management (14,15). The main vision is to develop a standardized incremental step test protocol suitable for adults with Cystic Fibrosis (CF), all ages, levels of fitness and disease state that is in line with current exercise testing recommendations (15). To develop a more useful field test to assess exercise tolerance and a more "user friendly" test than the currently available laboratory exercise test to allow for early detection of decline in physical function in the day-to-day clinical setting. To date no studies have been published in adults with CF where an incremental exercise step test has been investigated to assess exercise tolerance or determine maximum oxygen uptake (VO2max).

This is a pilot study where the investigators aim to compare initial use of the standard airway clearance device (SACD) with subsequent use of a Portable Intra-Pulmonary Percussion Device (PIAPD) in patients with cystic fibrosis ages 6 -21 years. The primary hypothesis is that there is no effect of PIAPD on FEV1 2 hours after use, there is no effect on perception of effort and efficacy for the PIAPD. If both are equally effective, the latter device provides an alternative that is both cheaper and portable.

Cystic Fibrosis, an inherited autosomal recessive disease, arises from mutations in the CFTR gene. For intronic mutations affecting splicing events, oligonucleotides therapy has the potential to restore the production of the full length CFTR protein. Recent scientific research has demonstrated the potential of this approach to restore full length mRNA CFTR in in vitro human airway cells. The study aims to validate the therapeutic efficacy of oligonucleotide blockers (ONB) that target splicing defects associated to splicing variants in epithelia obtained from patients with Cystic Fibrosis and CFTR-related disorders.

In recent years, diabetes has emerged as one of the most significant co-diseases that many Cystic Fibrosis (CF) patients develop. Type 1 (T1D) and Type 2 (T2D) diabetes results when either the body does not make enough insulin or the body does not respond correctly to this insulin, respectively. Insulin is a hormone which is made by cells in the pancreas and helps carry glucose (sugar) from the food we eat to the cells of the body for energy. While cystic fibrosis related diabetes (CFRD) has many features similar to both T1D and T2D, patients with CF may not have the same symptoms as either T1D or T2D patients. Currently, there is little understanding of CFRD and the best options for treatment remain unclear. The purpose of this research study is to examine and understand the various mechanisms that contribute to CFRD and gain a better understanding of potential means to treat CFRD. In particular, we plan to study the effects of incretin hormones that can enhance insulin production in CF patients. Enrollment is complete for the protocol as initially written. In order to further study the role of the incretin hormone on Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane Conductance Regulator (CFTR) function , we have received approval to extend our investigation to include the following study groups: Cystic Fibrosis participants with normal glucose tolerance Non-Cystic Fibrosis controls

Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the most common chronic liver disease worldwide. Affecting approximately one-third of the United States (U.S.) population, the prevalence of NAFLD increases to 90% in patients with obesity. In 25% of patients, NAFLD progresses to a more severe form-non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH)-which further increases the risks of cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. In 2017, the lifetime costs of caring for NASH patients in the U.S. were estimated at $222.6 billion, with the cost of caring for the advanced NASH (fibrosis stage ≥ 3) being $95.4 billion. It is projected that the number of NASH cases will increase by 63% from 2015 to 2030. Given the weight loss efficacy of Endoscopic Bariatric and Metabolic Therapies (EBMTs), it has been suggested that EBMTs may serve as a novel treatment category for NASH. Previously, the PI and Co-Is studied the effect of Intragastric balloons (IGB)-the oldest EBMT device-on NASH. EUS liver biopsy performed at the time of IGB removal revealed resolution of all NASH histologic features including fibrosis. A follow-up study by a different group showed similar findings. Furthermore, studies have showed the benefits of S-ESG and Aspiration Therapy (AT) on non-histologic features of NASH. Given the greater weight loss experienced after P-ESG compared to IGB (20% vs 10% TWL) and the more reproducible technique and shorter learning curve of the current P-ESG compared to S-ESG, we aim to assess the effect of P-ESG on NASH.

Protein-energy malnutrition (PEM) occurs in 65-90% of patients with liver cirrhosis. Severity of malnutrition correlates with progression of liver disease and leads to sarcopenia in 30-70% of cirrhotic patients. Malnutrition and sarcopenia are associated with an increased risk of complications and mortality. In cirrhosis the gut microbiome is altered leading to increased gut permeability, bacterial translocation and inflammation. Since the microbiome is involved in nutrient uptake and metabolism, it is hypothesized that microbiome alterations contribute to sarcopenia. A prospective controlled cohort study to investigate the interrelation of microbiome changes and sarcopenia in cirrhosis will be conducted. Furthermore the effect of nutritional interventions on the microbiome in cirrhosis will be studied. From this study information on how the gut microbiome composition and sarcopenia are associated in cirrhosis and if modulation of the gut microbiome by nutritional interventions is feasible will be collected.