View clinical trials related to Atherosclerosis.
Filter by:Background: - Researchers are interested in studying individuals who have known or suspected metabolic or genetic diseases that put them at a high risk for heart diseases or diseases of their blood vessels. To improve the results of the study, both affected and nonaffected individuals will be asked to provide blood and other samples and will undergo tests to evaluate heart and lung function. Nonaffected individuals will include relatives of affected individuals and healthy nonrelated volunteers. Objectives: - To study individuals who have or are at risk for cardiovascular diseases, as well as their unaffected relatives and healthy volunteers. Eligibility: - Individuals between 1 and 100 years of age. Participants may be healthy volunteers, individuals with cardiovascular diseases, or unaffected relatives of individuals with cardiovascular diseases. Design: - Participants will have some or all of the following tests, as directed by the study researchers: - Photography of the face and full body - Body measurements - Radiography, including chest or limb x-rays - Metabolic stress testing to study heart and muscle function - Echocardiography to study heart function - Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) studies, including cardiovascular MRI, angiography, and contrast MRI, to study heart function and performance - Computed tomography (CT) angiogram to obtain images of the heart and lungs - Positron emission tomography (PET) imaging to study possible fat infiltration of the heart - Six-minute walk test to study heart, lung, and muscle function and performance - Vascular ultrasound to study blood vessel walls - Blood, tissue, and other specimens will be collected for research and testing, and will be taken either as part of the clinical study or during surgical procedures. - Follow-up studies may be performed under separate research protocols.
Study Type: Observational Study Design: Observational Model: Defined Population Observational Model: Natural History Time Perspective: Longitudinal Time Perspective: Prospective
Patients who have undergone coronary bypass surgery have had a vein removed from the leg and implanted in the chest to "bypass" blockages in the coronary arteries. These veins are called saphenous vein grafts or SVGs. SVGs often develop blockages that can cause chest pain and heart attacks. SVG blockages can be opened by using small balloons and stents (metal coils that keep the artery open). Two types of stents are currently used: bare metal stents (BMS) and drug-eluting stents (DES). Both BMS and DES are made of metal. DES are also coated with a drug that releases into the wall of the blood vessel to prevent scar tissue from forming and re-narrowing the vessel. Both stents have advantages and disadvantages: DES require taking special blood thinners (called thienopyridines, such as clopidogrel or prasugrel) longer than bare metal stent and could have more bleeding but are also less likely to renarrow. Both BMS and DES are routinely being used in SVGs, but it is not known which one is better. Neither bare metal (except for an outdated model) nor drug-eluting stents are FDA approved for use in SVGs. The purpose of CSP#571 is to compare the outcomes after DES vs. BMS use in SVGs. In CSP#571 patients who need stenting of SVG blockages will be randomized to receive DES or BMS in a 1:1 ratio. Per standard practice, patients will receive 12 months of an open label thienopyridine if they have acute coronary syndrome (ACS), or if they have another clinical reason for needing the medication. Patients without ACS who receive DES also need to take 12 months of a thienopyridine whether or not they are in the study, but non-ACS patients who receive a BMS do not. In order to make sure patients do not know which stent they received, non-ACS patients who received BMS will receive 1 month of open label thienopyridine followed by 11 months of blinded placebo, while those who received DES will receive 1 month of open label thienopyridine followed by 11 months of blinded clopidogrel, which is a thienopyridine. All study patients will be followed in the clinic for at least 1 year after their stenting procedure to see if there is a difference in the rate of cardiac death, heart attack, or any procedure that is required in order to increase the flow of blood to and from the heart between the BMS and DES groups.
Mechanisms that link metabolic syndrome to atherosclerosis are incompletely understood. As a part of Hämeenlinna Metabolic Syndrome Research Program (HMS) surrogate indicators for atherosclerosis are studied in 120 men with metabolic syndrome, 120 men with coronary heart disease and 80 physically active controls and in different settings.
The purpose of this study is to compare the radiation exposure of a variety of chest CT examinations performed on the current state of the art CT scanners (64 slice, dual source CT scanner) with the radiation exposure for identical chest CT examinations performed on the Siemens Flash CT scanner (high pitch dual source spiral technique).
Shear stress maybe the most crucial local factor affecting atherogenesis. The present study investigated the effect of exposure to increased shear stress promoted by Enhanced External Counterpulsation (EECP) on the progression of subclinical atherosclerosis and the underlying inflammation- related molecular mechanisms
Previous research has shown that Asian Indians are at relatively high risk for developing diabetes, heart problems and high blood pressure. The purpose of this study is to evaluate subclinical atherosclerosis (an early sign of heart disease) which may be associated with abnormalities like diabetes mellitus, hypertension (high blood pressure), high cholesterol and heart problems. Endothelium is the inner lining of your blood vessels. Endothelial dysfunction is found more in people with diabetes. In addition, high body mass index (BMI) is a strong risk factor for developing metabolic abnormalities like diabetes mellitus. This research study may provide information as to how useful endothelial dysfunction will be to detect people at risk of metabolic abnormalities and heart disease at an early stage. Two groups of subjects will be enrolled. Caucasians and Asian Indians There will be a total of 100 subjects participating in this study. Approximately 50 Caucasians and 50 Asian Indians will be enrolled. Caucasians will serve as the control group for this study.
To develop adequate blood pressure (BP) lowering strategy after subacute ischemic stroke patients with symptomatic severe intracranial atherosclerosis. Primary hypothesis of this study is that aggressive BP control (lowering systolic BP between 110mmHg and 120mmHg) will not increase the ischemic lesion volumes in hemisphere compared to modest BP lowering (lowering systolic BP between 130mmHg and 140mmHg) in the patients with symptomatic severe intracranial atherosclerosis.
Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is an independent risk factor for atherosclerosis. Endothelial dysfunction is the earliest marker of atherosclerosis and is measured by flow mediated dilation (FMD) of the brachial artery. The purpose of the study was to measure FMD in mild, stable SLE patients and look for change in FMD with the immunosuppressant drug mycophenolate mofetil (MMF).
Vascular inflammation is a key factor in both the pathogenesis and outcome of atherosclerosis. 18F-fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) positron emission tomography (PET) is a promising tool for identifying and quantifying vascular inflammation within atherosclerotic plaques.cardiac multidetector-row CT can provide measurements of coronary artery calcium (CAC), the degree of stenosis, and the characteristics of plaque including its potential vulnerability. Therefore, the purpose of the investigators study is to compare the usefulness of 18 FDG-PET and MDCT in assessing the vascular inflammatory status and vulnerability.