mteb/BIRCO-ClinicalTrial-Test huggingface dataset:
Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) is a new threat to public health since November, 2002. The SARS is highly contagious and is believed to be transmitted by person-to-person through droplet and direct contact. The patients present with fever, chills, cough, myalgia, dyspnea, and diarrhea. The symptoms aggravate in the second week and nearly 40% of the patients develop respiratory failure that requires assisted ventilation. The mortality rate is reported as 6.5%-7%. After several months, the world scientists found the etiology to be a new coronavirus not belonging to the previous coronavirus group I, II and III. The new virus is called SARS associated coronavirus (SARS-CoV). Although the high morbidity and mortality of SARS occurred in adults, there was rare mortality reported in the children. The report from Hong Kong pointed out that the symptoms of SARS in younger children were milder and the clinical course was not as aggressive as in adults. Therefore, the aim of the project is to design the experiment to see the differences of immunological responses to SARS-CoV protein in healthy younger children, teenagers, and adults. The investigators hope that the result could explain the reason for milder disease in younger children and the immunological pathogenesis of SARS.
This randomized phase III trial studies oxaliplatin, leucovorin calcium, fluorouracil, and bevacizumab to see how well they work compared to oxaliplatin, leucovorin calcium, and fluorouracil in treating patients who have undergone surgery for stage II colon cancer. Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as oxaliplatin, leucovorin calcium, and fluorouracil, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells, by stopping them from dividing, or by stopping them from spreading. Monoclonal antibodies, such as bevacizumab, may interfere with the ability of tumor cells to grow and spread. It is not yet known whether giving combination chemotherapy together with bevacizumab is more effective than combination chemotherapy alone in treating colon cancer. PRIMARY OBJECTIVES: I. To demonstrate an improvement in 3-year disease-free survival for high-risk stage II colon cancer patients randomly assigned to 5-FU (fluorouracil), leucovorin (leucovorin calcium), oxaliplatin versus 5-FU, leucovorin, oxaliplatin and bevacizumab. SECONDARY OBJECTIVES: I. To compare overall survival between the regimens. II. To further define the toxicity profiles of the regimens. III. To prospectively determine the impact of tumor biological characteristics on the survival of patients with stage II colon cancer. IV. To assess the association between oxaliplatin exposure, allelic variants in candidate genes, and neurotoxicity. (Pharmacogenetic ancillary objective) OUTLINE: Patients with high-risk disease are randomized to 1 of 2 treatment arms (Arms A and B).
This study will test the safety of an experimental vaccine for preventing West Nile virus infection. The virus is spread mainly by mosquito bites. Symptoms can include high fever, headache, neck stiffness, stupor, muscle weakness, vision loss, numbness and paralysis. Rarely, infection leads to permanent nerve damage and possibly death. The vaccine used in the study is made from DNA that codes for West Nile virus proteins. Injected into a muscle, the DNA instructs the body to make a small amount of West Nile virus protein. This study will see if the body creates resistance or immunity to these proteins. Participants cannot get West Nile virus from the vaccine. Healthy normal volunteers between 18 and 65 years of age may be eligible for this study. Candidates are screened with a medical history, physical examination, and blood and urine tests for various infections and other medical problems. Women who are able to become pregnant are given a pregnancy test. Women who are pregnant or breastfeeding may not participate. Anyone who has received a vaccination for Yellow Fever or Japanese Encephalitis virus in the past may not participate in this research study. Participants will receive three injections of the experimental vaccine, the first on the first study day (Day 0), the second on Day 28, and the third on Day 56. The injections are given with a device called Biojector® (Registered Trademark) 2000 that delivers the vaccine through the skin into the muscle without the use of a needle.
This study will determine if an experimental vaccine to prevent Ebola virus infection is safe and what side effects, if any, it causes. Ebola virus infection may range from mild to severe, and may cause breathing problems, severe bleeding, kidney problems and shock that can lead to death. The vaccine used in this study contains man-made genetic material similar to one part of the Ebola virus, which is designed to stimulate an immune response to the virus. The vaccine itself cannot cause Ebola virus infection because it does not contain any Ebola virus. Participants are assigned to one of three groups as they enter into the study. Of the first 16 people in the study, 12 receive the lowest study dose of vaccine and 4 receive placebo (an inactive substance). If this dose is safe, then of the next 16 people who enter the study, 12 receive a higher dose of the vaccine, and the remaining 4 receive placebo. If this dose is safe, the final 12 people in the last group of 16 receive the highest study dose, and 4 receive placebo. The vaccine is given as a single injection in the arm on the day of enrollment. Participants keep a diary for 5 days, recording their temperature, symptoms and any reaction at the injection site. They call a study nurse the day after vaccination to report how they feel, and they return to the clinic approximately six times for follow-up evaluations.
