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This project aims to identify the relationship between biochemical markers in wound fluid and wound healing in chronic venous leg ulcers being treated with compression therapy. A randomised controlled trial will determine the effect of high level compression on wound fluid composition and wound healing in comparison to low level compression therapy. Identification of biochemical markers directly associated with improved healing will provide important new information for health care professionals on the biological processes underlying wound healing during compression. The overall aim is to gain a better understanding of the wound healing process and to utilise this knowledge to develop improved techniques to increase healing rates of leg ulcers, a significant cause of chronic ill-health for older people.

This study aims to compare the cosmetic outcomes of skin incisions made by diathermy and scalpel blade. Patients undergoing open hernia repair or elective midline laparotomy surgery will be recruited for this study. Each half of the incision (medial/lateral or superior/inferior) will be randomised into scalpel(control) or diathermy(intervention). Patients are blinded to this randomisation process. Primary outcome is the patient’s and independent observer’s assessment of which half of the wound has the better cosmetic outcome.

We will test to see if the addition of sterile water injections for the relief of back pain in labour to standard pharmacological (nitrous oxide gas, narcotics, epidural) and non-pharmaclogical analgesic options ( shower, water immersion, massage, heat, aromatherapy, TENS) will affect birth outcomes, specifically the rates of caesarean section.

The aim of this study is to evaluate the efficacy and safety of percutaneous catheter-based direct intramyocardial injection of autologous bone marrow cells, a new therapeutic strategy, in patients with severe CAD experiencing symptoms of angina and chronic ischaemic heart failure, where all conventional medical treatment options have been exhausted. Our recent randomised, placebo controlled trial (Angiogenesis - Protect CAD) demonstrated the beneficial effects of bone marrow cell therapy over placebo saline injection on symptoms, functional capacity and LVEF in patients with chronic myocardial ischaemia who failed conventional medical treatment and revascularisation procedures. However, the clinical implications of this treatment for severe CAD needs to be demonstrated in a larger population with more definitive primary endpoints. Positive evidence to support the use of this therapeutic approach may have a profound impact on the health and well being of chronically ill CAD patients, by providing a catheter-based treatment that is cost-effective and utilises easily reproducible techniques for the harvesting and injection of bone marrow. Furthermore, the patients's own bone marrow may be considered as a readily available resource which overcomes issues associated with immunological rejection response.

The primary purpose of the study is to investigate the effect of critical illness on blood flow to the gastrointestinal tract during feeding and the absorption of sugar in older patients. We hypothesize that the change in blood flow to the gastrointestinal tract during feeding and the absorption of sugar in ICU patients will be less than that of healthy volunteers. This may indicate a possible mechanism for malabsorption during critical illness or alternatively, when to start feeding critically ill patients via the gastrointestinal route.

Infants of women with diabetes in pregnancy have an increased risk of low blood sugar and other complications after birth and of developing diabetes and being obese later in life. Many maternity providers encourage these women to express breast milk before birth to have it available if the infant needs supplementary feeding. Evidence for this practice is lacking so we are planning the first study exploring the safety and effectiveness of antenatal expression of breast milk in late pregnancy for women with diabetes in pregnancy.

The aim of the study is to investigate the efficacy of chronotherapy (altering ingestion time of study medication Perindopril) to improve and provide a better overall control of hypertension in patients with Obstructive Sleep Apnoea.

The purpose of the study is to examine the effectiveness of an internet-based treatment program for depression. This will be achieved by comparing the Depression Online (DO) fully automated self help treatment program to a person who monitors their mood (‘self monitoring’ or waitlist control) over a 12 week period. The aim of this comparison is to will determine how effective the DO program is in the treatment of depression. The importance of the treatment of depression has become a focus for many researchers because the World Health Organisation has predicted that depression would be the world’s second biggest cause of death by 2020. A recent survey (The Australian National Mental Health Survey) found that only a third of respondents who reported experiencing a depressive or anxiety disorder sought professional assistance and only 10 percent consulted a psychologist or psychiatrist for specialised face-to-face treatments. Given the high prevalence of the disorder, the online environment provides an elegant solution to meet the largely unmet needs of depressed (and anxious) people by providing them with relatively easy access to efficacious treatments. Internet-based psychological treatments (‘eTherapies’) have been vigorously evaluated over the past decade and many have been shown to be effective, safe and acceptable forms of mental health treatment. As eTherapies have a broad reach capacity, they enable the delivery of specialist psychological support far beyond the capability of traditional face-to-face services. Depression Online is one of the programs that aims to do this.

This study looks at the effectiveness of the addition of radiotherapy to surgery on local relapse and survival in patients with neurotropic melanoma. Who is it for? You can join this study if you have neurotropic primary melanoma in the head or neck, and have had no previous surgery and you will be treated at Princess Alexandra Hospital in Queensland (Other sites around Australia will be opened within the next six months). Trial details Participants will be in two groups. Both groups will receive surgery to excise their melanomas, and then one group will be randomised to receive follow-up post-operative radiation therapy. The other group will be randomised to observation only after their surgery, with follow-up occurring every 3 months for the first 2 years, then every 6 months for the next 3 years. The aim of the study is to compare the local relapse rate, survival, side effects and quality of life between the two groups.

This study will assess whether new cerals made with a new variant of barley deliver digestive health benefits to consumers.