Active clinical trials for "Hypersensitivity"

A cough lasting more than 2 months is known as a chronic cough, affecting 12-23% of the adult non-smoking population. Chronic cough has many associated complications including incontinence, muscular chest pains, blackouts and depression. Current treatment is often ineffective in these patients. To develop new medications the investigators need to understand more about the mechanisms that can lead to excessive coughing. This study plans to compare a group of 12 healthy volunteers and 12 patients with a chronic cough. The investigators hypothesise that that chronic cough patients have a more sensitive cough reflex as a result central nervous system hyper-excitability (central sensitisation). The investigators will measure cough reflex sensitivity before and after administration of ketamine, a medication that blocks an important receptor in the central nervous system.

This study; This is a randomized controlled experimental type study designed to improve the intercultural sensitivity levels of nursing students.

Clinical supervision (CS) is a pragmatic approach, which enables nurses to work together; it can create a positive nursing environment, reduce stress, and increase clinical skills through peer support. Previous research has demonstrated its positive effects on nurses wellbeing, sense of coherence, and professional accountability. However, there is lack of evidence for its influence on cultural sensitivity. The Qatar National Health Strategy (Ministry of Public Health, 2018) and the Qatar National Mental Health Strategy (Supreme Council of Health, Qatar, 2013) have both given significant importance on building the health workforce capacity to meet the growing needs of the population. Aligning with these strategies, Hamad Medical Corporation (HMC) Mental Health Service's Executive Committee has taken a decision to implement clinical supervision to develop a supporting framework to strengthen the professional skills of the nursing workforce. In order to implement it efficiently, guidelines and education curriculum have been developed. The aim of the study is to evaluate the implementation of CS. In addition, investigators will also explore the impact of clinical supervision on the work-related strain, sense of coherence, cultural sensitivity and the impact on patient care. A longitudinal approach will be adopted using pre and post-testing. The required power sample size is calculated to be 136 nurses. Enrolled participants will receive an educational programme regarding clinical supervision and will be requested to choose a supervisor based on their learning requirements. Through the clinical supervision process, supervisee self-reflection, facilitated by the supervisor. The supervisor will, in addition, enable opportunities for professional growth by the sharing of skills and knowledge in relation to particular clinical challenges. In addition, they will also provide opportunities for emotional restoration through the exploration of stressful issues that have occurred in the workplace. Participants will be scheduled to engage in one to one sessions with their supervisor once a month for an hour. The study will be conducted for 18 months (2 months for baseline data collection, 2 months for educational preparation, 12 months of intervention and lastly 2 months for post-intervention data collection) from the date of the participant's enrollment. The outcome measures include the sense of coherence, work-related strain, cultural sensitivity, the total number of nurse instigated Occurrence, Variance and Accident (OVA) initiated during the course of this study and the efficacy of clinical supervision sessions. Data will be collected before education sessions are delivered (baseline), at 6th month and at the 12th month. The investigators will use the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) and STATA for analysis. The study may identify an effective way of reducing work-related strain and enhancing the sense of coherence, cultural sensitivity, and quality of patient care.

Recently, it has been proposed that the consumption of non-nutritive sweeteners, including sucralose, it's not harmless and is related with metabolic effects. Some studies have reported that sucralose produces alterations in glucose homeostasis. In vitro studies indicate that sucralose is capable of interacting with sweet taste receptors (T1R2 and T1R3) in the intestine, thus increasing the expression of glucose transporters including the sodium-glucose cotransporter type 1 (SGLT1) and the glucose transporter 2 (GLUT2), increasing glucose absorption. This interaction with intestinal sweet taste receptors also generates an increase in the secretion of the incretins glucagon-like peptide type 1 (GLP-1) and the glucose-dependent insulinotropic polypeptide (GIP), which might enhance the postprandial insulin release. However, these results are preliminary and it's desirable to confirm if sucralose consumption is associated with glucose metabolism modifications using an appropriate methodological design and with gold standard methods. The aim of this triple-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel, randomized clinical trial is to confirm the changes in insulin sensitivity associated with sucralose consumption in humans, to identify whether these changes are in the liver or skeletal muscle and to investigate the pathophysiological mechanisms generating these changes. Specifically, we will investigate if sucralose generates a dysbiosis in the gut microbiota that could be related to insulin resistance by increasing concentrations of lipopolysaccharide, a toxin present in Gram-negative bacteria that triggers a low grade inflammation known as metabolic endotoxemia. In addition, the changes in postprandial concentrations of GLP-1, glucose, insulin and C-peptide due to the combination of sucralose with a mixed meal will be investigated. The results of this study will determine if sucralose consumption, frequently used as a non-nutritive sweetener, is associated to significant changes in glucose homeostasis in humans.

Randomized, double-blind placebo-controlled phase I study to investigate the safety and tolerability of ascending doses of DM-101 in adult subjects with birch pollen allergy.

