ANZCTR search results

Recent studies have demonstrated that specific nutrients, including lauric acid and L-tryptophan, have energy intake-suppressant and blood glucose-regulatory effects via several pathways, including stimulation of gut hormones and motility, and the slowing of gastric emptying. We aim to investigate the hypothesis that the combined intraduodenal administration of lauric acid and tryptophan, compared with the individual nutrients, will more potently stimulate gut functions, including gut hormones, and gastric emptying, associated with reduced postprandial blood glucose

Anastomotic leakage (AL) is the most significant complication in any intestinal operation with an anastomosis. Much work has gone into identifying patients at higher risk of AL pre-operatively . Early post-operative detection is also important, and a body of work has examined inflammatory markers, lipopolysaccharides and drain fluid proteins in patients undergoing colorectal anastomoses. In patients undergoing restorative proctocolectomy and ileal pouch anal anastomosis (RP A drain is commonly placed to the pelvis during RP IPAA. This provides an opportunity to study the contents of the drain fluid in a simple and non-invasive way. As the luminal contents of the small intestine are high in amylase, we wished to study its measurement in drain fluid as a biomarker of AL. Ileal pouch surgery presents a unique opportunity to utilize drain fluid amylase (DFA) as a biomarker to detect anastomotic leakage when a defunctioning ileostomy is not employed. We hypothesize that a substantial rise in DFA is a sensitive biomarker of anastomotic leak. The primary aim is to evaluate the utility of measuring amylase in drain fluid and to relate this to the clinical post operative course. The secondary aim is to quantitate the intra-luminal values of amylase within the ileal pouch.

The purpose of this study is to examine the feasibility and safety of a device for ablating cancerous lung tumors using a technique called radiofrequency ablation. Who is it for? You may be eligible for this study if you are aged 18 or older and are a suitable candidate for resection of a lung cancer tumor. Study details All participants will receive one treatment of radiofrequency ablation via a bronchoscope (tube down the throat), 2-14 days before undergoing their scheduled surgical lung resection. The treatment takes place under general anaesthetic in a day surgery procedure area. All participants will be followed-up using standard hospital procedures. It is hoped that this research will provide information into the non-surgical treatments of lung cancer, thereby providing future non-surgery related options for the disease.

This study aims to investigate the effects of an online dementia education course on carers’ stress, and whether stress can be reduced by providing dementia education and engagement in a course with participants with similar experiences of care. The study also aims to examine whether participation in dementia education can lead to improved quality of life for dementia carers and people with dementia for whom they care. The effects of education will be examined using a Randomised Controlled Trial (RCT) design where those completing the online course will be compared with a comparison group that receives different information.

Research has shown that exposure-based treatments are the most effective in treating anxiety and fear-based disorders. However, this treatment has been stuck with its improvement in efficacy for years and more than one third of patients do not respond to treatment or experience a relapse of symptoms. Evidence from human and animal studies have shown that acute stress has the potential to add value to these exposure-based treatments by enhancing the learning and memory process. That is, heightened stress states (induced via pharmacological or behavioural interventions) have been shown to enhance treatment outcomes ( reduce fear symptoms). There is evidence from laboratory studies that stress-related adjuncts to therapy can generalize learning and reduce relapse. However, this has not been investigated in clinical patients and the mechanisms of these effects are unknown. Therefore, this research aims to investigate the use of stress enhancers to optimising exposure therapy for anxiety disorders and it’s potential to reduce relapse. It will aim to investigate the mechanisms of these effects in order to inform their clinical application. In this study we will determine whether stress may aid psychotherapy of fear and anxiety disorders by modulating attentional processes, stimulating emotional arousal systems (noradrenaline and cortisol) and by acting as an excitatory stimulus to maximise learning (increasing prediction error) . Therefore, this research offers a promising therapeutic tool to improve symptom remission, relapse rates and cost of psychotherapy for anxiety and fear-based disorders.

