ANZCTR search results

The current study aims to assess the efficacy of online CBT and MBSR interventions for people with Rheumatoid Arthritis and to see whether the effectiveness of these interventions is moderated by recurrent depression. It is expected that both CBT and MBSR will reduce pain interference, depression and anxiety relative to a waitlist control, but that MBSR will be more effective than CBT amongst those who also have recurrent depression.

In this study we have chosen to compare two options for intubation via a supraglottic airway device (SGA). We feel this is a scenario likely to be encountered by emergency physicians as these devices are commonly used in this setting as a ‘rescue device’, which can temporarily allow ventilation when traditional laryngoscopy has failed to secure a definitive airway. The first method is a novel retrograde technique where the guidewire is passed via the SGA; this second method is a fibre-optic guided approach, also via the SGA. Our theory is that intubation via an SGA will allow an emergency physician to reliably achieve a secure airway as these devices are designed to open directly at the laryngeal inlet and so may be an ideal conduit for either retrograde or fibre-optic intubation of the trachea. The null hypothesis is that there is no difference in the time taken to secure an endotracheal tube by these two methods.

The purpose of this research project is to investigate the effectiveness of a Mediterranean diet on hormonal, metabolic, body weight and body composition without the need to reduce total calorie intake in overweight and obese women with diagnosed Polycystic Ovary Syndrome. This will be compared against a standard low-fat diet that is aligned with the Australian Dietary Guidelines. We are also interested in finding out participants' opinions on the Mediterranean diet and how well it can be followed. The Mediterranean diet is a type of dietary pattern high in vegetables, legumes, fruit, wholegrains and extra-virgin olive oil; moderate in nuts and seeds, fermented dairy, eggs, fish and seafood and red wine. We know that insulin resistance and risk for type 2 diabetes is a common metabolic consequence in reproductive-aged women with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome. In addition, many women with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome also have difficulty achieving a healthy weight, which further worsens insulin resistance. The current guidelines for the management of Polycystic Ovary Syndrome emphasise achieving and maintaining a healthy weight and lifestyle (diet and physical activity). However, there is no high-quality evidence supporting specific dietary recommendations for reproductive-aged women with Polycystic Ovary Syndrome. The Mediterranean diet is a type of dietary pattern consistent with good health and has shown to be effective at improving insulin resistance, even without the need to reduce total calories. Therefore, this study will provide a valuable contribution to the scientific knowledge in this field.

Sun damaged skin can attract harmful bacteria that may secrete toxins that promote further damage and progression to skin cancer. This study aims to assess whether application of different skin creams including a probiotic and sunscreen has any effect on the type of bacteria that grow on sun damaged skin. Who is it for? You may be eligible for this study if you are aged 40 or older and you have known areas of sun damaged skin, which may or may not have lesions called 'actinic keratosis'. Please note that this study will *not* be enrolling patients with a diagnosis of skin cancer, melanoma or otherwise. Study details All participants who choose to enroll in this study will be randomly allocated by chance (similar to flipping a coin) to one of four different skin creams. You will be asked to apply your allocated skin cream directly to sun damaged skin on one side of your body, and nothing to the other side of your body for comparison. Application of the creams will occur 2x daily for 14 days. After 2 weeks of applying the creams, we will take samples (swabs) of your skin bacteria and determine the types of bacteria that have been growing. We will also take additional swabs at 3 weeks, 3 months and 6 months to determine any long terms changes in your skin bacteria. It is hoped this research will determine whether it is possible to change the bacteria that grow on your sun damaged skin to other (less harmful) bacteria that are found on normal skin. In the long term, this research might lead to a treatment for sun damaged skin, which may reduce the risk of skin cancer.

Subacromial decompression surgery and rotator cuff repair surgery are often performed to treat shoulder pain, but recent evidence suggests these surgeries provide little-to-no benefit to patients over non-surgical options and may cause harm. The aim of this study is to evaluate whether a patient decision aid outlining the benefits and harms of these surgeries can reduce people’s intentions to undergo surgery. Secondary outcomes include knowledge of the benefits and potential harms of surgery compared to non-surgical options, attitudes towards surgery, the proportion of people who are equipped to make an informed choice, and decisional conflict.

