ANZCTR search results

The use of the combination of lamivudine (LAM) and low dose hepatitis B immune globulin (HBIg) prophylaxis has had a major impact on the rate of recurrence of hepatitis B following liver transplantation. However, the long-term use of HBIg is extremely costly and very inconvenient for patients. There is a clear need to develop an alternative more convenient and less costly long-term prophylactic regimen for use in this patient group. The aim of the proposed study is to assess the safety and efficacy of switching to tenofovir and lamivudine therapy in patients who have been receiving long-term HBIg and lamivudine prophylaxis post-liver transplant.

This research is designed to specifically compare the performance of the bronchoscopes in the clinical setting using a validated rating scale for bronchoscopic performance – the Global Rating Scale

This research project is aiming to determine the effects of Bacopa on cognitive function, cardiovascular function and stress. Bacopa is a herb found in wetlands and muddy shore lines that has been used in traditional Indian medicine as a treatment for epilepsy and asthma. Russo & Borrelli (2005) claim that it has been used for over 3000 years as a memory and intellect enhancer. There is also evidence to suggest that Bacopa is an antioxidant, playing an important role in reducing the oxidation of fats in the bloodstream. This study will investigate the cognitive, cardiovascular and stress effects of two doses of bacopa compared to placebo. Participants will be required to attend three testing sessions (and one practice session). Each session will see participants taking one of three interventions (administered in capsules); (1) Bacopa Monniera – 300mg (2 x 150mg capsules, 2 x placebo capsules) (2) Bacopa Monneria – 600mg (4 x 150mg capsules) (3) Placebo (4 x capsules) On the testing days participants will complete baseline testing (consisting of the Cognitive demand battery and cardiovascular measures) after which they will be administered their randomly assigned treatment. Two hours post dose participant will complete the testing again (Cognitive demand battery and cardiovascular measures). There will be a seven day washout period and the process will be repeated again. Over the course of the investigation, participants will complete all three treatments with treatment order being randomised and counter! balanced across participants. Russo, A. and F. Borrelli (2005). "Bacopa monniera, a reputed nootropic plant: an overview." Phytomedicine 12(4): 305-317.

This is a clinical trial investigating improved outcomes for children and adolescents with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. Who is it for? You (or your child) may be eligible to join this study if you are aged between 1 and 18 years of age, and have been newly diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia.The Study 9 research study is being done in order to maximise the chance of curing your child’s ALL while at the same time lowering the chance of significant short- and long-term side effects.

The aim of the study is to investigate the acute postprandial effects of prior resistance exercise on a low dairy calcium breakfast, and to gain an appreciation of its effects relative to the high dairy calcium breakfast. We therefore hypothesized that prior resistance exercise would obviate the poorer post-prandial fat oxidation and thermogenesis following low calcium to a level found after a high calcium meal.

The Alfred Hospital Trauma Service admits over 5000 patients per year with 1 in 5 deemed to have suffered major trauma (Trauma Registry, The Alfred, Trauma Audit 2010). Acute hospital care must be as efficient and effective as possible, given the high demand and the current pressure on inpatient beds. The doctors stabilise the patient medically and surgically as soon as possible, while the allied health team prepares the patient physically, psychologically and socially for timely discharge. For the trauma physiotherapists this involves treating patients in the emergency department, the intensive care unit and the ward. Despite dedicated clinical resources, trauma patient care may be impacted on by other acute care priorities and this can result in sub-optimal patient recovery and delayed discharge. A recent audit (2010) undertaken in the trauma service at The Alfred revealed only 33% of patients who could sit out of bed for meals, actually did so. We hypothesize that inadequate resources and low patient self confidence results in an unacceptable achievement of simple daily tasks after trauma. The optimal intensity / frequency of physiotherapy intervention for trauma patients in the acute care is unclear. Studies have shown early and intensive physiotherapy to be safe following stroke (Bernhardt et al 2008) and within the intensive care context (Schweickert et al 2008, Hopkins et al 2009). It also assists with functional independence and discharge destination gains following acquired brain injury (Turner-Stokes et al 2005), femoral fracture (Oldmeadow et al 2006, Pendleton et al 2007) and ankle fracture (Kimmel et al 2010). The goal of the physiotherapy intervention in the acute hospital is to prepare the patient physically for discharge to the community, commonly detailed as independence in transfers and ambulation (with or without a gait aid) and the ability to safely negotiate steps. These criteria are achieved through a regime of strengthening exercises and gait retraining. It seems reasonable to hypothesise that success may be enhanced by increasing the patients opportunity to practice these skills and may result in improved functional ability, a shorter hospital length of stay and more discharges directly home. Information regarding the optimal intensity / frequency of physiotherapy input will inform appropriate resource allocation to ensure maximum benefit for the patient, their families and the health care system.

