Active clinical trials for "Toxemia"

Sepsis is a common life-threatening inflammatory response to infection and is the leading cause of death in the intensive care unit. Septic patients exhibit a complex immunosuppressive response affecting both innate and adaptive components of immunity, with a possible link to nosocomial infections. However, the molecular and cellular mechanisms resulting in secondary immunosuppression remain poorly understood, but may involve the antigen-presenting cells (APC, including dendritic cells and monocytes/macrophages) that link innate and adaptive immunity. Furthermore, the increasing phenotypic and functional heterogeneity of APC subsets raise the question of their respective role in sepsis. We propose to address the pathophysiologal role of APC using systems biology approaches in human sepsis. The objective is to go from low- to high-resolution analysis of APC subset diversity and underlying molecular and functional features in sepsis. The global objective will be reached through: Systematic description and phenotypic analysis of circulating APC subsets in sepsis Association of APC subsets distribution, phenotype and function with severe sepsis physiopathology and relevant clinical outcomes (ICU-acquired infections and death) High-resolution molecular profiling of circulating APC subsets using population level and single cell RNAseq. To this aim, the investigator designed a prospective interventional study in order to collect blood samples at significant time points in patients with sepsis or septic shock (the population of interest) and relevant control subjects, either critically ill patients with non-septic acute circulatory failure or age-matched healthy subjects. The study's intervention is limited to additional blood samples. The risks and constraints are related to additional blood samples (maximum 120mL), which will be performed either from an arterial catheter when present in ICU patients, or from a venous puncture for patients without arterial catheters and for healthy volunteers.

Background: Sepsis is a major cause of in-hospital morbidity and mortality. Current tools available to the clinician to initiate therapy of patients with sepsis mainly comprise of symptom classification systems and culture techniques, which provide aspecific and slow information. Objective: The ultimate goal of this program is to assist the physician at the bedside in tailoring the treatment of an individual patient suffering from sepsis by generating rapid molecular information about the causative pathogen and the host response. Deliverables: Rapid tests ("sample-in-result-out") that can be used by health care personnel at or close to the bedside and that provide rapid information (within two hours) about the presence or absence of sepsis, the causative pathogen and the risk of the individual patient for sepsis complications and death. Design: The program is organized into four Work Packages (WPs) along a clinical, discovery and technology platform. In WP1 two university hospitals will enroll 7500 patients admitted to the Intensive Care Unit during the first 3 years of the project; 25% - 40% of these patients will have or will develop sepsis. In WP2 (Pathogen Detection), blood obtained from these patients will be used to develop rapid, fully automated DNA-based bedside tests that identify microorganisms and also provide information about their resistance to antibiotics. In WP3 (Host Response), RNA from blood cells will be analyzed to find novel biomarkers and to develop rapid and easy to perform tests that provide information about the risk profile of the patient. In addition, plasma levels of selected protein biomarkers will be measured for comparison of their value with that of the identified leukocyte molecular signatures. WP4 is responsible for the ICT management of the project. The Clinical Platform (covered by WP1 and WP4) delivers patient data and biological samples to the discovery and technology platforms. The Discovery Platform (covered by WP2 and WP3) uses patient data and biological samples to develop tests for detection of the infectious agent causing sepsis and for stratification of patients according to their risk for sepsis complications, including death. The results generated within the discovery platform will be delivered to the technology platform. The Technology Platform (part of WP2 and WP3) has the specific aim to develop rapid assays that run on a fully automated (micro)fluidics platform that is so easy to operate that it can be used in decentralized settings such as (close to) the ICU. The developed assays will make use of the knowledge generated in the discovery platform.

Septic shock is a systemic inflammatory response syndrome with acute circulatory failure secondary to a documented infection. It is the most feared complication in ICU patients, with a 50% mortality rate. The study of stem cells and their experimental use in sepsis treatment is particularly relevant in the international scientific research, where Italy plays an important role. In the vast and complex field of stem cell research, the primary aim of the current proposal is to evaluate the time course level of circulating endothelial progenitor stem cells CD34 + / CD133 + (EPCs), and some factors EPCs-related, such as hypoxia- inducible factor (HIF- 1) and stromal derived factor-1 (SDF-1) in septic patients undergoing major abdominal surgery. Secondary objective 2: to investigate the relationship between CD133/CD34, HIF-1, SDF-1a and outcome of septic/septic shock patients treated with standard conventional therapy alone (CT) or with extracorporeal hemoperfusion therapy (HCT).

