Active clinical trials for "Inflammation"

Demonstrate and compare the 3D morphology of the bladder wall in full and drained states with 2 different kinds of bladder catheters in place. (Foley Catheter vs. Cystosure Catheter)

Knowledge of the pathogenesis of ocular conditions, a leading cause of blindness, has benefited greatly from recent advances in ophthalmic imaging. However, current clinical imaging systems are limited in resolution, speed, or access to certain structures of the eye. The use of a high-resolution imaging system improves the resolution of ophthalmoscopes by several orders of magnitude, allowing the visualization of many microstructures of the eye: photoreceptors, vessels, nerve bundles in the retina, cells and nerves in the cornea. The use of a high-speed acquisition imaging system makes it possible to detect functional measurements such as the speed of blood flow. The combination of data from multiple imaging systems to obtain multimodal information is of great importance for improving the understanding of structural changes in the eye during a disease. The purpose of this project is to observe structures that are not detectable with routinely used systems.

Using a technique called adaptive optics imaging applied on retina, investigators aim to gain access to vascular changes that could occur early in the course of Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and which could reflect vascular changes occurring along the optic nerve of the brain parenchyma. Indeed, our team has been able to develop a quantitative method to measure the perivascular infiltrate in the retina of patients with various inflammatory retinal disease. It has been observed in MS patients that this perivascular infiltrate can also be detected in the retina. However, its distribution across MS phenotypes (relapsing or progressive MS, with and without optic neuritis) is still unknown.

Despite the wide range of studies concerning the positive effects of bariatric surgery on metabolic state of morbid obese patient, it is necessary to further investigate the specific role of the "sleeve-gastrectomy" intervention, going not only to research results in terms of safety or efficacy on the treatment of comorbidities, but also aimed to understand whether the improvement of metabolic and cardiovascular parameters is due to total weight loss or rather to visceral fat loss, and how much of this improvement is attributable to changes in inflammatory status. The primary endpoint of the study is to evaluate the effect of sleeve-gastrectomy on metabolic parameters (glyco-lipidic assessment, vitamins), bone-remodelling parameters (vitamin D, parathormone) and cardiovascular parameters (blood pressure, flow-mediated dilation, indexed left ventricular mass, inter-ventricular septum, carotid intima-media thickness) in a large obese population on the basis of total weight loss (TWL), variation of visceral fat area (VFA), variation of peri-renal fat thickness and insulin resistance index ("Homeostasis Model Assessment-insulin resistance" - HOMA). In addition the investigators set themselves the objective of assessing whether the presence of comorbidities (diabetes and hypertension) can influence the effects of the intervention on the above parameters, and whether the levels of the NETs and of adipokines such as chemerin in the pre- and post-intervention can correlate with the metabolic-vascular dysfunction, and play a role in its eventual improvement.

A continuous infusion of Dexmedetomidine (DEX) will be administered to 80 patients admitted to Critical Care because of signs of Respiratory Insufficiency requiring non-invasive ventilation. Measurements of respiratory performance and quantification of cellular and molecular inflammatory mediators. The primary outcome will be the avoidance of mechanical ventilation with secondary outcomes duration of mechanical ventilation, avoidance of delirium after sedation and association of mediators of inflammation to outcomes. Outcomes will be compared to a matched historical control (no DEX) series

The current incidence of chronic kidney disease (CKD) in China is approximately 10.8%, with approximately 119 million patients. Among them, patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) are about 200-250 cases per million population. At present, the main renal replacement therapy is: hemodialysis (HD) or peritoneal dialysis (PD). Compared with HD, PD is easy to operate, better preserves residual renal function, has early survival advantages, and is more cost-effective. Despite this, the prognosis of PD patients is still not ideal, and cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains the leading cause of death in PD patients. Persistent inflammatory states are critical in the pathogenesis of CVD such as atherosclerosis and vascular calcification, and lead to protein energy expenditure and premature death outcomes in patients with CKD. Therefore, screening for markers that predict the risk of CVD in dialysis patients is essential. Some novel inflammatory markers have been shown to have diagnostic and prognostic value in ESRD patients in terms of inflammation, malnutrition, cardiovascular calcification, all-cause, and risk of CVD death. Among them, blood cell related parameters such as neutrophil / lymphocyte ratio (NLR) and monocyte / lymphocyte ratio (MLR)can reflect both inflammation and immune deficiency. NLR, MLR has been proposed as a new inflammatory biomarker and a potential predictor of cardiovascular risk. Studies have reported that MLR is associated with cardiovascular death and all-cause death risk in hemodialysis patients, and is superior to NLR. However, the relationship between MLR and the prognosis of patients with peritoneal dialysis is rarely reported. Therefore, in this study, we aimed to evaluate the association of MLR with risk of death and cardiovascular events in PD patients.

