Active clinical trials for "Liver Diseases"

The purpose of the study is to determine the effect of intermittent fasting on insulin secretion and insulin sensitivity in skeletal muscle and fat distribution.

The researchers will recruit patients with liver disease at Parkland Hospital. Patients will fast overnight, and the next morning will receive an oral mixture of [U-13C3]glycerol (25 mg/kg) plus unlabeled glycerol (25 mg/kg). The total dose of glycerol will be 50 mg/kg in 100 milliliters of water. The taste is slightly sweet. Blood will be drawn at 60 min and 120 min after the ingestion. Blood glucose will be isolated and analyzed by NMR. The presence of [5,6-13C2]- and [4,5-13C2]glucose indicates preserved mitochondrial function. The researchers anticipate that patients with severe liver disease will show a decrease in mitochondrial function and will inform biosynthetic function of liver mitochondria. After the first 6 successful exams (see power analysis, below), healthy volunteers (age-, gender-, and race-matched) will be studied at the AIRC and subject to the same protocol.

Non Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD) is considered as the component of metabolic syndrome. The prevalence of the same has been increasing rapidly in India, along with an increase in the prevalence of diabetes and obesity. Insulin resistance is the key underlying pathogenetic mechanism of NAFLD. NAFLD accounts for significant morbidity and mortality and the therapeutic options are limited. Insulin sensitizing drugs are used in the management of NAFLD.

Transarterial chemoembolization (TACE) is widely used for unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, the hypoxia caused by TACE in surviving tumor cell leads to release of angiogenic and growth factors contributing to poor outcome. Sorafenib can block tumor cell proliferation and angiogenesis. The hypothesis is that patients with unresectable HCC may benefit from sorafenib in combination with TACE.

Prolonged use of parenteral nutrition can lead to parenteral nutrition associated liver disease (PNALD). The purpose of this study is to determine the effect of treatment with a smaller amount lipid minimization) of our standard soybean oil based intravenous lipid emulsion (Intralipid) versus a fish-oil based lipid emulsion (Omegaven) in infants with severe cholestasis.

This pilot study seeks to demonstrate the efficacy of an intravenous lipid preparation high in omega-3 fatty acids (Omegaven) in the treatment of cholestasis in parenteral nutrition dependent patients with short gut syndrome.

Chronic liver diseases are associated with inflammation. The investigators postulate that Vitamin D may modulate inflammation. Thus the investigators will study the effect of Vitamin D replacement in patients with Hepatitis C infection and Vitamin D deficiency.

Post-Marketing Requirement study to evaluate the safety of octaplas™ versus plasma in patients undergoing orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT). The primary objective is to assess the incidence of hyperfibrinolysis in patients undergoing (OLT) receiving octaplas™ versus regular plasma (e.g., fresh frozen plasma and other FDA and AABB approved plasma products).

The aim of this study is to determine the feasibility of conducting a trial to examine the efficacy of an ω3FA (Omega-3 fatty acid) containing balanced lipid emulsion in the prevention of progression of PNALD in infants with Intestinal Failure/Short Bowel Syndrome (SBS) and early liver dysfunction.

The patient population requiring hepatic resection can demonstrate an unpredictable risk of exhibiting peri-operative coagulopathy resulting either from the pre-operative hepatic pathophysiology or volume of parenchymal resection. Choice of analgesia can be severely limited. Currently, the most commonly described use of combined remifentanil infusion and intrathecal morphine has been in fast-track cardiac surgery. To date, there are no published data describing its use in the context of major hepatobiliary where the investigators predict it may provide adequate analgesia with a lower rate of adverse effects over the first 24 hours after surgery.