ANZCTR search results

The experimental sound processor and associated accessories is a sound processor that aims to combine the sound processing, connectivity, comfort and discretion of the behind-the-ear Nucleus 7 sound processor, This study requires usability listing tests in both the clinic and at-home use of the prototype design.

The decision to seek out emergency medical care is complex and nuanced. Many factors influence what care to seek and when. Once a facility or provider is chosen, there will be expectations for care competency and timeliness. Acutely unwell or distressed patients hope to see a Health Clinician or Doctor immediately on arrival, however this is rarely achievable. The reality for most patients is that they join a queue for care and wait to be treated. Previously, community health providers and patients have been blinded to the length of those queues. In the era of expanding Information Technology (IT) capabilities, advertised Emergency Department (ED) wait times (real-time, available on the internet) have recently been posted in Australia, including Cabrini ED’s time to see a doctor. There is a paucity of information regarding the impact of this on patients, paramedics and community members. The goal of the study is to explore the potential impact of advertised ED wait times by interviewing consumers and potential consumers of this information. Through this exploration, we hope to provide insight into the positive and negative aspects of this tool, allowing health administrators to determine whether and how to deploy the information. This study will be a prospective, multicentre, qualitative study collecting data via semi-structured interviews with patients (or guardians), paramedics and community members. It will be conducted over 3 months at Cabrini Hospital, Monash Medical Centre and Box Hill emergency departments. Community members (Bolton-Clarke consumers, sports club members and community representatives) will be interviewed either face to face or via telephone. The interviews will be recorded and transcribed. All data will be analysed and a descriptive paper submitted to various biomedical journals. This study aims to explore the impact of advertised ED wait times which may influence future policy decisions, the structure and deployment of wait time information and ongoing wait time and IT metadata application research.

In Australia and globally, mean yearly temperatures and heatwaves are on the rise, causing elevated morbidity and mortality rates. It is typically the elderly, poor, and socially isolated who suffer most. Often, these groups lack access to air conditioning, whereas less privileged groups have started using air conditioning more regularly, causing the electricity demand during hot weather periods to increase faster than what existing infrastructure can supply. This mismatch causes regular power failures during heatwaves, which deprive life-saving electricity to those who truly need it. Clearly, alternatives to air conditioning are required. While many cooling alternatives exist, most have never been objectively tested under heatwave conditions. This lack of evidence is detrimental and leads to the spread of misinformation. For example, many major health organizations, including the World Health Organization (WHO), currently advise against the use of electric fans in hot conditions. On the contrary, a recent (2012) Cochrane review concluded that no evidence whatsoever currently exists in the literature supporting or refuting the use of electric fans during heat waves. Following-on, we recently (2015) published a study in the Journal of the American Medical Association demonstrating fan use was better than no fan use for young healthy adults in humid environments at 36°C and 42°C; both conditions at which fan use is commonly discouraged. From a theoretical standpoint, electric fans should be effective in hot and humid conditions because they help increase sweating efficiency, i.e. the amount of sweat that we produce which actually contributes to heat loss. Unlike hot humid conditions, in very-hot and dry conditions, sweating efficiency may be at 100% and therefore fan use may not be beneficial as the increased air speed (when air temperature is above skin temperature) would increase heat gain from the environment through convection without any supplying any additional evaporative heat loss. Therefore, the purpose of this study will be to objectively test the effectiveness of electric fan use for cooling healthy adults during heatwaves in two heatwave conditions (very-hot-and-dry and hot-and-humid). We hypothesize that in very-hot-and-dry conditions, electric fan use will make people hotter, more uncomfortable, increase their cardiovascular strain and increase their rate of dehydration, whereas in the hot-and-humid conditions, fan use will cool people, make them more comfortable and lower their cardiovascular strain at the cost of a slightly elevated sweat rate.

