Active clinical trials for "Pancreatitis"

Purpose: The overall objective of this study is to learn more about the disease chronic pancreatitis and thus contribute to better treatments. The investigators will gain this by studying the effects of vitamin D in the body immune system and bones. The investigators will also study the uptake of vitamin D through the intestine compared with the amount of vitamin D obtained through exposure to UVB rays. The investigators have set a series of questions which the investigators want to answer with this experiment: Do patients with chronic pancreatitis have reduced absorption of vitamin D from the gut? Have the two treatment methods with vitamin D, UV radiation and tablets, the same success rate? Does the distribution of the white blood cells change when the vitamin D level increases and does it depend on whether the patient have UVB radiation or tablet with vitamin D? Will patients require reduced amounts of painkillers when vitamin D level increases? Does vitamin D have influence on blood sugar and thus the risk of diabetes or worsening of this? Could vitamin D affect the blood content of inflammation markers? Does the patient feel better when he takes vitamin D? Does bone strength increase when the patients receive grants of vitamin D?

The purpose of this study is to determine the efficacy of 2 different doses of intramuscular (IM) vitamin D3 as compared to an oral replacement dose in normalizing vitamin D levels in the blood of patients with tropical calcific pancreatitis.

Activated protein C (APC)has been shown to reduce mortality in severe sepsis(Bernard et al. 2001b). The clinical picture of severe acute pancreatitis (AP) is similar to that of sepsis. The investigators conducted a randomised double-blinded placebo-controlled pilot study in AP patients (16+16) with the same dose of APC that has been proven to be efficacious and safe in septic patients. The aim of the study is to investigate whether the APC replacement therapy diminishes the occurrence and severity of organ dysfunction in patients with severe AP. The effect of APC on inflammatory and hemostatic parameters is also assessed.

To assess the effect of RG1068 at a dose of 0.2 mcg/kg intravenously (IV) on the diameter of the pancreatic duct when used during Multidetector Computed Tomography (MDCT) of the pancreas. To demonstrate that RG1068-enhanced MDCT improves image quality of the pancreas in patients with chronic pancreatitis. To evaluate if RG1068 enhanced MDCT results in improved delineation of structural abnormalities of the pancreatic duct as compared to non-enhanced MDCT.

This is a triple-blind, parallel group, randomized controlled trial to assess the benefit of triamcinolone injection as a therapeutic measure for control of chronic pancreatitis pain. The treatment group will undergo EUS-CPB with bupivicaine plus triamcinolone ("therapeutic block"). There control group will undergo EUS-CPB with bupivicaine alone ("diagnostic block").

This study assesses the efficacy and safety of Viokase® 16 for the correction of steatorrhea (malabsorption of dietary fats) in patients with a history of exocrine pancreatic insufficiency (EPI) due to chronic pancreatitis (CP) or pancreatectomy. This study is sponsored by Aptalis Pharma (formerly Axcan).

Laparoscopic cholecystectomy (removal of the gall bladder via 'keyhole surgery') is a common procedure. This can be performed as an emergency operation when a patient has a complication of gall stones such as acute inflammation or pancreatitis. There are several trials which demonstrate that placing local anaesthetic inside the abdomen at the site of gall bladder surgery during a planned elective operation decreases post operative pain. This is the first trial to investigate the efficacy of this local anaesthetic during emergency cholecystectomy.

Study hypothesis: Combination of antioxidants and pregabalin results in better pain relief than placebo in patients with chronic pancreatitis. Chronic pancreatitis (CP) is a clinical enigma, with pain being the most distressing symptom that brings the patient to clinical attention. Pain in chronic pancreatitis is multifactorial, and may be related to pancreatic ductal hypertension, tissue hypertension, inflammatory cytokines, oxidative stress and neuropathic mechanisms like mechanical allodynia, inflammatory hyperalgesia and temporal summation. The mainstay of treatment for pain in CP due to pancreatic ductal stone is endotherapy (ESWL and ERCP). Recent randomized controlled trials have shown that antioxidant cocktail and pregabalin (a presynaptic voltage gated calcium channel blocking agent) can result in significant reduction of pain in CP. In this study, the investigators will study the efficacy of the combination of antioxidants and pregabalin in reducing pain and compare that with placebo. The investigators will randomize patients with documented chronic pancreatitis with recurrent/persistent pain after undergoing endotherapy and ductal clearance into three groups: Group A- antioxidants + pregabalin; Group B- Placebo. The primary outcome will be change in pain score and the secondary outcomes will be change in the number of painful days, analgesic requirements, quality of life and depression scale. Pain score will be quantified by the Izbicki pain score and visual analog scale; while quality of life and depression will be measured by the EORTC QLQ-C30/PAN26 and Beck depression inventory respectively. Comparison between Group A vs B will be made by the Chi square test/Fischer Exact and the Student's 't' tests respectively and analysis will be done on a intention to treat and per protocol basis. With an expected improvement of pain by 40% (at 80% power and alpha of 0.05) and adjusting for a presumed 10% drop out rate, the required sample size in each group will be at least 40.

Chronic pancreatitis is a progressive inflammatory disease of the pancreas that presents with abdominal pain and in late stages may cause diabetes and malnutrition. The pain may be incapacitating and may affect patients physically, mentally and socially. Pain due to chronic pancreatitis is difficult to treat. Oxidative stress and free radical mediated injury has been shown to cause pancreatic inflammation. It has been shown that patients with chronic pancreatitis are deficient in micronutrients and natural antioxidants such as b-carotene, vitamin E and C etc. Studies have suggested that antioxidant supplementation may help to combat pain in these patients. Antioxidant supplementation may decrease the oxidative stress and boost the antioxidant status, thereby resulting in pain relief. The investigators have planned to perform a trial to study the effect of antioxidant supplementation on pain relief in patients with chronic pancreatitis.

Acute pancreatitis(A) often complicated with Intra-abdominal Hypertension. After the onset of acute pancreatitis, capillary leakage causing ascites,upper gastrointestinal tract obstruction and paralytic ileus leading to an elevated IAP, severe IAH leads to ACS with high mortality. Neostigmine is an anti-cholinesterase drugs, can enhance intestinal peristalsis, promote flatus defecation. The aim of this study was to determine the effect of neostigmine on reducing abdominal pressure and clinical prognosis in patients with AP by promoting intestinal peristalsis and defecation.