The aim of this study is to investigate the feasibility of personalising chemotherapy treatment using in-vitro (in the laboratory) testing of patient-derived cells to guide the choice of chemotherapy for patients with head and neck carcinoma. Who is it for? You may be eligible for this study if you are aged 18 years or older, have been diagnosed with locally advanced, recurrent, or metastatic head and neck carcinoma, and are thought to have a high probability of treatment failure with standard techniques. Study details All participants will undergo definitive surgery and the biopsy will be transported to anatomical pathology where tissue assessment will be done in great detail, followed by transfer of tissues to either Macquarie university or Garvan Institute where cell lines will be developed, tested for tumor markers, tested for chemotherapeutic drugs including target therapy, and then based on an algorithm derived drug recommendation, the clinician will be informed. The patient will be informed of the results and depending on whether they choose to proceed with treatment, they will be assessed for progression of disease using RECIST 1.1 criteria. It is hoped that this study may demonstrate that testing the sensitivity of patient-derived cancer cells to guide choice of chemotherapy agent prior to their administration will reduce tumour progression and improve survival in patients with head and neck carcinoma.

Cognitive training ("brain training") programs are now mainstream among the community, education and health systems, promising to improve cognitive functioning. The potential of cognitive training to improve core cognitive abilities, such as working memory, has been acknowledged by many education and health experts, however these programs are designed based on common untested assumptions of training methods that are conventions in the field. A key assumption is that the difficulty level of a training activity should be adapted to the trainee’s performance. This is assumed to appropriately challenge the trainee, inducing plasticity and resulting in improved cognitive performance. However, this assumption has only been tested once in adults. The assumed benefit of adaptive training has not been systematically evaluated in children. This trial aims to test the common assumption that cognitive training in children should be adaptive. It will compare the outcomes of working memory training using adaptive, stepwise and self-selected approaches to setting difficulty level of training activities, to an active control. Given the lack of research evaluating common assumptions of cognitive training, our aim is exploratory. Training outcome will be evaluated immediately and 6-months post-training using: 1) working memory tests similar in structure to the training activities (near transfer), 2) working memory tests different in structure to the training activities (intermediate transfer), and 3) tests of non-verbal reasoning, inattention and hyperactivity-impulsivity behaviours (far transfer).

The current trial aims to assess the efficacy of a new online psychological treatment for fears of death. Outcomes include death anxiety, depression, anxiety, and stress scores.

The purpose of this study is to (1) identify changes in performance and metabolism due to cephalexin in endurance exercise, and (2) improve prescribing practice by increasing the body of knowledge associated with cephalexin. The hypothesis being tested is that cephalexin, when given at therapeutic levels, will decrease endurance performance. The mechanism by which this occurs is being assessed through testing of specific metabolites suggested to be impacted by the administration of cephalexin.

This study aims to assess the effectiveness of an implementation intervention targeting indoor-outdoor free play recommendations on the total amount of time children have the opportunity to spend in outdoor environments at 6-months follow up. We hypothesize that services who receive the intervention will provide 35 minutes more for the opportunity for outdoor free play, than those in the control group. Previous research has shown that increased outdoor play opportunities is associated with increased child activity. 100 service will be recruited to this research and randomly allocated to receive the intervention or no-intervention. The 6-month intervention will target early childhood education and care (ECEC) service Nominated Supervisors (NS), Service Champions (SC) and Educators to support their implementation of indoor­-outdoor free play recommendations. This includes goal setting, providing resources, telephone support and feedback to NS, SC and educators, to increase the amount of time available for children to spend outdoors while they are in care. At 6 months follow up, we will compare the amount of time childcare services provide children with the opportunity for outdoor free play between the services that received the intervention and those that did not.