ANZCTR search results

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of class-based physiotherapy and one-to-one physiotherapy , compared to a monitored home program after total knee replacement surgery. The study hypothesis is that one-to-one physiotherapy will be superior compared to class-based physiotherapy or a monitored home program.

The objective is to investigate whether diphencyprone (DPCP), a chemical which can cause contact allergy on the skin in about 95% of people, can stimulate the immune system to destroy these melanoma cells. DPCP is frequently used in dermatology as a treatment for autoimmune hair loss (alopecia areata) and warts, where it also stimulates an immune attack on the wart virus. As melanoma is a tumour which is known to be particularly susceptible to immune attack, it is hoped that DPCP treatment will be helpful to patients with otherwise untreatable secondary melanoma in their skin. There have so far been a handful of published case reports of patients in whom DPCP has been helpful for melanoma.

The study will examine the uptake into, and removal from the human body, of meloxicam. The update and removal of meloxicam from the Meloxicam Nanoformulation capsules and marketed capsules (called Mobic (R)) will be compared, when they are taken after a fast and after a high fat breakfast. There will be four treatments in the study. The Sponsor wants to know if the meloxicam in the Meloxicam Nanoformulation capsules is absorbed more quickly than the meloxicam in Mobic(R).

The primary aim is to establish sound scientific evidence of the effects of ground walking training in people with COPD. The secondary aim is to evaluate whether novel feedback strategies can improve long term adherance to exercise training for people with COPD in order to gain important health benefits and markedly reduce health resource use and costs.

Singing has been shown to be beneficial for chronic respiratory conditions. Singing is not merely a vocal expression; it involves a physical transformation. Singing requires well-controlled breathing and good posture. The lungs and abdominal muscles are fully engaged to produce sounds. Classically trained singers demonstrate more efficient respiratory capacity. Previous research also indicates that singing can improve quality of life, reduce anxiety, and enhance self-esteem. Let’s Sing Out! is an innovative research project to enhance the physical and mental health of young people with CF. Eight half-hour individual singing sessions include learning diaphragmatic breathing, and singing favorite songs in a supportive environment.

Some people with chronic whiplash have increased sensitivity to various stimuli such as pressure and cold. These people don’t respond as well to standard exercise based approaches to treatment. Dry-needling techniques have been shown to decrease the sensitivity in other conditions, but the effects for people with whiplash it not known. Dry needling is one of many techniques used by physiotherapists. It involves tapping a very fine needle into the tender muscle areas and it is similar to acupuncture. This study aims to find out whether or not dry-needling added to a standard exercise program will decrease pain and disability in people with chronic whiplash. We also need to know whether or not the effects are better than those of ‘sham’ dry-needling and exercise. It is hypothesised that dry needling will decrease pain and hypersensitivity associated with chronic whiplash and thus facilitate the effects of the exercise program.

The major goal of this research project is to implement and evaluate a structured state-of-the-art peer-led group program to improve daily management, social and emotional support, linkages to clinical care and ongoing support for people with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM). It seems likely that the benefits of such programs, compared to those delivered exclusively by health professionals, results from features of the social support offered and the connections established with local community resources and other supports. The evaluation proposal also includes a comprehensive health economic evaluation of the cost-effectiveness of the program as well as its future transferability to other settings and countries in the Asia Pacific Region and Southern Africa. The project could significantly influence the successful implementation of peer-led diabetes management programs across these countries and Australia. The aims of the trial are: 1. To implement and evaluate the impact of the Australasian Peers for Progress-Diabetes Program (PfP-DP) on diabetes self management, social and emotional support, linkage(s) to clinical care and ongoing support. 2. To evaluate the cost-effectiveness of PfP-DP and its potential long-term benefits and potential transferability to other settings and countries. 3. To identify salient enablers and barriers to future system-wide uptake in Australia and potential transferability to Malaysia and other middle income countries in Asia and Southern Africa. Hypothesis: Compared with those in the wait-list control condition, participants in the Australasian PfP-DP will demonstrate significantly greater improvements in HbA1c at 12 months following baseline measurement, and will show improvements in diabetes self-management, social and emotional support, linkages to clinical care and ongoing support.

This study will advance our understanding of the appropriate management of patients suffering AMI by quantifying the ability of controlled oxygen therapy to reduce adverse outcomes. Our findings will inform the development of guidelines for the local and international use of oxygen therapy in the treatment of AMI, with the potential to modify current practice. The findings of this study with directly benefit the Tasmanian community by improving health outcomes for AMI patients and reducing the overall burden of coronary heart disease in Tasmania.

The purpose of this study is to explore inpatient psychiatric settings as a platform for initiating smoking cessation treatment to patients smokers. We hypothesise that patients who commence smoking cessation treatment in hospital and receive ongoing support post-hospitalisation will be more likely to quit than smokers who receive standard hospital care only.

Patients with high blood lipid levels are currently treated with dietary modification and lifestyle treatment with the addition of statins in cases where lipid levels remain elevated. Statins are the best lipid-lowering pharmaceuticals currently available; however patients treated with statins remain at high risk of cardiac events despite a marked reduction in low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, and modest effects on triglycerides and high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol. In contrast, fish oils increase HDL-cholesterol and markedly reduce triglycerides, with little effect on LDL-cholesterol. They may therefore be ideal for combination therapy with statins to improve vascular health and reduce cardiovascular mortality. Omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) are the active ingredient in fish oil. Previous studies have demonstrated that fish oils can have beneficial effects on the vasculature and decrease the risk of coronary heart disease. The cardiac and vascular benefits of dietary omega-3 PUFA could be due to their effects on lipids, blood pressure, thrombosis, endothelial function and/or anti-arrhythmic & anti-inflammatory effects. Omega-6 PUFA are known to compete with omega-3 PUFA for many common metabolic enzymes and during incorporation into lipid fractions and membranes. This has highlighted the potential importance of the dietary ratio of omega-6 to omega-3 PUFA. This ratio may be of more importance than assessing dietary omega-3 PUFA alone. The average dietary omega-6/omega-3 ratio is between 10:1 and 17:1 in Western countries, and as high as 30:1 in certain populations. It has been estimated that the optimal dietary ratio of omega-6/omega-3 PUFA is ~1.7:1. Despite this, there is little evidence regarding the effects of the omega-6/omega-3 PUFA ratio on measures of cardiovascular health. It is important to establish whether decreasing the ratio of dietary omega-6 to omega-3 fatty acids can further improve the cardiovascular profile of patients on statins. Hypothesis That altering the dietary ratio of omega-6/omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids will influence vascular health – consistent with a low omega-6/omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid ratio diet being cardio-protective.