Child psychological/behavioural disorders such as withdrawal may persist when the psychosocial context is unfavourable. Health promotion strategies (Olds' paradigm) have proved their efficacy in vulnerable populations. CAPEDP project sets out to evaluate a program of home visits in France This program aims at reducing psychosocial disorders and promoting mental health, social support and attachment amongst at-risk young women and their family. 440 primigravida (pregnant women) will be randomised into two groups. The first group will receive routine follow-up as currently provided by national community health and social services. The second group will receive home visits by community workers. These visits will start during pregnancy and will continue up to the child's second birthday.
The main purpose of this study is to look at relationships between types of flu viruses and characteristics of infected patients, including vaccination status, organ system involvement, and disease severity. In this study, 500 patients with respiratory illnesses will have nose/throat fluid samples collected. At Children's Hospital Boston, patients 30 days to 5 years of age will be recruited; at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, patients of any age will be eligible. The researchers will compare the symptoms of infection by similar flu virus types and look at differences in the flu virus types between the 2 age groups of patients. The researchers will also look at whether any flu virus types first show up in the children prior to infecting the adults. Hopefully this study will improve understanding of how flu viruses develop, spread, and cause disease. This information may help the development of more effective flu vaccines, prevention measures, and treatments. There is evidence that the pediatric population, in particular, may play an essential role in influenza transmission. One recent study showed that children between the ages of 3 and 4 years were consistently the first population group to be affected by influenza illness over several winter seasons. In addition, influenza illness in children less than 5 years of age was the strongest predictor of mortality among adults. Collecting samples from adults as well as children in the pre-school age group would enable researchers to further examine the specific role this population plays in the evolution of influenza virus lineages and the development of dominant strains.
New antibiotics are required to have not only the antibacterial activity against doxycyline-resistant O. tsutsugamushi but also lower risk for resistance or any cross-resistance to others. In this prospective, open-label, randomized trial, we enroll patients with mild-to-moderate scrub typhus. We compared the efficacy and safety of a 5-day rifampin therapy with those of a 5-day doxycycline therapy at Chosun University Hospital, or one of its two community-based affiliated hospitals which are all located in southwestern Korea between 2006 and 2009.
The purpose of this research is to evaluate specific parenting programs that aim to improve the family's ability to keep children physically safe and emotionally secure. We would like to learn more about how the treatments actually help families and to find out how an intervention that focuses on child health and safety compares with one that focuses on the parent and child relationship. We also want to determine whether participating in one program type versus the other results in further reports for child maltreatment.
Background: Pulmonary involvement in leptospirosis has been reported to be on the increase and is emerging as the main cause of death due to leptospirosis in many countries, including Thailand. Methods: A prospective randomized controlled trial of desmopressin or high dose dexamethasone as adjunctive therapy in patients with suspected pulmonary hemorrhage associated with leptospirosis was conducted between July 2003 and October 2006 at 5 hospitals in Thailand.
It has been observed that several of patients having prolonged or complicated course of acute viral hepatitis have underlying diabetes. It is possible that with impaired hepatocyte regenerating capacity, these patients run a more prolonged and complicated course. We hypothesize that acute hepatitis infection has a prolonged and complicated course among diabetic patients. Acute viral hepatitis is usually a self limited condition characterizes by typical course of prodrome followed by an icteric phase. In some cases the course may be protracted or complicated by the development of cholestatic phase or acute liver failure . The development of complicated course depends on a number of factors such as the type of virus and a variety of host factors including age of infection, immune status of the host and condition of the underlying liver before the onset of hepatitis. Patients who have an underlying chronic liver disease or cirrhosis have increased risk of development of decompensation and liver related death when they develop superinfection with some hepatotropic viruses. Vento etal demonstrated in their classical study that superinfection with hepatitis A on chronic liver disease is associated with high risk of decompensation and death. In India, since most of the adult population including those with chronic liver disease has been shown to have protective antibodies against HAV, this infection is rarely a problem in them. Hepatitis E virus (HEV) has demonstrated to be the most common cause of acute hepatitis, acute liver failure and subacute liver in India.
This study will randomly assign emergency department patients seeking treatment for a headache to one of three groups. The first group will receive standard emergency care as determined by the treating physician, the second group will breathe high flow air by facemask for 15 minutes, and the third group will breathe high flow oxygen by face mask for 15 minutes. The patients will be questioned in the beginning of their treatment and at 2, 5, 10, 15 and 30 minutes after it's begun about the intensity of their headache and how much relief they are experiencing from their treatment. Concentration of carbon dioxide exhaled by patients will also be recorded at 0, 2, 5, 10, 15 and 30 minutes. After fifteen minutes, the patients in groups 2 and 3 will continue with standard emergency care, which can include any treatment their physician sees fit. Patients in all three groups will receive a stopwatch in the beginning of their emergency department visit and record the total extent of time their headache will take to resolve. Thorough description provided in brief summary.
