There are about 9403 clinical studies being (or have been) conducted in Switzerland. The country of the clinical trial is determined by the location of where the clinical research is being studied. Most studies are often held in multiple locations & countries.
Many amputees suffer from Phantom Limb Pain (PLP), a condition where painful perceptions arise from the missing limb. Leg amputees wear prostheses that do not provide any sensory feedback, apart from the stump-socket interaction. Increased physical effort associated with prosthesis use as well as discomfort often lead to rejection of artificial limbs. Additionally, the perception of the missing limb and its brain representation, do not match-up with what amputees see (the prosthesis) and this is made worse by the absence of sensory feedback. Therefore, re-establishing the sensory flow of information between the subject's brain and the prosthetic device is extremely important to avoid this mismatch, which creates inadequate embodiment. This study focuses on improving functional abilities and decreasing PLP in amputees thanks to the use of a system able to generate a sensory feedback (SF), which will be provided with a non-invasive electrical stimulation (ES). First, the possibility of enhancing the performance in different functional tasks thanks to the use of SF will be explored. Furthermore, it will be evaluated if SF enhances the prosthesis embodiment and helps restoring a multisensory integration (visuo-tactile), potentially providing also a pain relief. Once tested this system on amputees, also people with peripheral neuropathy and sensory loss will be recruited. Diabetic patients can suffer from symmetrical polyneuropathy (DSPN), which is a common complication caused by prolonged glucose unbalanced levels that lead to nerve damage. Non-invasive ES has been proposed and used as a therapy to treat the chronic pain conditions. In particular, TENS (transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation) is a type of non-invasive ES, which is able to activate large diameter afferent fibers. The gate control theory of pain states that these large diameter fibers inhibit central nociceptive transmission with a resultant decrease in pain perception. Therefore, also these patients will be recruited to see whether adding a non-invasive SF can enhance their functional motor abilities while diminishing their pain. The subjects will perform a pool of the following tasks, depending on their residual abilities: motor tasks (walking on ground level and on stairs), cognitive tasks (dual tasks), subjective evaluation of prosthesis weight and description of sensations from ES. Some tasks will be performed in Virtual Reality environments with and without an active stimulation.
In Hereditary Breast and Ovarian Cancer (HBOC) communication of genetic test results with relatives is essential to cascade testing. According to privacy laws those identified with the pathogenic variant have the sole responsibility to share information about test results and implications to relatives. Up to 50% of biological relatives are unaware of relevant genetic information, suggesting that benefits of genetic testing are not communicated effectively. Interventions designed to help mutation carriers communicate with relatives are critical for cascade genetic testing. Technology could play a significant role in facilitating communication and genetic education within HBOC families The investigators will develop a digital health platform for Swiss and Korean HBOC families. The digital platform will be based on the Family Gene Toolkit (FGT), a web-based intervention designed to enhance communication of genetic test results within HBOC families that has been tested for acceptability, usability, and participant satisfaction. The investigators will expand a Swiss research infrastructure to enable future collaborative projects between the two countries. Specific Aims 1. Develop a digital health platform to support the communication of cancer predisposition in HBOC families, based on linguistic and cultural adaptation methods of the FGT for the Swiss and Korean population 2. Develop the K-CASCADE research infrastructure in Korea by expanding the research infrastructure developed by the CASCADE Consortium in Switzerland 3. Evaluate the efficacy of the digital platform on psychological distress and communication of genetic test results, and knowledge of cancer genetics, coping, and decision making 4. Explore the reach, effectiveness, adoption, implementation, and maintenance of the digital platform The digital platform will be based on the FGT with linguistic adaptation for web and mobile access. Aim 1 will be achieved with focus groups with 20-24 HBOC mutation carriers and relatives and 6-10 providers involved in genetic services. For Aim 2, a Korean database of HBOC families (K-CASCADE) will be based on the Swiss CASCADE database. For Aim 3, feasibility and efficacy of the digital solution against the comparison intervention will be assessed in a randomized trial with a sample of 104 HBOC mutation carriers (52 in each arm). Aim 4 will be achieved with survey and interview data collected from HBOC families and healthcare providers during all phases of the study.
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) is the third leading cause of death in the World since 2003. Many people suffer from this disease or its complications for many years and die prematurely. In the European Union, the total direct costs of respiratory diseases are estimated to be around 6% of the total healthcare budget, with COPD accounting for 56% (38.6 billion Euros) of the costs of respiratory diseases. In the natural history of COPD, many patients may experience acute exacerbations (AECOPD) that are described as episodes of sustained worsening of the respiratory symptoms that result in additional therapy. These episodes of exacerbation that often require been seen in the emergency department and/or a hospital admission are associated with significant morbidity and mortality; they are responsible for a significant portion of the economic burden of the disease too. The pharmacological approach used in the management of AECOPD (inhaled bronchodilators, corticosteroids, and antibiotics), has the objective to minimize the negative impact of the current exacerbation and to prevent subsequent events. Despite the collaborative effort between the European Respiratory Society, the American Thoracic Society, and others to provide clinical recommendations for the prevention of AECOPD, there is still a considerable number of patients that are prone to suffer from recurrent exacerbations and to experience a more severe impairment in health status. Based on all the above, the aim is to identify the factors potentially associated with hospital admission in patients with AECOPD in English, French, German, and Spanish, speaking countries, and to develop a predictive model that predicts the risk of hospitalization in this group of patients, by using artificial intelligence. In this study proposes to take advantage of SAVANA, a new clinical platform, created in the context of the era of electronic medical records (EMRs), to analyse the information included in the electronic medical files (i.e., big data). This clinical platform is a powerful free-text analysis engine, capable of meaningfully interpreting the contents of the EMRs, regardless of the management system in which they operate. In this context, this machine learning analytical method can be used to build a flexible, customized and automated predictive model using the information available in EMRs.
