Active clinical trials for "Wounds and Injuries"

Each year in the United States alone, a third of a million persons are hospitalized for traumatic brain injury (TBI), of whom approximately 1/4 die. Most are less than 30 years of age. Not only are the health care costs staggering for both initial care and rehabilitation, but the societal loss in terms of economic impact reaches into the billions of dollars annually in the U.S. alone. Despite advances in neurosurgical interventions and intensive care management, many survivors do not fully recover. A significant cause of this mortality and morbidity is thought due to potentially preventable secondary injury, namely oxidant injury, inflammation, and apoptosis in the penumbra (the area of brain surrounding the primary lesion, which is at-risk, but potentially salvageable), beginning in the first few hours after the severe traumatic event. Despite the current bleak outlook for many of these patients, a series of animal investigations have uncovered a promising solution to the problem of the secondary injury seen in severe TBI and other similar processes, namely the early administration of estrogen, a strong anti-oxidant, anti-inflammatory and anti-apoptotic compound. Based on these encouraging results from animal studies, the investigators hypothesize that early administration of IV Premarin® in patients with severe TBI will safely reduce secondary brain injury, improve neurological outcomes, and improve survival.

The purpose of this study is to test an on-line intervention for families of young children who have experienced moderate or severe traumatic brain injury (TBI). Previous interventions were not designed to address the needs of young children with TBI, and feedback revealed a desire for more examples and materials appropriate for families of younger children. This project builds upon the investigators previous research by modifying the online intervention content to address the needs of young children with TBI. The goal of this project is to develop an intervention that will encourage positive parenting behaviors, improve child behaviors, and reduce parent distress and burden following TBI. The investigators hypothesize that the intervention group will exhibit more effective parenting skills as well as better child functioning and lower levels of parental distress at follow-up than will the active comparison group.

The purpose of this study is to determine whether the use of a bioelectric wound dressing is effective in the healing of skin graft donor site wounds.

Controversy exists regarding the optimal management of acute traumatic cervical spinal cord injury (SCI), especially those without bone injury. Although surgical decompression is often performed in SCI patients with cervical canal stenosis, efficacy and timing of surgery continues to be a subject of intense debate. In this randomized controlled trial, the investigators compare two strategies: early surgery within 24 hours after admission and delayed surgery following at least 2 weeks of conservative treatment. The purpose of this study is to examine whether early surgery would result in greater improvement in motor function as compared with delayed surgery.

Purpose: To evaluate the efficacy and safety of levetiracetam on chronic neuropathic pain after spinal cord injury, and to examine its effect on spasms and evoked pain.

This is a randomized clinical trial which compares a standard day treatment program for individuals with TBI with the "Executive Plus" program; the latter emphasizes training of attention, emotional self-regulation and problem solving. The goal of the Executive Plus program is to maximize executive functioning, as well as the long-term outcomes of community participation and satisfaction with daily life.

The purpose of this study is to determine the effect of penile vibratory stimulation on the muscle spasticity of men with chronic spinal cord injury.

The purpose of this study is to determine whether there is benefit from providing cognitive rehabilitation in the group setting. Several standardized tools will be used to measure progress when a participant enters the group, leaves the group and at a one year follow-up.

The purpose of this proposal was to evaluate and compare the health benefits of using upper extremity exercise versus functional electrical stimulation for lower extremity exercise. It was our hypothesis that both Functional Electrical Stimulation Leg Cycle Ergometry (FES LCE) exercise and voluntary Arm Crank Ergometry (ACE) upper extremity exercise would increase whole body energy expenditure, thereby increasing muscle mass, insulin sensitivity, glucose effectiveness and improving lipid profiles in adults with paraplegia.

The purpose of this study is to determine if bone marrow progenitor cell (BMPC) autologous transplantation in children after isolated traumatic brain injury is safe and will improve functional outcome.