ANZCTR search results

The induced blood stage malaria (IBSM) model provides an attractive tool to test the efficacy of vaccines and drugs for non-immune subjects in a rapid and cost effective manner. The purpose of this pilot clinical trial is to characterise the P. falciparum 3D7-MBE008 MCB as a malaria challenge agent for use in future IBSM studies.

Study Title Evaluating the translation of an online chronic pain treatment program into clinical practice – can the addition of telephone support improve adherence and outcomes? Objectives Primary: To evaluate the efficacy of the addition of telephone support to the Reboot Online program compared to the usual Reboot Online program treatment in improving adherence to online chronic pain management. Secondary: : To evaluate the efficacy of the addition of telephone support to the Reboot Online program compared to the usual Reboot Online program treatment on outcome measures of chronic pain management. Chronic pain outcome measures will be the Tampa Scale of Kinesiophobia, Brief Pain Inventory, Pain Disability Index, Pain Self-efficacy Questionnaire, International Physical Activity Questionnaire

This prospective single centre randomised, controlled, assessor-blinded study, will investigate the effects of intrapulmonary percussive ventilation (IPV) in non-ventilated patients admitted to intensive care unit (ICU) on their length of stay (LOS), oxygenation and pulmonary complications (mainly pulmonary atelectasis and consolidation) compared to standard chest physiotherapy (CPT). Patients admitted to intensive care unit, who are not ventilated, will be randomised to receive IPV treatment (intervention group) or standard CPT (control group) until discharge from physiotherapy. Outcomes in both the groups will include; number of days in ICU, changes in peripheral oxygen saturation and oxygen requirement pre and one hour post each IPV or CPT session, as well as chest x-rays scores before and after treatment. We hypothesise that participants who receive IPV intervention will have better outcomes compared to participants who receive standard chest physiotherapy.

This randomised controlled mixed methods pilot study aims to 1) compare the relative effectiveness of individualised yoga compared group yoga interventions for reducing depression and anxiety, and 2) to examine how the effectiveness of these two different intervention modalities may be influenced by patient preference.

The objective of the Shared Team Efforts Leading to Adherence Results (STELAR) study is to demonstrate whether an active, multi-component quality improvement program that is aligned with a prospective clinical quality disease registry is effective for improving care in hospitals. In this study we sought to increase the proportion of patients with stroke or transient ischaemic attack (TIA) receiving nationally endorsed clinical care processes. Each participating hospital will contribe control data (usual care provided to patients with stroke) which will be compared to care provided following the intervention. The intervention in this step-wedged cluster randomized trial included four phases: pre-workshop survey, two externally facilitated workshops and a two-month support period.

The current study aims to provide evidence for the effectiveness of the CUPS program that uses an integrated approach for teaching nutrition and mathematics in the primary school curriculum. The impact on nutrition knowledge and portion size estimation skills will be explored as these outcomes are expected to improve in comparison with the control group teaching their usual maths lessons.

The beneficial effects of physical activity and exercise on pain, function and quality of life in people with chronic musculoskeletal pain are well-described. In rodents, exercise can reduce neuropathic pain and improve nerve function and structure, but whether physical activity and exercise improve these same outcomes in people with neuropathic pain is poorly understood. Improving understanding of the relationship between physical activity with pain and nerve structure/function in people with diabetic peripheral neuropathy, as well as the effect of a single bout of exercise on these outcomes, could help improve exercise programming to prevent or slow progression of diabetic neuropathy. We hypothesise that an acute bout of exercise will briefly reduce pain in people with diabetic neuropathy. We also hypothesise that people with diabetic neuropathy who are more physically active will report less pain and have less impaired nerve structure and function.

Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a common sleep disorder linked with impaired driving performance. The problem is that the current standard tests to evaluate driving ability is very labour intensive and expensive, limiting its utility to only a small portion of OSA patients. The aim is to validate biomarkers of alertness failure and driving impairment in patients with OSA towards developing a clinically deployable, simplified and cost effect fitness to drive assessment. We expect that, on the basis of biomarkers that can be easily obtained in clinical sleep services, we can identify OSA patients at high risk of driving impairment and accidents, and distinguish them from patients who are at negligible risk.

Training junior clinicians requires appropriate case selection and supervision. Thus, randomising patients to be exposed to trainees is problematic. We designed a retrospective observational study examining prospectively collected data. Data will be retrieved from an ongoing audit database of every regional anaesthesia procedure performed by the dedicated regional anaesthesia service of our hospital. This service performs regional anaesthesia using a block room or block team model. The principal proceduralist was recorded immediately after performance of the block as either a consultant or registrar. The study group includes all patients who received care from supervised trainees. The comparator group included patients who received regional anaesthesia care from consultant anaesthestists. Null hypothesis: There is no difference in the effectiveness of regional anaesthesia (defined as inadequate analgesia [NRS >5] in PACU) when supervised trainees are the principal proceduralist, when compared with consultants.

Phantom limb sensations are well-known phenomena, occurring in up to 55-80% of amputees. A subset of these individuals experience a neuropathic pain syndrome known as phantom limb pain (PLP), which can occur from days to years after amputation. This can be both psychological and physically draining for amputees. The vestibular (balance) system is widely integrated within the somatosensory system and is thought to modulate the perception of neuropathic pain. The aim of this study is to investigate the use of caloric vestibular stimulation (CVS) for alleviating PLP. Activation of the vestibular system by CVS may represent a novel, safe and alternative therapy for patients suffering from PLP.