The aim of this observational multicenter cohort study is to gain a deeper understanding regarding the effects of treatment adaption based on information from outcome prediction models, risk stratification, as well as treatment monitoring, detection, prevention, and management of complications on course and outcome of adult patients with status epilepticus (SE).
Decades of research have shown that sleep disturbances are common among patients with a wide range of psychiatric disorders. Such reported sleep disturbances include disrupted sleep efficiency and continuity, sleep quality complaints, insomnia, and nightmares. While traditional models suggest that certain sleep alterations are specific for certain mental disorders, newer models assume a transdiagnostic or dimensional view of sleep disturbances in mental disorders. Findings of a recent meta-analysis support the transdiagnostic or dimensional association between sleep disorders and psychiatric conditions. Additionally, the period just prior to sleep has recently received increased clinical and research interest, with studies investigating cognitive activity and rumination prior to sleep. However, only few studies compare sleep in different psychiatric diagnoses and the characteristics of sleep in different mental disorders are still not understood well enough for concrete implications for clinical practice. This is especially true for the population of psychiatric inpatients. In this study, the outcome measures and study variables will be measured with standardised and validated questionnaires, structured clinical interview, and a commercially available Fitbit Charge 2 tracker. Participants will be recruited from the inpatient units of the Psychiatric University Hospital Zurich (PUK). Screening will be conducted by the applicant and master's students enrolled in the project, using electronic patient files at the hospital. The patients will be invited to the study by their treating physician or psychologist. Assessments will consist of one interview and filling out of questionnaires (with a 30- to 45-minute duration respectively). A sub-sample will wear fill out a sleep diary for seven consecutive nights as well as wear a Fitbit Charge 2 tracker, which they will return a week later. Each patient will receive participant reimbursement of 30 Swiss francs (CHF) for their participation in the study.
The objective of this randomized controlled trial (RCT) is to compare the clinical outcome of MitraClip™ device versus surgical repair in patients with severe primary MR who are at moderate surgical risk and whose mitral valve has been determined to be suitable for correction by MV repair surgery by the cardiac surgeon on the local site heart team.
Nightmares are repeated extremely dysphoric and well-remembered dreams, which typically occur during REM sleep in the second half of sleep, may awaken the dreamer, and upon awakening, individuals quickly become oriented and conscious of their surroundings. Nightmares are very common in psychiatric populations. In psychiatric populations, nightmares can occur as a freestanding disorder, persist in patients after undergoing treatment for a psychiatric disorder, and function as a risk and exacerbating factor regarding psychiatric symptoms. Imagery Rehearsal Therapy (IRT) is a cognitive-behavioral-oriented treatment for nightmares and asks patients to identify an especially distressing nightmare and then works together with the patient on changing the nightmare to a more positive theme, story line, or ending. The new contents are then rehearsed using imagery techniques. IRT is often recommended by guidelines. However, IRT has not been investigated in a randomized controlled trial in the population of psychiatric inpatients. In this study, sixty inpatients with nightmares will be recruited from the inpatient units of the Psychiatric University Hospital Zurich (PUK). Participants will be randomly assigned to an Imagery Rehearsal Therapy (IRT) group or a Treatment As Usual (TAU) control group. Questionnaires and dream diaries will measure changes in nightmare frequency, nightmare distress, nightmare effects, nightmare content, overall sleep quality, dream experiences and believes, symptom severity of primary psychiatric diagnoses, and psychotherapy motivation and hopefulness one week and two weeks after one IRT or TAU session. The TAU group will receive a session in which potential problems with the dream diary will be discussed. Patients in the IRT group will be instructed to use imagery exercises with the new dream narrative for 10 to 15 minutes a day for the duration of the study period.
This study focuses on the relationship between obesity and stroke, which are both characterized by increasing incidence and prevalence with epidemic proportions worldwide and tremendous socio-economic consequences. Furthermore, obesity is an established risk factor for stroke and affects especially younger people, which increases the stroke incidence in younger patients. Unfortunately, the relationship between overweight and acute ischemic stroke including treatment by thrombolysis has not yet been evaluated thoroughly.
This is a multicentre, randomised, double-blind (DB), parallel-group, placebo-controlled, 24-week Phase III study to compare the efficacy and safety of benralizumab versus placebo administered by SC injection Q4W in patients with hypereosinophilic syndrome (HES). This study comprises 2 distinct periods (together defined as the 'main study'): A 24-week, DB treatment period, during which patients will be randomised to receive either benralizumab or placebo, in addition to their prior stable HES background therapy, and an open-label extension (OLE) period, during which all patients will receive benralizumab. Patients will continue to be recruited until approximately 38 patients have had their first HES worsening/flare during the DB treatment period at which point the data cut-off for the primary database lock (DBL) will occur. Treatment allocation will remain blinded until the primary DBL. After the study is unblinded for the primary analysis, patients and investigators will remain blinded to patients' individual treatment allocations until after the final patient completes the DB treatment period. The primary analysis will only include data from the DB treatment period of the study. A follow-up analysis will be performed once all patients have the opportunity to complete the 24-week DB treatment period. A patient must complete the 24-week DB treatment period on investigational product (IP) to be eligible to enter the OLE treatment period. The final DBL will occur after the last patient completes the OLE.
The objective of this study is to evaluate the 5-year outcomes of participants with degenerative mitral valve disease treated with the NeoChord Artificial Chordae System, Model DS1000 in a post-market setting.