This randomized phase III trial studies carboplatin and paclitaxel to compare how well they work with or without bevacizumab and/or cetuximab in treating patients with stage IV or non-small cell lung cancer that has returned after a period of improvement (recurrent). Drugs used in chemotherapy, such as carboplatin and paclitaxel, work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells, by stopping them from dividing, or by stopping them from spreading. Bevacizumab may prevent the growth of new blood vessels that tumor needs to grow. Cetuximab may also stop cancer cells from growing by binding and interfering with a protein on the surface of the tumor cell that is needed for tumor growth. It is not yet known whether giving carboplatin and paclitaxel are more effective with or without bevacizumab and/or cetuximab in treating patients with non-small cell lung cancer. PRIMARY OBJECTIVES: I. To compare overall survival (OS) in the entire study population. II. To compare progression-free survival (PFS) by institutional review of epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH)-positive patients. SECONDARY OBJECTIVES: I. To compare OS and PFS by centralized review in EGFR FISH-positive patients. II. To compare PFS by centralized image review and by institutional review in the entire study population. III. To compare the response rate (confirmed plus unconfirmed, complete and partial responses) in a subset of patients with measurable disease in EGFR FISH-positive patient and the entire study population.
This is a Phase 2 study of the safety and efficacy of Intravenous (IV) Ribavirin in treating patients presenting with a probable or suspected case of viral hemorrhagic fever (either Crimean Congo or Lassa Fever) at a military medical treatment hospital. All patients will be treated with a 10 day course of IV Ribavirin if they meet all the inclusion and none of the exclusion criteria. Department of Defense operations have resulted in the deployment of personnel to areas endemic for Viral Hemorrhagic Fever (VHF): Crimean-Congo Hemorrhagic Fever (CCHF) or Lassa Fever. Unfortunately, beyond supportive care, there is no approved therapy for treating either infection. Previous studies with intravenous (IV) Ribavirin have shown IV Ribavirin as a promising treatment for both infections. This study will provide experience in U.S. Department of Defense associated treatment facilities in the use of IV Ribavirin for the experimental treatment of viral hemorrhagic fevers primarily among U.S. Service personnel deployed to disease-endemic areas. The rationale for conducting the study is a) to allow the DoD to gain experience in treating VHF b) to offer this experimental but promising therapy to patients with probable or suspected VHF c) to collect safety data while obtaining experience using Ribavirin.
Study of the lipid metabolism under glycemic control in septic patients who got an university 14 bed ICU. Hypothesis: establish a relationship between lipid metabolism alterations and glycemic control or infusion of exogenous insulin The investigators enrolled 69 consecutive patients with severe sepsis or septic shock and divided them in two different groups after randomization with sealed envelopes. One group called intensive glycemic control with glycemic levels been between 80 to 110 mg/dl with exogenous insulin. The other group called conventional glycemic control with glycemic levels been between 180 and 220 mg/dl. Blood samples were collected at 0, 12, 24, 48 and 72 hours to measure HDL, LDL, Total cholesterol, free fatty acids and oxidized LDL. Clinical data as creatinine, P/F ratio, bilirubins, platelets, lactate, arterial blood gasometry were either monitored.
The study project can be divided into two parts: (1) health screening for the community and (2) clinical diagnosis and treatment for patients at National Referral Hospital (NRH) in Solomon islands. The health screening includes a questionnaire, stool parasitic screening and blood laboratory tests. A total of 800 subjects will participate in this study. The collected samples are venous blood (20 ml/per subject) and stool in order to conduct the related tests mentioned above. As for the collection of target patients, KMUH will cooperate with NRH to collect two kinds of blood samples: the blood samples of confirmed malarial cases and those of cases suspicious of Flaviviral, Alpha-viral, Rickettsial, and Leptospiral infections. The expected received cases are 600 each year. The venous blood samples (20 ml/per subject) will be used to conduct related tests mentioned above. At the same time, the subjects will also have to fill out a related questionnaire which includes height, weight, waist line, heath behavior and habit, and past history, etc. KMUH plan a series of medical services to Solomon Islands with the expectation that the health and medical standard in Solomon Islands can be improved by medical interaction and the use of high-tech medical instruments. By collecting data from Solomon Islands, KMUH can better understand the health needs, the characteristics of diseases, and the basic health information of Solomon Islanders so that the strategies and the operation goals for further improvement will be more explicit for KMUH's medical teams.
