ANZCTR search results

This randomised, within subject cross-over pilot study aims to quantify the acute dose-dependent changes in intact anthocyanins (such as cyanidin-3-rutinoside, cyanidin-3-glucoside, peonidin-3-rutinoside and pelargonin-3-rutinoside) and phenolic acid metabolites (such as vanillic acid, hippuric acid, ferulic acid) in biological specimens (urine, faecal matter) over 24 hours after consumption of 200 g and 500 g anthocyanin-rich Tasmanian sweet cherries (‘Lapins’). It is hypothesised that anthocyanin-rich Tasmanian sweet cherry consumption will increase anthocyanin and phenolic acid metabolite biomarkers in biological samples (urine, faecal matter) in a dose-dependent manner. This is a preliminary and fundamental step which will be useful in future studies, as a measure of compliance to the intervention, and may provide evidence of the mechanisms of action by which cherry anthocyanins are perceived to work.

This project will evaluate the impact of implementing 'Smarter Safer Homes'(SSH), a platform designed by CSIRO specifically to support older Australians living in their own homes, through a parallel group randomised controlled trial. The study will recruit 200 participants, 65 years and older, alone or couples (with the partner being an informal carer), using stratified randomisation across metro, regional, and rural/remote aged care sites from four Aged Care Service Providers. Main objectives are to evaluate potential beneficial impact of implementing the SSH platform on: A: - Quality of care provided by Aged Care Providers; - Quality of life for older persons living independently in their homes; - Activities of daily living; - Depression in elderly living independently in their own homes; - Carer burden (informal carers); B: - Health service utilisation including unscheduled visits to hospital, to GPs and Nurse visits; - Existing and changes in service delivery care models, adoption by Aged Care Service Providers - Costs effectiveness Participants will be recruited by appointed site officers at each site. Intervention Group participants will have the SSH sensor kit installed in their homes (including physical environment sensors and human movement sensor networks), be provided with an iPad and have access to the SSH Platform/App for 12 months. The novelty of the SSH platform is its feature of providing an Objective Activities of Daily Living (O-ADL) component and scoring through non-wearable and non-intrusive sensors in the home environment; and the ability to correlate this measure with self- or care-reported status of health and wellbeing. The SSH portal provides access for multidisciplinary care teams to monitor the resident's O-ADL's. During this trial, Intervention Group participant data will be viewed by Aged Care Provider clinical staff at least once/week to optimise care with efficient utilisation of clinical and care workers. Participants allocated to the Control group will continue to receive their existing care.

Alcohol related harm is a significant issue for Australians. Unfortunately, few people seek help early to reduce their alcohol use, despite the effectiveness of available programs. Many barriers to seeking help for problem alcohol use are overcome through confidential, telephone delivered programs that are available after hours. These programs may provide support options for Australians who would never seek treatment in traditional settings due to stigma, service operating hours, thinking the problem isn’t serious enough for treatment, or thinking that it will get better on its own. People age 18+ years, who would like to reduce how much or how often they drink, are invited to take part in this study comparing two types of telephone delivered programs (1. the Ready-to-Change intervention; 2. minimal standard of care). These support programs are delivered over the telephone at times convenient to participants, from anywhere in Australia: - Participants will receive between 4 and 6 telephone calls from their dedicated support caller - Supporting information will be sent - Our researcher will check in with participants at baseline and then 4 times over a 12-month period - Participants will be paid for their time.

The primary purpose of this study is to assess the impact of a multicomponent education package (concerning non-pharmacological management of anxiety and insomnia) on GP registrars’ benzodiazepine prescribing. We hypothesize that an appropriately targeted educational package will improve adherence to evidence-based guidelines regarding prescription of benzodiazepine and non-pharmacological management of anxiety and insomnia for patients by GP registrars participating in a vocational training program.

This research is about ensuring accurate diagnosis of children and adults in Victoria with poor immune systems (or “immune deficiency”). One method for assessing the way the immune system can fight infection is to see how well people respond to immunisations. People with immune deficiencies may respond poorly to immunisation; this information can help their doctors diagnose and treat their conditions. Recently the way the testing is performed has changed, and this study seeks to confirm the new test can be relied upon to accurately diagnose immune deficiency. Pneumovax®23 is a key vaccine used to assess immune system function. It is a licenced vaccine that is given to people who are at risk of infection with the pneumococcal bacteria, and is recommended for all Australians over the age of 65 years. It is not routinely given to healthy people. The Royal Children’s Hospital does the testing for response to Pneumovax®23 for all patients from Victoria and many from across Australia. By giving the Pneumovax®23 to healthy people and testing their blood levels before and 4-6 weeks after immunisation, we will be able to tell if the new lab test is accurate.

Study Aims This study aims to assess the impact of a computerised cognitive training program on the neurotoxic effects of chemotherapy on cognition in breast cancer patients. Who is it for? You may be eligible to participate in this study if you are aged 21 years or older, have been diagnosed with Stage I-III breast cancer and are scheduled to receive chemotherapy treatment. Study details Participants will be randomly assigned (by chance) to receive either the computerised cognitive training program, or continue with standard care. Those in the computerised cognitive training group will undergo 3 x 45 minute sessions for the duration of their chemotherapy (minimum of 18 weeks) The standard care group will be provided with details of the computerised cognitive training program. All participants will undertake a series of clinical assessments, including cognitive, mood, sleep, physical activity, quality of life tests and questionnaires. Potential study outcomes It is hoped this research will inform the treatment of breast cancer patients presenting with detrimental cognitive changes as a result of chemotherapy, and this research may lead to better quality of life for patients.

