ANZCTR search results

This project is a pilot study in female adults to investigate new novel biomarkers of food addiction. Current food addiction research in humans largely relies on the use of self reported surveys which are prone to a reporting bias. Oxytocin is a peptide released from the hypothalamus (a region of the brain) that has been shown to be implicated in other more common forms of addiction such as drug and alcohol addiction. More recently this peptide has been investigated as a treatment option for drug and alcohol addiction and shown promising results. This project will recruit females >18yrs to determine if oxytocin is associated with food addiction and if concentrations of oxytocin can be changed in response to visual food stimuli. Study Aims: 1) To measure appetite hormones, chiefly plasma oxytocin concentrations, in females with and without food addiction of varying weight statuses 2) To determine if plasma oxytocin is responsive to visual food cues and if different food categories (healthy vs. hyperpalatable) can elicit different responses in females with and without food addiction of varying weight statuses

The aim of the research project is to deliver and test an innovative digital smartphone intervention, Peer Tree, which is designed to reduce loneliness in young people and will be applied to students marked as at risk of dropping out. The intervention is administered daily for 6 weeks. Young people aged 18-25 years will be recruited. In accordance with a randomised control trial study design, after participants complete the baseline assessment, they will be randomised to either the treatment as usual or intervention group. Those in the waitlist group will complete treatment as usual but will be provided with the same content once they have completed the research project. This will be provided in the form of +Connect, the predecessor of Peer Tree that doesn’t not contain the forums. Our research is expected to contribute to the development of personalised, modular mental health interventions that are cost-effective and efficient. There are currently no personalised, modular interventions available to address loneliness in tertiary education students.

The Ironbark Study is evaluating the effectiveness of a fall prevention program for older Aboriginal people (45 years and older), compared to a weekly elders group. Both arms of the trial involve an ongoing program delivered weekly by a local person, in a community setting. The Ironbark – Standing Strong program is a weekly exercise and discussion program aimed at preventing falls, and the Ironbark – Healthy Community program is a weekly program that involves discussions and social activities. The study design is a cluster randomised control trial and the 60 participating services across NSW, SA and WA are randomly assigned to either program. Services are required to recruit 10 - 15 eligible Aboriginal people, have strong connections with their local Aboriginal community, and have culturally appropriate venue and staff to deliver the program. Services will be supported through training and resources to implement either program. At the end of the trial, the control groups will have the opportunity to deliver the intervention program for a 6 month period, including all resources and equipment needed. It is anticipated that this trial will inform national policy and program delivery around falls prevention and healthy ageing among older Aboriginal people.

We propose to study the benefits and risks of Autologous Haematopoetic Stem Cell Transplant (AHSCT) in people who have an aggressive form of MS not controlled by conventional treatment. Participants will have AHSCT at The Alfred hospital, and they will be closely monitored for 5 years post the transplant to ensure their safety, and also level of Multiple Sclerosis disease activity.

Aim: To determine the relationship between quantitative and qualitative risk perceived by patients presenting for anaesthesia. Participants will be recruited before their preanaesthetic consultation in the preadmission clinic and will be above 18yrs old. Methods: Participants randomised as to the order in how anaesthesia risk is presented. Group A will be asked to correlate verbal descriptions of risk with numerical descriptions and then be asked to correlate numerical descriptions with verbal ones and Group B will do it the other way round. All participants will be asked general demographic information and which method of describing risks they prefer and whether they would like a discussion of risks to be included in the preanaesthetic consultation. Expected Outcomes: to be able to correlate verbal descriptions of risk with numerical descriptions in order to develop a useful set of words that can be used to communicate risk more clearly.

The purpose of the study is to report malnutrition prevalence from the nutrition audit conducted in 2014 and whether certain outcomes demonstrate an association to the determined nutrition status. Understanding whether malnutrition is linked to outcomes including length of stay in hospital, readmission, infections and falls can help identify where improvements in medical care is required. Based on previous findings in the literature, the hypothesis is that malnourished and severely malnourished patients experience longer number of days in hospital, are at an increased risk of having falls, infections and in-hospital mortality.

Total knee replacement (TKR) is a major surgical operation that will be conducted in increasing numbers in Australia over the next 10 years. The patient’s post-operative course is typically painful and can have significant associated morbidity. The recovery process is also expensive due to the intensive nursing and physiotherapy that are required for rehabilitation. Optimising and streamlining this clinical pathway is vital for improved patient outcomes and the overall health budget. Whilst there is evidence to support the early mobilisation of patients post TKR (to reduce venous thromboembolism (VTE)), respiratory complications and bowel dysfunction), this may cause bleeding in and around the joint. This blood creates swelling, pain, reduced mobility, decreased knee flexion and an increased potential for infection. The primary goal of this study is to decrease surgical site bleeding as the patient mobilises in the early post-operative period. We aim to assess this by a number of clinical outcome measures. The study will use oral tranexamic acid (TXA) to reduce post-operative bleeding. It is already accepted that TXA is effective in reducing blood loss for TKR, whether it is used in the intravenous, topical or oral route. Current literature shows that there have been no attempts in individualising oral dosing of TXA for a patient, based on their weight and renal function. Additionally, evidence is sparse regards to identifying the benefits of achieving acceptable therapeutic target TXA exposure in plasma over a longer period while the potential for bleeding at the surgical site to occur is still high. We aim to show that therapeutic exposure of TXA can be used safely over a prolonged period and that this will improve outcomes.

This study aims to investigate the effectiveness of a universal, mental health promotion and suicide prevention program – Youth Aware of Mental Health (YAM) – for reducing suicidal ideation and attempts, and increasing help-seeking in young people. The primary hypothesis is that after completing the YAM program, P1) students will report decreased severity of suicidal ideation.. Secondary hypotheses are, after completing the YAM program, students will self-report S1) no new incidents of suicide attempt, S2) increased help-seeking intentions and behaviours for suicide, and an associated increase in suicide literacy, and S3) decreased depressive symptoms.

The purpose of the proposed research is to develop an ongoing empirical evaluation of the effectiveness of transdiagnostic cognitive-behavioural treatments (tCBT) for emotional disorders.

This study primarily aims to see how patients having surgery for a common type of hip fracture have the oxygen levels in their brains affected after the operation by changes in their heart strength during the operation. We also want to see how other factors during the operation (blood pressure, and related factors) affect these same patients’ thinking after the operation; as well as seeing how common and how severe abnormally low readings in these factors (and other related heart factors) occur during the operation. We believe that intraoperative reduction in heart strength is related to reduced postoperative brain oxygen levels.