Hepatitis E is a worldwide disease. It is the leading or second leading cause of acute hepatitis in adults in developing countries from sub-Saharan Africa or Southeast Asia, where it is hyperendemic and principally water-borne. In industrialised western countries, hepatitis E was until recently considered as imported from hyperendemic geographical areas, but is currently an emerging autochthonous infectious disease. A growing body of data from Europe, America, Australia, and Asia strongly indicate that pigs represent a major Hepatitis E Virus (HEV) reservoir and might be a source of zoonotic transmission to humans through direct or indirect exposure. Hepatitis E typically causes self-limited acute infection. However, the overall death rate is 1-4%, and it can reach 20% in pregnant women and might be still higher in patients with underlying chronic liver disease. To date, no preventive or curative treatment of hepatitis E is available. Therefore, the major goal of the study is to analyse for the first time the host responses in kidney-transplant recipients with chronic HEV infection and to compare them to the host responses in kidney-transplant recipients without viral infection (controls), to identify a specific peripheral signature using blood microarray-based gene expression profiling. Other minor goals are : 1. to assess the incidence of HEV infection in kidney-transplant recipients from south-eastern France, to study the risk factors, and to describe the clinical features and outcomes of chronic HEV infection in kidney-transplant recipients, 2. to compare the peripheral signature to a liver signature in the cases where a liver biopsy is available.
Japanese encephalitis (JE) is one of important zoonotic infectious diseases in Taiwan. JE caused by Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV) which transmitted by Culex tritaeniorhynchus and used swine as amplifying host. Infections leading to overt encephalitis are estimated to be 1 in 1000 cases. Among JE confirmed cases, approximately 25 percent of cases die and 50 percent of the survivals develop permanent neurologic and/or psychiatric sequelae. JEV circulated in Taiwan are belonged to genotype III and the vaccine strain selected from same genotype. Genotype I JEV was first detected in northern Taiwan in 2008 by CDC, and the same genotype JEV were detected in mosquito collected in central Taiwan by our group. In order to study the genotypic shift of JEV in Taiwan areas, and the effects of the replacement of genotype on vaccine, we will conduct the JEV seroepidemiology in Hualien county which was the highest incidence of JEV in Taiwan. The aims of this study were: (1) study the circulating of genotype I JEV in Hualien county; (2) determine the virulence of genotype I JEV in human; (3) differential diagnosis of JEV genotype I or III infection among confirmed cases; (4) measure the cross neutralizing activity, after immunized with genotype III JEV vaccine, against genotype I JEV; (5) determine the age-specific seroprevalence of JEV antibody; (6) estimate the annual risk of infection for JEV.
The study will be conducted using nasopharyngeal swab specimens collected prospectively from individuals suspected of having the signs and symptoms of an acute respiratory tract infection caused by a respiratory virus. A series of standard viral culture tests validated for routine use in the clinical laboratory, and/or a series of PCR-based Laboratory Developed Tests (PCR-LDT) validated by a central reference laboratory will be used to verify the performance of the investigational artus Influenza A/B RT-PCR test and the QIAGEN ResPlex II Advanced Panel test. From each specimen five (5) aliquots will be prepared: (a) one aliquot will be tested in real-time using the assigned viral culture reference methods; (b) one aliquot will be used to extract nucleic acid in real-time for investigational testing; (c) one aliquot of the specimen will be stored at --70C for subsequent shipment to the reference laboratory for PCR-LDT testing, (d) one aliquot will be archived at -70C for subsequent follow-up by the reference laboratory (e.g., bi-directional sequencing of positive specimens), and (e) any remaining specimen will be stored for the Fresh vs. Frozen Study. The extracted nucleic acid generated from the second aliquot (i.e., "b" above) will be split and subjected to testing by both the artus Influenza A/B RT-PCR test and the ResPlex II Advanced Panel test. Each year the morbidity and mortality associated with acute respiratory tract infections fluctuates seasonally.
Background: - MRSA is a type of bacteria that causes serious health problems. It can cause severe infections and is difficult to treat. MRSA has been found in a high number of people who work with some kinds of livestock, such as pigs. Researchers want to study people in rural areas, where more people work with or around livestock. They want to see if MRSA is more common or causes more serious infections in these areas. Objectives: - To look at the relationship between livestock handling (especially pigs) and MRSA bacteria in people in rural areas. Eligibility: - Participants in the Agricultural Health Study in Iowa, including those who are exposed to livestock. - Healthy volunteers who are not exposed to livestock. Design: - This study requires an initial visit and monthly follow-up surveys for 18 months. - At the first visit, participants will have throat and nose swabs to collect cell and bacteria samples. They will also complete a questionnaire about their health habits. Other questions will ask about any work that brings them into contact with livestock like cows, pigs, or chickens. - Every month for the next 17 months, participants will complete another questionnaire to record any changes in their health and livestock contact information. They will also collect throat and nose swabs. They will send the questionnaires and the swabs to the study researchers.