To observe the changes of plasma hepatocyte growth factor and soluble receptor s-Met levels in patients with sepsis, and to explore its clinical significance.

Evaluate the relationship of RDW and severity and mortality in patients with neonatal sepsis . Using RDW as a simple, inexpensive, applicable and rapid test to detect prognosis of neonatal sepsis .

In 2004, the Surviving Sepsis Campaign (SSC) introduced guidelines for the management of severe sepsis and septic shock, as well as strategies for bedside implementation. The treatment recommendations were organized in two bundles. In an international study, enrolling adult patients with severe sepsis admitted to these intensive care units, investigators found that while mortality from severe sepsis is high (44.5%), compliance with resuscitation and management bundles is generally poor in much of Asia. Investigators need to identify the patients at risk for high in-hospital mortality in order to take appropriate steps. From their past studies, investigators found that sepsis involved inflammation and coagulation. The multiple organ involvement was associated with interaction of novel biomarkers such as cytokines. There is limited data regarding comparing and application of biomarkers of different characteristic on sepsis treatment. A simultaneous detection of multiple cytokines may provide significant prognostic information. For other biomarkers, promising observation data have been put forward, but their potential needs to be evaluated in large-scale, well-designed prospective intervention studies before clinical use can be recommended. Besides many clinical studies on biomarkers were confounded by its lack of standard bundle care for severe sepsis patient. Here investigators performed a systematic study aimed at evaluating the individual and combined diagnostic accuracy of biomarkers for predicting mortality; whether trend change in biomarker level more useful for above prediction; which biomarker or biomarker combination checked can predict patients at risk of evolving with severe organ dysfunctions.

We propose to develop novel diagnostic tests for severe sepsis and community acquired pneumonia (CAP). This program, entitled Community Acquired Pneumonia & Sepsis Outcome Diagnostics (CAPSOD), is a multidisciplinary collaboration involving investigators at six organizations: NCGR; Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC; Henry Ford Hospital, Detroit, MI; Eli Lilly and Company, Indianapolis, IN; Indiana Centers for Applied Protein Sciences, Indianapolis, IN; and ProSanos Corp., La Jolla, CA. In the United States, Community Acquired Pneumonia is the sixth leading cause of death and the number one cause of death from infectious diseases. Of the 5.6 million annual cases of CAP, 1.1 million require hospitalization for intensive therapy. Sepsis, commonly known as blood poisoning or bloodstream infection, is the tenth leading cause of death in the US and the number one cause of death in non-cardiac intensive care units. Incidence of sepsis is increasing by 9% each year and mortality rates vary between 25 and 50%. Cost to the US healthcare system exceeds $20 billion each year. In patients with suspected sepsis or early CAP, rapid identification of patients who will develop severe sepsis or CAP is critical for effective management and positive outcome. The CAPSOD study is designed to identify novel tests for early diagnosis of severe sepsis and CAP. When performed in patients at the earliest stages of disease, these tests will have prognostic value, rapidly identifying those who will have poor outcomes or complicated courses. CAPSOD will prospectively enroll patients with sepsis and CAP at Duke University Medical Center and Henry Ford Hospital. The study will use advanced bioinformatic, metabolomic, proteomic and mRNA sequencing technologies to identify specific protein changes, or biomarkers, in patient blood samples that predict outcome in sepsis and CAP. Development of biomarker-based tests will permit patient selection for appropriate disposition, such as the intensive care unit, and use of intensive medical therapies, thereby reducing mortality and increasing effectiveness of resource allocation.

The primary purpose of this study is to assess the status of vitamin A in critically ill children with sepsis and its association with the ill severity. The second purpose is to evaluate the performance of three tools in predicting mortality in our population which are used for measuring the illness severity in pediatric intensive care units.

Initial sepsis treatment requires fluid challenge. While the Surviving Sepsis Campaign indicates a 30 ml/kg volume, there is concerns on the efficacy and safety of this fixed volume. The aim of this study is to assess the difference between fluid volume determined par cardiac and lung Ultrasound versus the fixed 30 ml/kg.

The current project was designed to examine the metabolic level of branched-chain amino acids in plasm and monocyte/macrophage, and its role in immune dysfunction during sepsis.