Protocol synopsis Sponsor: Oslo University Hospital Title: Fibrosis, inflammation and cerebral infarction in patients with atrial fibrillation Study Design: The study is an observational prospective study of atrial fibrillation patients undergoing direct-current cardioversion. Primary Objective: To assess the prevalence and causes of new silent cerebral ischemic lesions after programmed direct-current cardioversion using diffusion-weighted sequences in brain MRI (DWMRI). Secondary Objectives: To study the impact of inflammation measured by biomarkers and cardiac 18F-FDG-PET on the risk for new silent cerebral ischemic lesions after direct-current cardioversion for AF. To assess the impact of fibrosis measured by biomarkers on the risk for new silent cerebral ischemic lesions after direct-current cardioversion for AF. To assess cognitive and cerebral structural and metabolic changes after direct-current cardioversion for AF using cognitive assessments and cerebral and cardiac 18F-FDG-PET before and 12 months after treatment. Number of Subjects: 50 Study Centers: Østfold Hospital Trust Duration of Study Participation: Enrollment: 18 months Follow-up period: 12 months Total Study Duration: 30 months Primary Endpoints: • Number of new small cerebral infarcts detected with DWMRI two weeks after direct current cardioversion. Secondary Endpoints: Rate of AF recurrence within 1 year after direct current cardioversion Change in levels of inflammation biomarkersfrom baseline to 12 months follow-up Change in levels of fibrosis biomarkers from baseline to 12 months follow-up Cognitive function at 12 months follow-up Changes in uptake pattern on cerebral 18F-FDG-PET from baseline to 12 months follow-up Changes in uptake pattern on cardiac 18F-FDG-PET from baseline to 12 months follow-up Brain volume at 12 months follow-up White matter volume 12 months follow-up Grey matter volume 12 months follow-up Cortical volume 12 months follow-up RSI-derived diffusion parameters 12 months follow-up: fast apparent diffusion coefficient, extracellular water fraction, fractional anisotropy; free water fraction; intracranial volume; NAWM: normal appearing white matter; neurite density; RSI: restriction spectrum imaging; sADC: slow apparent diffusion coefficient;restricted fractional anisotropy; white matter lesions.

The objective is to compare the gene expression of B1 and / or B2 monocyte receptors between patients with hereditary bradykinetic angioedema and control subjects.

Migraine is prevalent in 10-12% of the population. It involves the development of a cranial perivascular neurogenic inflammation. Recent information suggests that migraine might be a risk factor to stroke. The possible mechanisms that might relate migraine and stroke are: 1. Migraineous infarction 2. A primary endothelial disorder. 3. Genetic relation 4. An ongoing inflammatory process. C reactive protein (CRP) is a sensitive marker for an inflammatory process.The data on the relation of migraine to inflammation is limited. The aim of the current study is to assess inflammatory factors as possible markers for migraine.

Individuals with type 2 diabetes have an increased risk of developing cognitive dysfunction followed by dementia in late life. Obesity, physical inactivity and "systemic low-grade inflammation" are strong risk factors and play a crucial role in this network of diseases. Brain-derived Neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is produced in brain as well as several tissues outside brain eg muscle cells. Low BDNF are associated with cognitive dysfuction, obesity and type 2 diabetes. The investigators include 200 individuals divided into three groups: 80 individuals with type 2 diabetes, 80 age and BMI-matched controls and 40 individuals with impaired glucose tolerance. The project will test the hypothesis, that low systemic BDNF are associated with accumulation of abdominal fat, cognitive dysfunction and insulin resistence with different effect in men and women.