The primary purpose of this investigation is to determine the safety of the remote care paradigm where we evaluate if a clinician can reasonably assess a patient’s Parkinson’s Disease symptoms and adjust their therapy over a mobile platform. We hypothesize that this is safe mode of adjusting therapy.

The ACTIVate Study is a joint project between the University of South Australia, the University of Newcastle, the University of Adelaide, Flinders University and the University of Illinois. Our aim is to investigate the effect of different lifestyle patterns on brain function in older adults. Specifically, we're interested in activity and diet compositions, and how these might influence our risk of developing dementia. Four hundred and fifty participants will be recruited in Adelaide and Newcastle and followed over 3 years to monitor changes in lifestyle factors, brain structure and function, and overall health. From the information we collect we will develop a tool that will enable older adults to tailor their ‘best day’ of activity and diet compositions to reduce dementia risk.

This research aims to identify modifiable hospital, GP and family factors associated with asthma re-admissions in children. The findings from this research will be used to inform practical interventions and solutions to reduce child asthma re-admissions to hospitals.

This study is evaluating the effect of the PICCsox arm cover on peripherally inserted central catheter (PICC) dislodgments in patients receiving a PICC Who is it for? You may be eligible to join this study if you are aged 18 years or above, and are booked for PICC insertion in the Radiology Department of the Royal Adelaide Hospital. You may or may not be diagnosed with cancer. Study details Participants will be randomised by chance (like flipping a coin) into two groups: one group will receive a PICCsox arm cover to wear over their PICC for six weeks. The other group will not receive anything to wear over their PICC for the intervention period but will be offered a PICCsox after the six week intervention period, if they still have a PICC in place. Participants will be telephoned and asked about whether their PICC came out early and their experiences and views of the PICCsox. Participants will be selected based on their diagnosis (haematological cancers, solid tumours, infection and those who required a PICC due to difficult venous access) as we hope to get wide range of patients. This study will help Nurses and doctors know whether they should give patients a PICCsox when they have a PICC inserted to stop it coming out and to help with daily life.

Diffuse Large B Cell Lymphoma (DLBCL) is the most common type of aggressive Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma (NHL), accounting for 30-40% of all NHL cases. To assess the risk for DLBCL, doctors use tools like the International Prognostic Index (IPI), aaIPI, and NCCN-IPI. These tools help identify high-risk patients but are not good at spotting those at "ultra-high-risk" (UHR) of treatment failure within two years of diagnosis. The NHL34 CLARIFY-PROGNOSTIC study is a nationwide platform that offers real-time, centralized risk assessment for patients with Large B Cell Lymphoma (LBCL) who are treated with frontline immunochemotherapy. This may help doctors make better treatment decisions, provide more accurate prognoses, and advance molecular and imaging techniques in Australia and New Zealand. The study also aims to identify ultra high-risk LBCL patients for clinical trials of new treatments, creating an efficient and cost-effective framework for future lymphoma trials. Who is it for? You may be eligible for this study if you are 18 or older and have been diagnosed with LBCL. Study Details LBCL patients will commence standard of care immunotherapy regimen. They will have a FDG/PET scan and/or a MRD assay at baseline, cycle 4, cycle 6, and 3 months after treatment ends. A positive disease will be based on centralized baseline tumor sequencing, centralized delta standardized uptake value (SUV) quantification / Deauville score, and measurable residual disease (MRD) testing. These patients will be referred to relevant therapeutic arms of this study, dependent on meeting relevant criteria. A UHR LBCL patient population will be identified and referred to a relevant therapuetic arm of this study to test novel treatments such as CAR-T cell infusion. This research aims to evaluate the feasibility of achieving faster turnaround rates for centralized MRD and FDG-PET reviews, to identify an UHR population to get them on appropriate treatment sooner. By meeting the following benchmarks in real time, the study will significantly contribute to the field by enhancing the speed and accuracy of prognostic processes: • MRD analysis and report turnaround must be completed within 21 days from sample collection. • FDG-PET scan reports must be ready within 7 days for SUV/Deauville score at C4D15, C6D15, and 3 months after the end of treatment.