Objectives: The overall objective is to monitor efficacy of mebendazole (MBZ) against Soil-Transmitted Helminths (STH). The primary objective is: (1) to monitor the efficacy a single dose 500 mg of mebendazole (MBZ) against Soil-Transmitted Helminths (STH) infections by means of Faecal Egg Count Reduction (FECR) and Cure Rate (CR). The secondary objectives are: 1. to assess the occurrence of Necator americanus and Ancylostoma duodenal. 2. to assess the occurrence of β-tubulin mutations related to resistance before and after drug administration. 3. to evaluate the role of dogs and pigs as reservoir for zoonotic transmission. Primary objective: Following obtaining informed consent, schoolchildren in the target age range group will be recruited and asked to provide a recent stool sample (an interval of less than 4 hours) that will be processed to determine the Faecal Egg Count (FEC) for each Soil-Transmitted Helminths (STH) present. For the initial sampling the aim is to enroll at least 250 infected children for at least one of the Soil-Transmitted Helminths (STH). This sample size was selected based on statistical analysis of study power, using random simulations of correlated over-dispersed Faecal Egg Count data reflecting the variance-covariance structure in a selection of real Faecal Egg Count (FEC) data sets. This analysis suggested that a sample size of up to 200 individuals (α = 0.05, power = 80%) was required to detect a 10 percentage point drop from a null efficacy of ~ 80% (mean percentage FEC ∆ per individual) over a wide range of infection scenarios.
Currently effective antivials for influenza treatment are two influenza viral neuraminidase inhibitors, oseltamivir (Tamiflu) and zanamivir (Relenza). Resistance to these drugs is reflected by reduced susceptibility of viral neuraminidase to these drugs. The hypothesis is that the signal ratio of two reagents (with or without a single concentration of the drug) correlates the IC50 value, an accurate measurement of drug resistance but impractical for clinical use. The study design is to collect samples from participants. A portion of the sample is used for drug resistance detection using the test (QFlu Combo Test) under investigation. The remaining portion of the sample is used for culture. The culture positive samples are used for determination of IC50 values, which is used as a gold standard for defining whether a virus isolate is resistant to a drug or not. The sensitivity and specificity of the QFlu test will be calculated by comparing to the gold standard test.
The Family Health and Development Project (FHDP) is a randomized controlled trial to evaluate the effectiveness of the Intensive In-home Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Service (IICAPS) intervention, targeting emotionally, behaviorally, and/or psychiatrically disordered children at risk of a psychiatric inpatient admission and their families. Children and families are randomized to receive IICAPS or Home-based Child Treatment Coordination (Home-based CTC), a home-based case management intervention for coordination of mental health services for children. Approximately 144 children and their families will be enrolled for a 12 month study period. Data will be collected through interviews with the child's parent/legal guardian, and from the child's teacher, the child's school, and the Department of Social Services (claims data). This study will test the hypotheses that children receiving IICAPS will be less likely to exhibit out-of-control behaviors and less likely to experience a psychiatric hospitalization and/or out-of-home placement during and up to six months post-discharge from services. The Family Health and Development Project (FHDP) is a randomized controlled trial to evaluate the effectiveness of the Intensive In-home Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Service (IICAPS) intervention, targeting emotionally, behaviorally, and/or psychiatrically disordered children at risk of a psychiatric inpatient admission and their families. Children and families are randomized to receive IICAPS or Home-based Child Treatment Coordination (Home-based CTC), a home-based case management intervention for coordination of mental health services for children.
This study aims to evaluate the immunogenicity and reactogenicity of 13-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine among infants, toddlers and children in Bobo-Dioulasso, Burkina Faso. Infants will be randomized to receive vaccine at 6, 10, 14 weeks or at 6 weeks, 14 weeks and 9 months of age. Serotype-specific serum IgG, OPA and nasopharyngeal colonization will be assessed at 6 weeks, 18 weeks, 9 months and 10 months of age. Toddlers 12-15 months of age will be randomized to receive either a single dose of PCV13 or 2 doses 2 months apart. Serotype-specific serum IgG and OPA will be measured pre-dose 1 and again 3 months later. Children 2 to 4 years of age will receive a single dose of PCV13 and have IgG and OPA assessments pre-vaccination and 1 month post-vaccination. The immunogenicity and reactogenicity of PCV13 in the "standard schedule" groups (e.g. 6, 10, 14 weeks for infants and single dose for toddlers) will be compared to that observed in the PCV13 licensure trials. Within each age group the alternative schedule will be compared to the standard schedule in terms of immunogenicity and impact on nasopharyngeal carriage (infants only).
