ANZCTR search results

The study aims to explore the feasibility and acceptability of a new outpatient Transitional Pain Management Clinic at St Vincent's Hospital for participants with risk factors for ongoing pain and opioid use after surgery or injury. The intervention will include three sessions with a pain medicine physician and three sessions with a pain physiotherapist over a three month period post-discharge from hospital. The study will also evaluate the relationship between completion of the intervention at the Transitional Pain Management Clinic key outcomes including pain-associated disability, opioid use, and healthcare utilisation. It is anticipated that this clinic will be feasible to implement and acceptable to patients. Given that this clinic is aimed at prevention and early-intervention before the development of persistent postsurgical and posttraumatic pain, significant changes in key pain-associated outcomes are not necessarily anticipated.

Exercise is part of standard care in the ICU is associated with positive outcomes for patients including reduced ICU and hospital length of stay (LOS) and improved physical function at hospital discharge. For this study, we will conduct exercise to compare the effectiveness of exercise with and without the addition of Virtual Reality (VR). The aim of this study is to evaluate whether the addition of VR within an exercise session increases a patient’s exercise compliance and whether this translates into improved performance during the sessions. Additionally, the study will aim to explore the risks of infection and the potential health concerns associated with the introduction of VR headsets into the ICU by analysing swabs taken from the VR headset before and after use. It is hypothesised that VR will be an acceptable, feasible and safe method of improving exercise outcomes in adults admitted to ICU.

Nurse practitioner (NP)-led memory clinics have the potential to be complementary models to help address the growing care for those living with dementia and their carers/ families. However, to date there is limited research evaluating the benefit of NP-led memory clinics. This research study will be a prospective cohort pilot design to evaluate a nurse practitioner-led memory clinic, Enhance. Enhance is a NP-led multidisciplinary clinic with the aim of supporting independence, wellbeing and function of people living with dementia. Both people living with dementia and their main carer will be able to clients at the clinic. Currently, most programs supporting people living with dementia and their main carer usually have a one-size fits all approach and rarely take into consideration the individual needs of the clients. The programs will be designed to meet the needs of the clients. Programs will consist of support groups, yoga, art therapy, cognitive simulation and exercise interventions. The NP will design cognitive rehabilitation and cognitive simulation programs tailored to match the cognitive abilities of the individual/ group

Swept source optical coherence tomographers (SS-OCTs) provide high resolution images of the eye and have an enhanced depth of focus (greater scanning depth in tissue) compared to conventional (spectral domain) OCTs. These additional features allow for blood flow characteristics in the retina and choroid to be quantified (OCT Angiography) without the use of any additional dyes, drugs or contact with the eye. This is a prospective data collection study which aims to capture clinical data of the choroid with the Triton swept source OCT including angiography. In order to enhance the vascular characteristics analysis, software tools will later be developed by the project team.

Low-calorie sweeteners (LCS) have been widely used in food and beverages in recent decades. While several international diabetes management guidelines recommend the use of LCS to replace sugar to prevent and manage type 2 diabetes, a recent World Health Organisation (WHO) report highlighted that people who consume LCS regularly may have an increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes. The current study is designed to investigate whether consumption of renally excreted LCS affects the amount of glucose excreted in the urine and blood glucose control in healthy people and people with type 2 diabetes. We will specifically study the most widely used LCS, acesulfame potassium (Ace-K), which is absorbed from the gut and excreted in the urine. We hypothesise that Ace-K is sensed by renal sweet taste receptors to enhance urinary glucose reabsorption and thus impair blood glucose control. Results will be compared with another LCS, sucralose, which is poorly absorbed and is excreted mainly in the faeces, and a flavourless dietary fibre, cellulose.

The purpose of this study is to investigate whether consuming protein supplements are a helpful dietary strategy for people with UC. Protein supplements are widely available at supermarkets, pharmacies and gyms and are recognised for many health benefits including increasing muscle mass and helping the body to repair and heal. We do not know how much protein people with UC need to consume to achieve these health benefits without affecting inflammation. It is hypothesised that protein supplementation will alter body composition, the gut microbiome and disease activity. This study involves consuming daily supplements which contain protein for 24-weeks.