The objective of this study is to assess whether intake of baked and then chilled potatoes over a 24-h period, compared to intake of isocaloric, carbohydrate (CHO)-matched foods low in fiber and resistant starch (RS), will increase insulin sensitivity, breath hydrogen and satiety, and decrease hunger and free fatty acid (FFA) levels in overweight or obese men and women at risk for metabolic syndrome and diabetes mellitus.

This study will be conducted in 2 cohorts. In Cohort A, approximately 40 subjects will participate in a single-center, open-label, non-randomized, parallel-group trial to investigate the molecular mechanisms involved in delayed-type hypersensitivity (DTH) to various antigens and assess the most appropriate skin challenge antigen to study the effect of systemic treatments on T cells. Following evaluation of the results in Cohort A, approximately 20 healthy volunteers will be enrolled in Cohort B. This cohort will be a single-center, double-blind, randomized, two-arm, placebo-controlled study to evaluate the effect of corticosteroid treatment on the molecular and cellular phenotype of delayed hypersensitivity response to one if the antigens previously studied in Cohort A.

The objectives of this proposal are to address the gaps in knowledge regarding the metabolic effects of consuming orange juice, the most frequently consumed fruit juice in this country, compared to sugar-sweetened beverage.

The number of young children with food allergy, in particular with nut allergy, is increasing worldwide. A diagnosis of nut allergy can cause much anxiety in parents. They worry about their child being exposed to nuts in foods when outside the home. This anxiety can lead to these young children being restricted from taking part in normal childhood activities. Last year, the investigators conducted a study Recording accidental allergic reactions in children's and teenagers (ReAACT) in which they surveyed over 500 children with food allergy attending our clinic, in order to learn more about their participation in social activities and their practices in relation to eating outside the home. In the present study, the investigators wish to build upon these results through using the findings to develop a programme to help to lessen the fear and anxiety experienced by parents of young children with newly diagnosed nut allergy. The investigators imagine that knowledge of how other families with children who have food allergy participate in activities involving food outside of the home might help newly diagnosed families. The investigators would like to know if parents of young children newly diagnosed with nut allergy would benefit from hearing this information. In order to do this, the investigators have developed a short online programme that parents can take part in, in their own homes. Content will focus on the day to day social activities of children with food allergy, based on the findings of the REAACT study. To help the investigators to measure the effectiveness of this programme on reducing anxiety and improving quality of life, they are asking all volunteer participants to complete 4 questionnaires. Two of these questionnaires will ask a parent to indicate 1) the impact of their child's nut allergy on their quality of life and 2) on their child's quality of life. The third questionnaire will ask about their level of anxiety. The fourth questionnaire will ask about their emotions and the coping strategies they use in the context of their child's food allergy. Participants will be randomized into 2 groups. Group 1 will take part in the online education session along with the usual education provided by the allergy team. The questionnaires will be completed online using only a study identifier number. This will ensure anonymity throughout the study. The only personal information that will be asked is parent's age group, whether they are a mother or father, their child's age and gender and whether they have any other allergies. Two weeks following the online educational session, Groups 1 and 2 will again complete the online questionnaires. The research question is to determine if the online educational session is effective at decreasing anxiety and improving quality of life in parents of young children with nut allergy. The outcomes are health related quality of life and level of anxiety. It is hoped that the findings will positively support parents, children and their families in Ireland who are living and managing nut allergy on a daily basis.

Objective: This Phase II STTR grant incorporated user feedback collected in an earlier development project to build interactive, web-based software that helps children with food allergies learn about their condition and gain self-management skills. This highly interactive game allows children to progress through virtual scenes to help them learn about food avoidance, symptom detection, and reaction management. In addition, this project built gaming complexity, with more levels and game options, of the two interactive games "Label Learning: Like it or Lose it!" and "Reaction Action!." Research Procedures: The researchers elicited input from 8 families of children (ages 8-12) with food allergies and their parents by presenting some of preliminary intervention materials (e.g., storyboards of a child in a family gathering involving food) in a focus group format. After that, up to 40 families of children with food allergies (ages 8-12) were recruited to participate in an "open trial". Families were asked to use the software for two weeks and provide feedback on the software. Up to 100 families of children with food allergies (ages 8-12) were then recruited to participate in a Randomized Clinical Trial (RCT) to assess the efficacy of the F3A-App vs. Standard Care (brief office visit and educational handouts). Families in the clinical trial were asked to use the software for two weeks and complete a standard care allergy office visit. This design enabled the investigators to evaluate combined effects of Standard Care and the F3A-App through typical treatment channels (e.g., is the greatest efficacy found after a physician refers family to use the App after an office visit?). Gains in families' knowledge and confidence in food allergy management were evaluated, and interviews with families were conducted to gain further input regarding the software's credibility, usability, and acceptability. This entry describes only the RCT portion of this Phase II STTR project.