Background: acute bronchiolitis (AB) is a common reason for hospitalization of infants in all population groups, and is usually due to respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) infection. The main cause for hospitalization is often a need for oxygen, but can also include high fever (with a suspected secondary bacterial infection) or increasing respiratory distress. In a minority of cases (some of which can be identified in advance by defining risk groups) a serious illness may develop, including risk of respiratory failure and death. Most cases will just require supplemental oxygen and suction of secretions from the nose (as listed in the recommendations of the American Academy of Pediatrics - AAP). However, this apparently "simple" treatment still requires continued hospitalization. This results in a sharp increase in bed occupancy in Israeli hospital pediatric departments in the winter months. In recent years two studies from developed countries have been published where safety has been demonstrated for home oxygen treatment for babies with AB. However, feasibility studies have not been published yet, for example for populations living in poor conditions. The General Health Services (Klalit) in Israel provides integrated hospital and community health service to the majority of the population living o in our region, thus presenting an opportunity for optimal interventions related to this disease. Objective: To develop a model of community based safe handling of AB in various communities in southern Israel.
This study will assess compliance with dietary recommendations, in conjunction with a nutritional supplement to meet the nutritional requirements in children and the effects of the compliance on promoting growth in children who are at risk of under-nutrition. This study will assess compliance with dietary recommendations, in conjunction with an oral nutritional supplement to meet the nutritional requirements in children older than 36 (>36) to less than or equal 48 (≤48) months of age, and the effects of the compliance on promoting catch-up growth and normal healthy growth in children who are at risk of under-nutrition.
Cystic Fibrosis (CF) is a fatal, recessive genetic disorder characterized by progressive inflammation and lung damage. It is unclear whether current treatment strategies, which focus on detection and eradication of pathogenic microorganisms in the lung, are the best way to prevent the initiation of early inflammation and lung damage. This study asks how early acquisition of microbial flora occurs in infants with CF and healthy baby controls, and whether this process initiates or influences early inflammation and clinical disease progression in CF. Cystic Fibrosis is the most common lethal genetic disorder in Caucasian populations. Mutations of the Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane Conductance Regulator (CFTR) affect its ability to act as a chloride channel. The recent development of a transgenic pig model of CF has demonstrated that newborn CF lungs, free of bacteria and inflammation at birth, become colonized with a mixed microbial flora that likely initiates early inflammatory changes which precede clinically apparent deterioration in lung function. Because chronic infection and inflammation play central roles in CF disease progression and exacerbations, many clinicians and researchers have focused on identifying pathogens associated with CF infection and inflammation. Recent studies outside the area of CF, however, have clearly demonstrated that "non-pathogens", such as the commensal flora carried by all humans at multiple mucosal sites, engage the host's innate and adaptive immune systems constantly. This interaction between "microbiome" and host genome is responsible for appropriate development and function of protective inflammatory and immune responses.
Primary Objective: To compare the effect of alirocumab with placebo on the occurrence of cardiovascular events (composite endpoint of coronary heart disease (CHD) death, non-fatal myocardial infarction (MI), fatal and non-fatal ischemic stroke, unstable angina requiring hospitalization) in patients who have experienced an acute coronary syndrome (ACS) event 4 to 52 weeks prior to randomization and are treated with evidence-based medical and dietary management of dyslipidemia. Secondary Objectives: - To evaluate the effect of alirocumab on secondary endpoints (any CHD event , major CHD event, any CV event, composite of all cause mortality/non-fatal MI/non-fatal ischemic stroke, all cause mortality). - To evaluate the safety and tolerability of alirocumab. - To evaluate the effect of alirocumab on lipid parameters. The maximum study duration will be 70 months, including up to a 4-month run-in period, 64 months randomized treatment period, and 2-month follow-up period. Number of patients aged from 18 to 64 years and >=65 years old are based on the number of randomized patients (18000 patients).
