There are about 7997 clinical studies being (or have been) conducted in Japan. 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.
Dopamine has been closely associated with prefrontal function. The hypothesis that a lower dopaminergic activity is associated with negative symptoms and cognitive dysfunction observed in the patients of schizophrenia is of a heuristic value in guiding research in this area. This hypothesis led us to test whether pergolide, a D1/D2 agonist, could improve negative symptoms and cognitive impairments prevailing in most patients with schizophrenia. This double-blind placebo controlled study will investigate the remedial effect of pergolide on negative symptoms and cognitive impairments in schizophrenia.
Recently, cytokine polymorphisms are considered to play an important role in the pathogenesis of peptic ulcer and gastric cancer. We intended to clarify the association between polymorphisms of pro-inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines, and the susceptibility to gastric cancer, gastric ulcer and duodenal ulcer in Japan, and to detect the individuals who have higher risks for gastrointestinal disease development.
Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) eradication increases the serum pepsinogen (PG) I/PG II ratio and the percentage change in PG I/PG II ratios was found to be a useful marker of H. pylori eradication (e.g., the PG method). We studied whether the PG method could be an early diagnostic marker of H. pylori eradication even in patients persistently treated with a proton pump inhibitor. Sixty-two H. pylori-positive patients underwent H. pylori-eradication therapy, followed by treatment with a PPI to cure ulcers. Serum levels of PG I and PG II were measured before, at the end of, and at 4 weeks after the eradication therapy. At more than one month after the end of treatments, 13C-urea breath test (UBT) was performed. The cut-off values of percentage changes in PG I/PG II ratios for the diagnosis of eradication of H. pylori were set in proportion to PG I/PG II ratios before eradication in accordance with our previous report. Using the results of UBT as the standard, the percentage change in serum PG I/PG II ratios is useful as an early diagnostic marker for judgment of H. pylori eradication irrespective of PPI treatment.
The purpose of this study is to clarify efficacy and toxicity of daily low-dose Nedaplatin (CDGP) and continuous infusion of 5-FU combined with radiation in patients with esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.
S-1 is a novel oral fluorouracil antitumor drug that consists of tegafur which is a prodrug of 5-fluorouracil (5-FU); 5-chloro-2,4-dihydropyridine (CDHP), which inhibits dihydropyrimidine dehydrogenase (DPD) activity; and potassium oxonate (Oxo), which reduces gastrointestinal toxicity. 5-FU is metabolized by CYP2A6 and DPD. In this study, the researchers investigate the influences of differences in activities of CYP2A6 and DPD on pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of S-1 and clinical outcomes in digestive organ cancer patients treated with S-1.
Proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) are mainly metabolized in the liver by CYP2C19, one of the cytochrome P450 isoenzymes, which shows a genetic polymorphism associated with enzyme activities. The most essential role of a PPI in H. pylori eradication therapy is to make antibiotics more stable and bioavailable in the stomach by raising intragastric pH to neutral levels. Most patients who have failed in the eradication of H. pylori infection by triple therapy with a PPI, amoxicillin (AMPC) and clarithromycin (CAM) at standard doses have extensive metabolizer (EM) genotypes of CYP2C19 and/or are infected with CAM-resistant strains of H. pylori. Four-times daily dosing of a PPI could achieve complete gastric acid inhibition. Dual therapy with 4-times daily dosing of a PPI and AMPC could yield sufficient re-eradication rates in patients with EM genotype of CYP2C19. Metronidazole (MNZ)-based re-eradication therapy, such as triple PPI/AMPC/MNZ therapy, also achieved high eradication rates and has been recommended as the second line therapy in Japan. But carcinogenic actions of MNZ have been unclear. The purpose of this study is to compare the re-eradication rates of H. pylori infection by the dual high-dose PPI/AMPC therapy and triple PPI/AMPC/MNZ therapy, and to validate the efficacies of these re-eradication regimens as second line eradication therapies.
Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the second common cause of death in the Western world, and is very increasing in Japan. Fecal occult blood test (FOBT) is used routinely for CRC screening, which has been shown to reduce the incidence, morbidity, and mortality of CRC. However, there is a need to develop a novel method to improve sensitivity. The investigators reported that Fecal COX-2 assay, one of fecal RNA test, is potentially useful for colorectal cancer screening (Gastroenterology 127; 422-427, 2004). So the investigators planed to compare fecal RNA test with FOBT for detecting colorectal cancer and adenoma.
The purpose of this study is exploiting the new drugs for androgenetic alopecia because there are still no effective and safe topical drug for androgenetic alopecia. Roxithomycin is one of the macrolide antibiotics that has immunomodulatory effects. We firstly found that roxithromycin increases the rate of murine and human hair follicle elongation in vitro. Therefore, we apply this drug on this disease therapy.
The Fabry Registry is an ongoing, international multi-center, strictly observational program that tracks the routine clinical outcomes for patients with Fabry disease, irrespective of treatment status. No experimental intervention is involved; patients in the Registry undergo clinical assessments and receive care as determined by the patient's treating physician. The primary objectives of the Registry are: - To enhance the understanding of the variability, progression, and natural history of Fabry disease, including heterozygous females with the disease; - To assist the Fabry medical community with the development of recommendations for monitoring patients and reports on patient outcomes to help optimize patient care; - To characterize and describe the Fabry population as a whole; - To evaluate the long-term safety and effectiveness of Fabrazyme® Fabry Pregnancy Sub-registry: This Sub-registry is a multicenter, international, longitudinal, observational, and voluntary program designed to track pregnancy outcomes for any pregnant woman enrolled in the Fabry Registry, regardless of whether she is receiving disease-specific therapy (such as enzyme replacement therapy with agalsidase beta) and irrespective of the commercial product with which she may be treated. Data from the Sub-registry are also used to fulfill various global regulatory requirements, to support product development/reimbursement, and for other research and non-research-related purposes. No experimental intervention is given; thus a patient will undergo clinical assessments and receive standard of care treatment as determined by the patient's physician. If a patient consents to this Sub-registry, information about the patient's medical and obstetric history, pregnancy, and birth will be collected, and, if a patient consents to data collection for her infant, data on infant growth through month 36 postpartum will be collected.
The purpose of the study is to verify superiority of 1-LV/5FU therapy to UFT Therapy of relapse-free survival time in patients with Dukes C and Cure A colon cancer. Secondary endpoints include disease-free survival time, survival time, and safety.