The purpose of this study is to explore an alternate delivery modality for mindfulness that may account for deficits in mental imagery, a necessary component for effective mindfulness practice. It is predicted that mental imagery ability will mediate the relationship between treatment modality and mindfulness outcomes. It is also predicted that participants with poorer mental imagery will have improved outcomes within the VR condition compared to the Traditional mindfulness condition. Pending our hypotheses are correct, this study will provide a foundation for researchers to build upon. A successful intervention will provide a blueprint for improved service delivery, strengthen the status of mindfulness as a transdiagnostic treatment that can be effective for a diverse range of populations and encourage researchers to explore novel virtual reality approaches for mental health improvement.

Outpatient hysteroscopy stands out as a safe, effective, and well-tolerated modality for investigating and treating intrauterine pathology. However, despite its advantages, outpatient hysteroscopy accounts for less than 0.5% of all hysteroscopies performed in Australia, largely due to the prohibitive upfront capital costs associated with setting up these services. This study aims to overcome this barrier by evaluating the LiNA OperaScope, an innovative all-in-one single-use hysteroscope device, to determine its patient and clinician acceptability and its cost-effectiveness compared to traditional methods. We hypothesise that single use hysteroscopy will be comparable to reusable hysteroscopy in effectiveness and may provide a most cost-effective option for clinicians to offer outpatient hysteroscopy to their patients.

What is the project about? The TMaC study aims to permanently reduce nerve pain caused by bowel cancer treatment, a condition called chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN). CIPN has no effective treatments, so we are testing a non-invasive brain modulation therapy called repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS). We will be the first to determine the duration of pain improvement using TMS and work towards further expanding this approach for cancer survivors. Who is it for? You may be eligible for this study if you are an adult (aged from 18 to 85 years old) experiencing chronic pain and/or changes in sensation in your hands or feet following chemotherapy treatment for bowel cancer. What are the study details? Participants will be randomised to receive four sessions of rTMS or sham stimulation, with each session lasting 15 minutes and separated by at least seven days. The brain stimulation procedure is non-invasive and painless. You will be asked to rate chemotherapy-induced pain intensity before and after intervention. You will be followed up at 8 weeks after completion of all treatment sessions to see whether analgesic effects of rTMS are maintained. If so, there will be an additional follow-up at 6 months to assess long-term effectiveness of the intervention. It is hoped that the findings from this study will deepen our understanding of the long-term analgesic effects of rTMS, potentially offering a permanent solution to the debilitating CIPN-associated pain in cancer survivors.

RoBiN (Risk of Breast Neoplasia) is a study about tailoring breast cancer screening recommendations to a women's personal risk. The study involves using a risk assessment to combine multiple risk factors known to influence someone's chance of developing breast cancer, to provide personalised screening recommendations such a different imaging test or additional (supplemental) screening. Who is it for? You may be eligible for this study if you are a woman aged 40 to 59 years who is attending the BreastScreen Burgundy Street clinic for a scheduled mammogram. Study details: If you have a mammogram booked at BreastScreen Burgundy Street clinic, you may be contacted by BreastScreen Victoria and made aware of the study. If you are interested in taking part you will be provided flyer with link to complete an eligibility questionnaire. Eligible and potential participants will receive an email confirming an appointment with the study researcher 30 minutes ahead of the schuldes mammogram to discuss the study and the multifactorial risk assessment. The risk assessment includes your family history of breast cancer, breast density information from your mammogram and the results of a DNA test (using a mouth swab) to understand your personal risk of developing breast cancer. Consenting participants and a nominated general practitioner (GP) or practice clinic will then receive a risk report within 4 weeks summarising individual breast cancer risk, recommendations for any additional imaging tests or changes to frequency of subsequent screening. A study genetic counsellor will be available to discuss any concerns as required. Participants will be followed up for 6 months after receiving the risk report and asked to complete a questionnaires regarding their views on the acceptability, feasibility and impact of this report and screening initiatives at one and six months after receiving the risk report. Data generated from RoBiN will be used to inform future larger implementation trials, and ultimately inform policy and practice in the Australian screening program.