Tropical fevers have been a diagnostic challenge from the antiquity. Nowadays, despite the availability of good diagnostic capacities, undifferentiated febrile illnesses continue to be a thorny problem for travel physicians. In developing countries, the scarcity of skilled personnel and adequate laboratory facilities makes the differential diagnosis of fevers even more complex. Health care workers must often rely on syndrome-oriented empirical approaches to treatment and might overestimate or underestimate the likelihood of certain diseases. For instance Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTD) contribute substantially to the burden of persistent (more than 1 week) fevers in the Tropics, causing considerable mortality and major disability. These diseases are however rarely diagnosed at primary health care (PHC) level. The difficulty in establishing the cause of febrile illnesses has resulted in omission or delays in treatment, irrational prescriptions with polytherapy, increasing cost and development of drug resistance. In resource-limited settings, clinical algorithms constitute a valuable aid to health workers, as they facilitate the therapeutic decision in the absence of good laboratory capacities. There is a critical lack of appropriate diagnostic tools to guide treatment of NTDs. While clinical algorithms have been developed for some NTDs, in most cases they remain empirical. Besides, they rarely take into account local prevalence data, do not adequately represent the spectrum of patients and differential diagnosis at the primary care level and often have not been properly validated.
The purpose of this study is to investigate the potential benefits and risks of antipyretics use in naturally occurring influenza virus infections in humans. Background: Being one of the commonest conditions encountered in modern medical practice, fever is commonly regarded as an illness that has to be treated, both by medical professionals and patients. However, objective and convincing evidence is lacking that naturally occurring fever is harmful, and there is growing evidence that fever may serve an important host defense mechanism in infections and the risks of its suppression may far outweigh its apparent benefits. In acute respiratory infections including influenza, antipyretics are commonly being prescribed as a symptomatic treatment. Evidence from different randomized controlled trials, however, had challenged the actual amount of clinical benefit achievable by fever suppression for improving the patients' comfort and behavior. On the other hand, evidence from animal and human challenge studies has suggested that antipyretic therapy may actually prolong the duration of illness, suppress humoral antibody response, and increase the level and duration of viral shedding. The knowledge gap: Most of the currently available evidence on the harms and benefits of antipyretic treatment of upper respiratory tract infections (URTIs) are from either experimental animal studies, or human challenge studies with various respiratory viruses, or from randomized controlled trials (RCTs) on patients with fever of presumed viral origin. There has yet been no RCT that has investigated on the effect of antipyretics on the clinical course, disease duration, and the pattern of viral shedding in naturally occurring acute URTIs of viral origin in humans.
The study is an evaluation of a nutrition and physical activity intervention in child care centers in NC, CA, and CT. The broad, long term goal is to develop a reproducible nutrition and physical activity intervention which utilizes child care consultant nutrition specialists to reduce the risk of overweight among children in regulated out-of-home child care. The objectives are: 1. To train Child Care Health consultants (CCHCs) to become specialists in nutrition consultation in child care such that they will increase their daily consultation activities on nutrition, physical activity, and childhood overweight, 2. To increase child care staff and parental knowledge of and positive attitudes toward providing healthy foods, appropriate portions of foods, and appropriate levels of physical activity for young children in out-of-home child care centers., 3. To strengthen child care center policies, procedures, practices and behaviors, regarding providing healthy foods, appropriate portions of foods, and appropriate levels of physical activity for young children in out-of-home child care centers, and 4. To improve dietary intake and levels of physical activity, and to prevent increases in overweight and the risk of overweight as determined by body mass indexes among children in out-of-home child care centers.
The study evaluates the efficacy of fluticasone furoate/umeclidinium bromide/vilanterol (FF/UMEC/VI) to reduce the annual rate of moderate and severe exacerbations compared with dual therapy of FF/VI or UMEC/VI in subjects with COPD. Published studies which assessed the use of an 'open' triple therapy (use of Inhaled Corticosteroid [ICS]/ Long-acting Muscarinic Receptor Antagonists [LAMA])/ Long Acting Beta-Agonist [LABA] delivered via multiple inhalers) in moderate-severe COPD patients, reported improvements in lung function, Health Related Quality of Life (HRQoL), hospitalization rates and rescue medication use, compared to dual therapy (ICS/LABA) or LAMA alone. These studies have also shown similar safety profile with dual or monotherapy doses for periods of up to one year. Given the clinical experience with FF, UMEC and VI, and that the associated risks with these compounds are anticipated from their known pharmacology, the potential benefit of a new therapy option in patients with moderate to severe COPD supports the further development of the closed triple combination (delivered via one inhaler). In the current study subjects meeting all inclusion/exclusion criteria will complete 2-week run-in period; 52 week treatment period and a 1-week safety follow-up period. Eligible subjects will be randomized to one of the following double-blind treatment groups FF/UMEC/VI 100 micrograms (mcg)/62.5 mcg/25 mcg once daily (QD), FF/VI 100 mcg/25 mcg QD, or UMEC/VI 62.5 mcg/25 mcg QD
This study seeks to determine the incidence and transmission of avian influenza viruses in humans exposed to poultry. Enrolled subjects will be selected from five different rural areas (villages) in the Nile delta region in Egypt where poultry are commonly raised. From those study sites, 2400 healthy subjects will be monitored for 6 years with annual follow up visits to measure sero-prevalence and exposure variables, and more importantly, biweekly or weekly visits to measure incidence of infection, measure secondary transmission rates, monitor symptoms, and assess immunological response. Primary Objectives: - To estimate the incidence of avian influenza (AI) in poultry-exposed human populations. - To estimate sero-prevalent of AI in poultry-exposed human populations. - To investigate potential risk factors associated with AI human infections in poultry-exposed individuals. - To investigate secondary infection risk for household contacts. Secondary Objectives: - To characterize the antigenic and genetic makeup of AI viruses infecting humans. - To monitor the pathogenicity and disease severity of AI viruses causing human infections and the associated immune response. - To investigate the serologic response following confirmed influenza virus infection. All residents of a household will be invited to participate. After study enrollment, participants will complete a questionnaire to collect data on the demographics and health status of the subjects and the poultry kept at the household. A 3-ml blood sample will be obtained from each subject for serological testing.
