ANZCTR search results

OSA is a condition in which a person stops breathing for several seconds at a time due to relaxation of the throat muscles. This can occur many times over during sleep. It is known to cause sleepiness and poor concentration during the day. Research indicates that OSA may be a modifiable risk factor for cardiovascular disease due to its association with hypertension, stroke, heart attack and sudden death. The standard therapy for symptomatic OSA is CPAP. CPAP has been shown to effectively reduce snoring, obstructive episodes and daytime sleepiness and to modestly reduce blood pressure and other risk factors for cardiovascular disease. The overall aim of SAVE is to determine if CPAP can reduce the risk of heart attack, stroke or heart failure for people with OSA.

The primary objective of this study is to evaluate and determine the types of complications and benefits from the transthoracic pneumonostomy procedure in patients with severe emphysema (homogeneous). The results from this study will provide the profile for safety and feasibility of use of the pneumonostomy device system and support subsequnt trials with larger number of patients.

Nutritional support is accepted as a standard of care for critically ill patients although there is little agreement as to how it is best provided. Use of evidence-based guidelines has been shown to improve the effectiveness of care. The purpose of this project is to develop, promote and evaluate evidence-based clinical practice guidelines for nutritional support in the ICU in twenty-six hospitals throughout Australia and New Zealand. One half of the hospitals will be randomised to receive educational sessions based on the content of the guidelines using previously proven and accepted educational strategies. A cluster randomised trial will then evaluate the impact of these educational sessions on acceptance of the guideline and on patient outcomes.

The primary aim of this project is to determine if the study drug, Pyridorin™, at doses of 150mg orally twice daily or 300mg orally twice daily (compared to placebo), has an effect on the blood values (specifically serum creatinine) of subjects' who have kidney disease from type 2 diabetes.

This study looks at the effectiveness of the appetite stimulating drugs megestrol and dexamethasone in treating anorexia in the palliative care of people with widespread and advanced cancer. Who is it for? You can join this study if you have widespread and advanced cancer and suffer from loss of appetite. Trial details Participants will be divided into two groups. One group will receive the drug megestrol acetate and the other will receive dexamethasone. Both groups will be monitored for appetite levels and quality of life, along with any weight gain, improved function and side effects. Despite encouraging results from a US study, megestrol is not currently prescribed extensively as an appetite stimulant to Australians with advanced cancer, primarily due to its cost.

The trial is a randomised phase II open-label multicentre trial investigating oral fludarabine, cyclophosphamide and intravenous rituximab in previously untreated elderly (= 65 years old) patients with chronic lymphocytic leukaemia. The primary objective is to investigate the tolerability of each of three of these combination chemotherapies and the associated primary endpoint is the proportion of paitens able to complete 6 cycles of therapy.

This study will be used to investigate whether the addition of oxaliplatin to preoperative fluoropyrimidine-based chemoradiation and postoperative fluoropyrimidine-based chemotherapy improves disease-free survival in locally advanced rectal cancer.

This randomised controlled trial compares the safety and efficacy of using supplemental Insulin Aspart (Novorapid) vs Actrapid to maintain tight glycaemic control in hospitalised patients with diabetes.

Five different injections are purported to be effective for lumbar radicular pain. Each has its advocates but each lacks convincing scientific data. This study is designed to test which of these injections is effective, for relieving pain and restoring function, in the greatest proportion of patients and for the longest duration.

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is the most common blood borne virus affecting injecting drug users (IDUs). 90% of new cases of Hepatitis C in Australia are attributable to injecting drug use. Hepatitis C treatment is effective in clearing the virus in between 50% and 80% of cases and is cost effective when considering the averted treatment costs of chronic viral hepatitis. Despite this there are a number of barriers to the effective treatment of IDUs, and as a consequence only 2-3% of IDUs are estimated to have received HCV treatment.This study proposes to treat active IDUs for hepatitis C infection using directly observed (DOT) pegylated interferon and ribavirin therapy in accordance with current Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme legislation. Participants will be regularly assessed for psychological status and drug use utilising a variety of registered questionnaires. Participants will be monitored and guided throughout the study with the support of a peer counsellor. This person will provide participants with the guardianship, advocacy, interaction and education required to effectively manage personal and study-related issues (physical and psychological), to encourage treatment compliance and to reinforce safe injecting practices.The primary outcomes are: (i) achievement of sustained virological response, which is defined as having no detectable hepatitis C virus 6 months after the completion of treatment, (ii) achievement of treatment compliance, which will be determined from the proportion of patients attending =80% of DOT visits and the proportion of patients taking =80% of the HCV treatment, and (iii) determination of the value of a peer counsellor in HCV treatment of active IDUs when the physical and mental health, substance use and treatment compliance of participants is actively monitored. This study is designed to increase the opportunity for effective and supported hepatitis C treatment in active injecting drug users. The study aims to show that active IDUs can achieve successful outcomes from hepatitis C treatment and to determine those variables which are important in achieving this, including the value of a peer counsellor to the treatment team.