This research project is aiming to determine the effects of Bacopa on cognitive function, cardiovascular function and stress. Bacopa is a herb found in wetlands and muddy shore lines that has been used in traditional Indian medicine as a treatment for epilepsy and asthma. Russo & Borrelli (2005) claim that it has been used for over 3000 years as a memory and intellect enhancer. There is also evidence to suggest that Bacopa is an antioxidant, playing an important role in reducing the oxidation of fats in the bloodstream. This study will investigate the cognitive, cardiovascular and stress effects of two doses of bacopa compared to placebo. Participants will be required to attend three testing sessions (and one practice session). Each session will see participants taking one of three interventions (administered in capsules); (1) Bacopa Monniera – 300mg (2 x 150mg capsules, 2 x placebo capsules) (2) Bacopa Monneria – 600mg (4 x 150mg capsules) (3) Placebo (4 x capsules) On the testing days participants will complete baseline testing (consisting of the cognitive battery, cardiovascular measures and stress testing) after which they will be administered their randomly assigned treatment. Two hours post dose participant will complete the testing again (cognitive battery, cardiovascular measures and stress testing). There will be a seven day washout period and the process will be repeated again. Over the course of the investigation, participants will complete all three treatments with treatment order being randomised and counterbalanced across participants. Russo, A. and F. Borrelli (2005). "Bacopa monniera, a reputed nootropic plant: an overview." Phytomedicine 12(4): 305-317

The project aims to assess the impact of an Integrated Point of Care Testing service (IPcOT) within the emergency department. Point of care testing (PoCT) involves the installation of a blood analyser within the emergency department that can process a selection of specific tests. The emergency department staff operates the machine, and a result is available in a few minutes. IPoCT involves integrating this machine with the hospital pathology service so that the results of testing performed on this machine are recorded within the SEALS database, and these results can be accessed through the patients electronic medical record. It would seem intuitive that having a IPoCT machine in the ED would have obvious benefits with rapid availability of blood tests allowing rapid decision making that would translate into shorter ED LOS. However, this does not take into account that a IPoCT machine must be operated by ED staff, rather than the lab staff, increasing the work load of ED staff and diverting them away from their usual duties. The IPoCT machine may be able to process a single sample in several minutes, however, in a busy ED where many patients require blood tests simultaneously it is likely that multiple staff will be competing to process blood samples on the one machine, leading to a back-log of tests so that turn-around times for IPoCT could be much longer than expected. The aim of this study is to determine the impact that the availability of point of care testing has on time to admission/discharge decision, and a secondary objective is to perform an economic evaluation (ie what is the cost per unit time saved in decision making time?).

The purpose of this study is to determine if nutrients that have been shown to improve blood flow and increase circulating insulin-like growth factor 1 concentrations in the blood can improve both blood flow in the ovary and elevate the concentration of insulin-like growth factor 1 in the follicular fluid surrounding the eggs. The ability to increase the concentration of IGF-1 in follicular fluid surrounding the eggs in the ovary in this way may provide an inexpensive and simple alternative to growth hormone treatment for improving egg quality in patients undergoing IVF treatment.

To determine whether a brief period of topical glucose application to the eye can transiently elevate the vitreous glucose concentration. This is a pilot study designed to provide motivation (or not) to proceed to further research. It would be inappropriate to proceed without a pilot study of this nature We aim to proceed to a human trial using topical glucose as a neurorecovery agent in glaucoma patients. However, before proceeding to this trial we need to establish that topical glucose can elevate the vitreous glucose concentration. This is a Phase I type study in the sense that glucose eye drops have not been previously used therapeutically and we are not assessing efficacy. But it differs from a classic Phase I study in the sense that we are not seeking to assess the dose at which the glucose becomes unacceptably toxic; however, we believe that a modified dose escalation strategy would provide the optimal safety and still provide the necessary vitreous concentration data for statistical analysis.