This study will aim to test whether a self-directed behavioural activation intervention is more effective in reducing depression symptoms and increasing subjective wellbeing and value-consistent behaviours in a non-clinical adult sample if enhanced with self-compassion training (EBA condition) than if delivered as a stand-alone intervention (BA condition). Several hypotheses will be tested, including: (a) The mean rate of change in (i) depression symptoms, (ii) positive affect, (iii) negative affect, (iv) satisfaction with life, and (v) value-consistent behaviour will be greater amongst participants in the behavioural activation condition than the waitlist control condition. (b) The mean rate of change in (i) depression symptoms, (ii) positive affect, (iii) negative affect, (iv) satisfaction with life, (v) value-consistent behaviour, and (vi) self-compassion will be greater for participants in the EBA condition than the BA condition. (c) For participants in both the BA and EBA conditions, individuals with greater pre-test depression symptoms will have a larger rate of change in (i) positive affect, (ii) negative affect, and (iii) satisfaction with life than participants in the waitlist control condition. (d) Participants in the EBA condition will be more likely than those in the BA condition to complete online survey measures (which will used as a proxy measure for treatment continuation).

The aim is determine whether connectivity of the right parietal cortex predicts response to an inhibitory brain stimulation paradigm (TBS), to induce spatial neglect in healthy adults. We hypothesis that the connectivity of the stimulated parietal cortex prior to an inhibitory brain stimulation paradigm, will predict the degree of induced left-sided neglect as measured by behavioural responses.

This randomised controlled trial will assess the efficacy of topical dorzolamide achieving macular hole closure prior to vitreoretinal surgery.

Diabetic retinopathy, (or diabetic eye disease), is the leading cause of preventable vision loss in working adults. With early diagnosis and treatment, sight threatening diabetic retinopathy can be prevented. To ensure early detection and timely treatment, it is recommended that a person with diabetes has an eye examination at the time of diabetes diagnosis, then at least every two years thereafter. Research has shown that only around one in three Australians actually follow these recommendations and research into the compliance of regular screening methods (such as referral to an optometrist or to private or public eye clinics) has shown that only half of Australians attend these appointments. However, when screening is held within a general practice, better compliance and attendance is achieved. The selected general practices are now offering diabetic retinopathy screening. This study aims to find out if the community find this is an acceptable way to screen for diabetic retinopathy and to find out the rate of previously undiagnosed diabetic retinopathy.

Atrial fibrillation (AF) remains a frequent complication after coronary artery bypass graft surgery (CABG) with a rate of occurrence from 10 to 40%.. This study will assess the ability of a novel treatment (NP202) to prevent post operative atrial fibrillation in comparison to a placebo. NP202 is a small molecule that inhibits a protein that is central to atrial fibrillation. Subjects will be treated with NP202 or placebo for 3 days prior to their surgery and through the duration of their hospital stay. After surgery, the amount of atrial fibrillation will be assessed during the in hospital recovery period.

Our overall objective is to demonstrate whether LCI increases the detection rate compared with high-definition white light (current standard of care). The purpose of this study is to compare the rates of polyp detection with Linked Colour Imaging (LCI) and high-definition white light in patients undergoing elective colonoscopy. Who is it for? You may be eligible for this study if you are aged over 18 and are undergoing elective colonoscopy at the Gold Coast University Hospital. Study details All participants in this study will undergo a single colonoscopy as planned. The type of light used will be randomised by chance. We will record where polyps were found and their size. Any cancerous or pre-cancerous appearing lesions detected will be treated as per standard procedure. Resected polyps will be pathology tested as part of your routine care. No tissue samples will be obtained or stored purely for research purposes alone. The results of your tissue analysis will be de-identified and used only to confirm that lesions seen during your colonoscopy were really polyps. It is hoped this research will demonstrate whether LCI increases the detection rate compared with the current standard of high-definition white light.

This study aims to produce an Aboriginal Health Practitioner coordinated risk factor management program to reduce cognitive decline and functional impairment in Aboriginal Australians aged 45 years and over. The Dementia prevention and risk management program for Aboriginal Australians (DAMPAA) program will include AHP coordination and care planning of a) an exercise program including falls prevention strategies; b) cardiovascular risk management. This will be achieved through a 5 year research project in partnership with three ACCHS’s by: 1) Refining and piloting an intervention program (DAMPAA) that targets key dementia risk factors for Aboriginal people, and is based on existing best practice guidelines and cultural and service provider recommendations. 2) Completing a randomized controlled trial (RCT) comparing the DAMPAA program with usual care; 3) Evaluating the efficacy and cost-effectiveness of the DAMPAA. Significance: Given the rapid ageing of the Aboriginal population, the impact that dementia has on Aboriginal communities, and the resulting financial cost to society, there is a pressing need to develop and translate programs capable of reducing dementia in Aboriginal Australians. This project will produce a prevention program designed to meet the needs of Aboriginal Australians at risk of dementia.