Total knee arthroplasty (TKA), or total knee replacement surgery, is a successful operation in alleviating pain and improving function for the majority of people with end-stage knee osteoarthritis. However, up to 20% of patients undergoing TKA report some dissatisfaction following their surgery. Dissatisfaction after TKA is multi-factorial, but the surgical causes are commonly related to imbalance of the ligaments (soft tissues) that surround the knee at the time of surgery or slight malalignment of the upper and lower leg bones. Current thinking in the field of total knee replacement centres around optimising the balance of the ligaments as the prostheses are implanted, because it is generally agreed that this equilibrium is associated with the best outcomes for patients. Traditionally, surgeons have decided whether a knee is balanced during surgery by using their experience to manually assess the feel of the joint. Other methods used to balance the knee have involved measuring the space between the femur (thigh bone) and tibia (shin bone) based on ligament tensioning and using computer navigation to assess the stresses across the joint. Since the introduction of wireless sensor technology, surgeons have another tool to measure soft tissue balance and the ways in which the bones move against each other. Intra-operative pressure sensors use micro-electronics to calculate pressure loads in the compartment between the femur and tibia as the knee is bent and straightened out. Surgeons can use this information to appropriately align the implants for optimum balance. The intra-operative device used in this study is called the Verasense pressure monitor, and it is used by some surgeons in knee replacements operations outside this study. It is important to state that there has been no rigorous research to date that shows an association between using the Verasense device and better outcomes such as less pain, more function and overall satisfaction. The aim of this study is to investigate whether there are such benefits to using intra-operative sensors to achieve balance. Participants will be randomly assigned to either a manual balancing (MB) group or a sensor-guided balancing (SGB) group. For patients in the MB group, surgeons will use standard methods to achieve soft tissue balance. For patients in the SGB group, surgeons will use readings from the Verasense device to achieve soft tissue balance. Participants will be followed closely over the course of two years to monitor the progress in each group. The results of this trial will aim to inform future clinical practice with regard to soft-tissue balance and alignment in total knee arthroplasty

During anaesthesia and intensive care multiple physiological measurements are made such as electrocardiogram, arterial blood pressure, pulse oximetry, capnography, lung inflation flows and pressures and processed EEG. The increasing availability of sophisticated signal processing techniques and the computing power to undertake them means that novel indexes can be developed to enhance the effectiveness of the monitors and promote deeper insights into patient wellbeing.. This study will use an observational, opportunisic methodology to assemble a set of deidentified waveforms during anaesthesia and intensive care management. This library will then be available for ad-hoc testing of various signal processing strategies.

General anaesthesia is a very important component of modern surgery, and is necessary for many procedures ranging from kidney transplantation to total hip replacement. Anaesthesia requires the careful delivery of anaesthetic drugs, with constant monitoring of the patient by specialized doctors. To facilitate effective anaesthesia neuromuscular blocking agents (NMBAs) such as rocuronium are often used. These drugs relax muscle, enabling surgery to be performed without patient movement. In the vast majority of individuals these drugs are effective and safe, but in rare cases they can produce a severe life-threatening reaction. This severe allergy-like reaction can make the circulation fail, and during surgery can have potentially fatal consequences. This severe drug reaction has similar features to the allergic response termed anaphylaxis. Anaphylaxis can be seen with food allergies, for example in peanut-sensitive individuals, in whom exposure to peanuts can be life-threatening. The similarity of this response seen with neuromuscular blocking drugs suggests a shared common mechanism. In anaphylactic reactions, the body generates an allergic antibody (called IgE) that interacts with the substance to which the patient is allergic to stimulate special immune cells called mast cells and basophils. These cells then release numerous chemicals, such as histamine, that produce the severe symptoms of anaphylaxis. Whilst this IgE mechanism is important to some drug allergy, there are also cases where no specific IgE can be found to explain the reaction. Recently, a new mechanism has been revealed whereby certain drugs, such as rocuronium, can directly stimulate a receptor protein on the surface of mast cells leading to their activation. Despite this advance, key questions remain - why are only some people affected? Secondly, by understanding this new mechanism - can we identify individuals who are likely to suffer these reactions, sparing them from potentially devastating consequences? This project aims to answer these questions and in so doing provide a more individualised and safer approach to the use of muscle relaxant drugs during surgery.

The purpose of this trial is to investigate the dose-related effects of intragastric administration of the bitter agonist, quinine, a non-nutritive (calorie-free) compound, on energy intake at a subsequent ad libitum buffet style meal, plasma gut hormone concentrations, and appetite perceptions.. The relationship between outcomes and the ability to detect bitter in the oral cavity will also be investigated. We have found previously that specific dietary nutrients, when given into the small intestine in small amounts (and so not contributing significantly to overall energy intake) have the unique ability to substantially stimulate gastrointestinal functions leading to marked energy intake suppression and improvements in postprandial blood glucose. There has been a recent interest in the effects of bitter compounds, some of which also occur in the diet, including thio-urea compounds in certain vegetables or fruit, or quinine in tonic water, with reported effects on gut functions and energy intake suppression. This study aims to characterise the dose-related effects of quinine, when delivered intragastrically, in an effort to identify an optimal dose for beneficial effect on the outcomes mentioned herein. This may then guide future research to evaluate hypotheses that observed effects may be further enhanced by combining nutrients with quinine