This study tests a comprehensive approach to the promotion of school readiness in low-income families, beginning shortly after the birth of the child, through enhancement of positive parenting practices (and when present, reduction of psychosocial stressors) within the pediatric primary care platform. The investigators do so by integrating two evidence-based interventions: 1) a universal primary prevention strategy (Video Interaction Project [VIP]); and 2) a targeted secondary/tertiary prevention strategy (Family Check-up [FCU]) for families with infants/toddlers identified as having additional risks. VIP provides parents with a developmental specialist who videotapes the parent and child and coaches the parent on effective parenting practices at each pediatric primary care visit. FCU is a home-based, family-centered intervention that utilizes an initial ecologically-focused assessment to promote motivation for parents to change child-rearing behaviors, with follow-up sessions on parenting and factors that compromise parenting quality. Two primary care settings serving low-income communities in New York City, NY and Pittsburgh, PA will be utilized to test this integrated intervention in hospital-based clinics, providing information about translation across venues where one of the two interventions has been previously used alone. The investigators plan to test the VIP/FCU model in a randomized trial of 400 families utilizing parent surveys, observational data on parent-child interactions, and direct assessments of children's development, at key points during intervention follow-up. Analyses will address questions of program impact for the integrated program across all families and by key subgroups.
Taenia solium taeniosis/cysticercosis is a neglected zoonotic parasitic disease complex with significant economic and public health impacts, occurring primarily in developing countries. Humans are the carriers of the tapeworm (taeniosis); the normal intermediate pig host develops the metacestode larval stage (porcine cysticercosis). However, people can also act as accidental intermediate hosts and develop human cysticercosis or neurocysticercosis (NCC) when the central nervous system is involved. The scattered efforts of researchers into evaluation of control programmes in Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) have focussed on single control options. It is becoming clear that these stand-alone options have the potential to reduce the occurrence of the parasite, however either long term or more integrated efforts seem to be required to reach an elimination status. The objective of the current study is to evaluate the cost-effectiveness/acceptability of elimination (to be achieved on a short term via integrated measures), and control (single measures, with an elimination goal on a longer term) of T. solium in a highly endemic area in SSA. This intervention study will entail an elimination study arm in which multiple control options are combined (integrated) aiming at the final human host (Mass drug administration (MDA) and health education) and pig intermediate hosts (pig treatment and vaccination). In a second study arm a single control option will be carried out (pig treatment).
The Malezi ne Kilimo Bora ("Good Parenting and Farming" in Kiswahili) Skilful Parenting and Agribusiness Child Abuse Prevention Study is a collaboration between the University of Oxford, University of Glasgow, and the Tanzania National Medical Research Institute (NIMR). It is pilot cluster randomised controlled trial (cRCT) of a community-based intervention implemented by Investing in Children and Our Societies (ICS), an international non-governmental organization (NGO) with extensive experience operating in rural Tanzania. The overall focus of the project is to evaluate ICS's agribusiness and skilful parenting programmes' impact on the prevention of child maltreatment and improvement of child and family psychosocial and economic wellbeing (n = 8 villages, n = 16 farmer groups, n = 240 families). Background on Child Maltreatment in Tanzania Child maltreatment and other childhood adversities often occur in many low- and middle-income countries at rates that are higher than in high-income countries - rates that often exceed 50%. In Tanzania, a national survey examining violence against children (VAC) found that almost 73.5% of females and 71.7% of males between the ages of 13 and 24 had experienced physical violence by prior to the age of 18. Furthermore, 23.6% of females and 27.5% of males had experienced emotional violence by an adult during childhood, and 27.9% of females and 13.4% of males had experienced some form of sexual violence before the age of 18 years.