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This research project is aiming to investigate whether participating in a strengthening exercise program while receiving dialysis can help patients with chronic kidney disease to be physically fitter and generally feel better.

This study seeks to establish a clinically evidenced base treatment options for the relief of pain associated with calcaneal apophysitis in children between the ages of eight and fourteen years of age. The heel bone is located at the most posterior plantar aspect of the foot. The Achilles tendon attaches into the posterior, lower aspect of the calcaneus and near this attachment is the calcaneus secondary growth centre. This is the site of pain experienced during Calcaneal apophysitsis. Treatment within this study includes two levels of shoe orthoses. A heel raise or prefabricated orthoses. Both of these interventions are widely available, mutually exclusive treatment approaches that are relatively low in cost. The footwear prescription/replacement intervention involves a shoe with a firm heel counter, dual density EVA midsole, and rear foot control. The alternate condition in this factor is “no footwear prescription/replacement” with the participant wearing their own footwear.

The study is a multi-centre, assessor-blind, randomised controlled phase III trial in patients with tetraplegia (a spinal cord injury). A total of 78 participants will be randomised into two groups; 1. the experimental group and 2. the control group. The control group will receive standard rehabilitation care, while the experimental group will receive standard rehabilitation care plus the study treatment which involves one hour of extra hand training using a specialised glove and computer workstation, 5 times a week. The primary objective is to determine if the study treatment is more effective than standard rehabilitation care alone in participants with tetraplegia. The secondary objectives involve collecting exploratory data to support primary objective, including an economic analysis. Total study duration is 3 years, including an 18 month recruitment period, an 8-week treatment period followed by 6 month and 12 month follow up assessments. The study treatment will be assessed by a blinded assessor (the assessor will not know which group the participants are in) using standard physiotherapy/occupational therapy assessments which involve grasping and releasing different objects and performing everyday tasks as well as quality of life questionnaires. Functional electrical stimulation combined with task-specific training provided in addition to standard care is more effective in improving hand function than standard care alone.

The purpose of the study is to determine whether single dose azithromycin is superior to standard therapy (7 days amoxicillin) in resolving acute otitis media in Aboriginal children at high risk of tympanic membrane perforation.

The CHIL study hypothesis is that not only will systemic or local cooling to 33 degrees C will reduce the size of stroke damage in patients who have sufferred an acute stroke but also that the procedure can be peformed safely.

The purpose of this project is to determine if using ultrasound when performing a nerve block improves the control of pain after surgery. The nerve block is called the fascia iliaca block, which is commonly performed for patients having total knee replacement to improve pain relief. Traditionally, the block is performed using a blind technique called the fascial click or loss of resistance technique. The anaesthetist inserts the needle usually near the groin area and feels for the clicks or the loss of resistance before injecting the local anaesthetic drug for pain relief. Recently, the use of ultrasound has become very popular when performing nerve block. Ultrasound allows the anaesthetist to visualize the structures underneath the skin before and during the insertion of the needle and injection of local anaesthetic. However, there is no information on whether using ultrasound to perform fascia iliaca block for total knee replacement improves the success of pain relief. This study is therefore designed to investigate if ultrasound improves block success and therefore reduces pain.

When patients are having general anaesthesia for an operation, most of them will need an oro-tracheal intubation, which is a procedure where a breathing tube is inserted through the mouth down into the trachea (the breathing pipe). This enables the anaesthetist to assist the patient’s ventilation (breathing) under general anaesthesia. The procedure of inserting the tube into the trachea is performed after the patient is sedated and is asleep. The breathing tube is inserted with the help of a laryngoscope, an instrument that permits the anaesthetist to see the upper portion of the trachea (the breathing pipe), just below the vocal cords (the voice box). It is one of the most important skills in anaesthetics practice. Some patients may have what we call difficult airways because of the physical structure of the area, for example, small mouth opening, large tongue, and poor neck mobility. This makes the insertion of the breathing tube more complicated. There are different techniques and intubating equipment available for anaesthetists to deal with difficult airways. Anaesthetists use their knowledge and previous experience to decide which type of laryngoscope to use in these cases. The purpose of this project is to compare the effectiveness of two laryngoscopes, the Video Laryngoscope (McGrath) and the Miller straight blade laryngoscope. Previous studies have demonstrated that both the Video Laryngoscope and the Miller straight blade laryngoscope provide a better view of the vocal cords (the voice box) compared with the standard laryngoscope, when used in patients with potentially difficult airways. However, there are no studies comparing these two devices. We wish to know whether one device is better than the other to use in these cases.

The primary purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of adding nasal saline spray to usual care in reducing the symptoms of the common cold and acute rhinosinusitis. It is expected that using nasal saline spray will reduce the severity and duration of symptoms.

The metabolic syndrome (MS) is a term used to describe the clustering of metabolic risk factors, such as abdominal obesity, insulin resistance, dyslipidaemia and elevated blood pressure. It is estimated that 20-25% of the world’s adult population have the metabolic syndrome. Having the risk factors associated with the MS leads to an increased risk of developing cardiovascular disease (CVD) and such individuals are also five times more likely to develop Type 2 diabetes. The root causes of the MS are described as being a combination of being overweight or obese, physical inactivity and genetic factors. Cardiovascular disease is a major cause of death in Australia and most industrialized countries. Atherosclerosis is the main cause of CVD. The initiation of atherosclerosis is the accumulation of lipid deposited by circulating lipoproteins within the arterial wall. Postprandial lipaemia (after meal blood lipid appearance) induced by eating a fatty meal increases circulating levels of lipid. Increased postprandial lipid levels have the potential to deposit into the arterial wall and develop into an atherosclerotic lesion. However, exercise decreases postprandial lipaemia as an acute (short-term) effect after a single bout. The aim of this study was to investigate whether a single 30-minute bout of resistance, aerobic or combined exercise at moderate intensity would decrease postprandial lipaemia, glucose and insulin levels of a high fat meal consumed 14 hours after the exercise bout, as well as increase resting energy expenditure and increase fat oxidation in overweight and obese individuals compared to no exercise. We also compared the effects of the different exercise modalities.

Physical activity is a major modifiable environmental determinant of chronic disease. Epidemiological and clinical studies suggest that those who are physically active have lower serum cholesterol and triglyceride (TG) concentrations than individuals who pursue a sedentary lifestyle. Exercise training has been shown to have numerous benefits for health, both physiologically and psychologically. The Australian National Physical Activity Guidelines for Adults (NPAGA) recommend that for good health adults should “put together at least 30 minutes of moderate intensity physical activity on most, preferably all, days”. However, it is not known if this recommendation is adequate for improvement in metabolic risk factors in overweight and obese individuals. In addition, as many people have difficulty finding time to exercise, it is important to better understand which mode(s) of exercise is the most effective and also easily accessible for the greater number of people. For example, what are the relative merits of aerobic exercise such as brisk walking compared with resistance weight training and does a combination of both modalities provide additional health benefits? The aim of this chronic study was to investigate whether twelve weeks of training with aerobic exercise, resistance exercise, or combined exercise at moderate intensity for 30 minutes, five days a week would induce and sustain improvements in the cardiovascular risk profile, such as improved fasting lipids, glucose and insulin and also weight loss and increased fat free mass in overweight and obese individuals compared to no exercise. We also compared the effects between the different exercise types on cardiovascular risk factors.