Active clinical trials for "Inflammation"

The purpose of this study is to evaluate levels of inflammatory mediators in children at risk for cardiovascular disease due to family history. We are measuring inflammatory markers in two groups of children and their parents: children with a family history of early atherosclerotic heart disease (cases), and healthy children without such a family history (controls). The design is a cross-sectional study, gathering a fasting blood sample and clinical and behavioral data on children and a parent.

An observational study to determine the effect of APC and Epo in reducing the systemic inflammatory response during severe sepsis.

The purpose of the study is to find correlations between non-invasive fecal tests of intestinal inflammation and macro- and microscopic evaluation of duodenal and colonic histology, disaccharidase activity, and intestinal permeability in children with autism.

The effectiveness of local anesthetics is reduced if inflammation is present, making it difficult to control pain during such procedures as root canals and wisdom teeth removal. This set of studies will assess the effectiveness of the opioid (synthetic narcotic) fentanyl in enhancing the local anesthetic lidocaine (delivered with epinephrine) when used on inflamed molar teeth. In the first study, a topical anesthetic patch or a placebo will be placed on the gum tissues next to four or five lower posterior teeth. The patch will removed at either 5, 10, or 15 minutes. An electronic test that sends a light electronic impulse into the tooth, lip sensitivity testing ("Is your lip numb?"), and discomfort reports will be started immediately after removal of the patch and repeated every 5 minutes for 30 minutes. An oral surgeon will then remove the patient's wisdom teeth (tooth). In the second and third studies, a topical anesthetic will be placed on the gum tissue. An electronic test that sends a light electronic impulse into the tooth, lip sensitivity testing ("Is your lip numb?"), and discomfort reports will be started and done several times throughout the test. Then two small openings, one on each side of the tooth, will be drilled into the bony tissues surrounding the tooth. A narcotic drug fentanyl or a placebo drug will be delivered through these openings, allowing placement of the drug next to the nerves that are difficult to numb. Lidocaine, along with a small amount of epinephrine, will be delivered. An oral surgeon will then remove the patient's wisdom teeth or tooth (study 2) or do a root canal (study 3). In the fourth study, a topical anesthetic will be placed on the gum tissue. Then two small openings, one on each side of the tooth, will be drilled into the bony tissues surrounding the tooth. A narcotic drug fentanyl or a placebo drug will be delivered through these openings. Lidocaine, along with a small amount of epinephrine, will be delivered at one of three rates (15 patients for each rate). Blood pressure, heart rate, and breathing rate will be taken before the topical anesthetic patch is applied, 2 minutes after, and every 5 minutes for the next 45 minutes. Blood samples will be taken 6 times over the course of 60 minutes. When testing is complete, an oral surgeon will remove the wisdom teeth (tooth). One month later, blood samples will be taken using a different drug delivery method in order to compare results.

A variety of hormones and immune system processes are responsible for how the body responds to illness. This study concentrates on how the hormone cortisol effects the release of immune system factors called cytokines. Cortisol is a hormone produced in the adrenal glands as a response to stimulation from the pituitary gland. Abnormal levels of cortisol have been seen in several diseases such as depression and multiple sclerosis. Cytokines are factors produced by certain white blood cells. They act by changing the cells that produce them (autocrine effect), altering other cells close to them (paracrine), and effecting cells throughout the body (endocrine effect). Cytokines are important in controlling inflammation processes. In this study researchers would like to determine if changes in levels of hormones in the blood are associated with changes in cytokine levels. In addition, researchers would like to learn more about how cytokines respond to hormones in certain diseases.

This study is a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind, two-arm trial of N=94 apparently healthy men and women to be recruited at a single investigational center in Northeast Ohio. Subjects will attend three study visits. During Visit 1, subjects will be screened for participation (i.e., medical history, physical exam, routine blood work, background baseline diet). Over the next 12 weeks, subjects will attend Visits 2 (baseline) and 3 (week 12), wherein assessments of body weight, waist circumference, urinary ketones, serum glucose, insulin, liver enzymes as well as other biomarkers of metabolic health, quality of life (SF-36 questionnaire), and various visual analog scales (VAS) for appetite, satiety, and cravings will be made.

Platelets are increasingly recognized as a potent and ubiquitously present source of inflammatory activation. Importantly, antiplatelet therapy has been shown to significantly reduce major adverse events such as renal injury in cardiac surgery patients. However, in current practice, concerns of excessive bleeding-not platelet activation and thrombosis-shape clinical decisions. The investigators have recently seen, that a significant drop in platelet numbers following cardiac surgery is associated with increased mortality and risk of acute kidney injury. The investigators hypothesize that such thrombocytopenia is a result of excessive perioperative platelet activation and resultant release of inflammatory and tissue injurious signals by activated platelets. Platelet activation will be characterized during and after cardiac surgery and examine its correlation with inflammatory responses and perioperative end-organ injury.

The main objective of this study is to evaluate the systemic impact of salting out of trace elements (TE) by metallic and nonmetallic implantable medical devices (IMD) and in particular the immune response of the organism to these trace elements and of their target organs, and to identify circulating protein biomarkers which might indicate an evolution of inflammation caused by an IMD.

This study investigates whether the anxiolytic effects and anti-inflammatory properties of cannabis vary as a function of the ratio of CBD to THC, with the goal that these effects may shed light on the mixed data linking cannabis use and anxiety. Individuals with mild to moderate anxiety who elect to use cannabis (smoked flower or edible) will complete four weeks of observation. Participants complete cognitive tasks, a substance use history, health questionnaires concerning sleep and physical activity, and a blood draw at four different time points (Baseline, after 2 weeks of cannabis use, and immediately before and after self-administration after 4 weeks of use) with the use of a mobile pharmacology laboratory, which goes to a convenient location for each participant to self-administer their cannabis. Participants are then followed for five months to self-report on cannabis use, anxiety, subjective cognitive functioning, sleep quality, and other mental health symptoms.

This project examines the effects of cannabis on cognition and other domains of function and whether those effects are dependent upon the ratio of THC to CBD in the product. Current cannabis users are asked to stop using their typical product and to use cannabis containing different ratios of the cannabinoids THC and CBD. Participants complete baseline assessments including cognitive tasks, clinical measures, substance use history, and blood draw. Participants then acquire and use their study strain on their own, and after a period of use the mobile pharmacology laboratory goes to a location of their choosing. They complete cognitive, motor and blood-based assessments, then leave the mobile lab to use their study product one last time, returning to the mobile lab to complete cognitive, motor, and blood-based assessments immediately after use and one hour after use. A small subset of participants complete all of these procedures but use edible as opposed to flower-based products.