View clinical trials related to Inflammation.
Filter by:Exposure to noxious gases and particles is associated with an increased prevalence of respiratory and cardiovascular diseases. Thus, investigation of possible airway inflammation and/or systemic inflammation in workers exposed to high levels of dust is important. Silicon Carbide (SiC) Processing Inc. provides cutting fluid (slurry) for the production of solar cells and is at present the largest provider of slurry to the solar industry worldwide. In the production process, the recyclable materials (SiC), polyethylene glycol (PEG)) of the used slurry are recovered. The airborne exposure consists mainly of SiC (dust particles) and evaporation from the recycling of PEG. High levels of dust have been measured and, seventeen per cent of the measurements in the processing hall were equal to or higher than the Norwegian occupational exposure limit. Thus, assessment of possible systemic and airway effects of this exposure is of interest. A prospective design will be applied and the effects studied by means of registration of respiratory symptoms, spirometry, nitric oxide (NO) in exhaled air, induced sputum and blood sampling over a 3 year period. Exposed subjects will also be compare with non- or low exposed subjects (administrative/office workers). Efforts will be made to include all eligible subjects and to avoid drop-outs. If early signs of airway or systemic inflammation in workers or in cells are demonstrated in the study, it will be necessary to implement measures to reduce the exposure levels. The primary aim of the present study of workers exposed to Silicon Carbide dust in the workplace is to determine whether this exposure is associated with inflammatory changes in the lungs. The secondary aims are: - to examine possible changes in systemic inflammatory markers and - to examine changes in lung function among Silicon Carbide processing workers during a period of 3 years. Possible changes in lung function will be monitored by spirometry and gas diffusion measurements (study A). Airway inflammatory responses and changes in circulating inflammatory markers will be assessed by examination of the induced sputum samples and blood samples every 6th month in a subgroup of workers (study B).
The purpose of this study is to test the hypothesis that aerobic exercise leads to attenuation of the inflammatory response to lipopolysaccharide (LPS) stimulation.
It is the central hypothesis of the investigators study that HIV disease is a pro-inflammatory condition, and that years of inflammation result in premature "aging' of the immune system ("immunosenescence"). Just as these changes are thought be causally associated with heart disease in the very old,the investigators postulate that these changes will be associated with early heart disease in the untreated and perhaps treated HIV disease. To address this hypothesis, the investigators will measure immunosenescence in a large cohort of patients who span the entire disease process.
Fructose intake from added sugars has increased dramatically over the last century and has recently been implicated as potential contributor to metabolic syndrome, obesity, hypertension, inflammation and kidney disease. Fructose differs from the other sugars because, uric acid is generated during its metabolism. Serum uric acid levels have been found to correlate with the intake of fructose and added sugars. In turn, an elevated serum uric acid has also been shown to be associated with increased risk for cardiovascular and metabolic diseases. On the other hand complexity of fructose metabolism in each individuals results of the various magnitude of hyperuricemia induced by fructose intake. The magnitude of uric acid production in each patient may reflect individual predisposition to endogenous urate production in a face of relatively normal fasting uric acid concentration. Therefore the oral fructose tolerance test might reveal an occult purine disturbances which plays casual role in either metabolic disturbances or organ damage. The aim of this study is to see whether is a relationship between fructose induced hyperuricemia and metabolic disturbances , inflammatory state and organ damage in obese and various stages CKD patients.
The purpose of this study is to establish the safety and feasibility of low dose LPS administration to a small subset of humans in preparation for a larger USDA funded study examining what is the lowest effective dose of EPA + DHA (300, 600, 900 and 1,800 mg/day delivered as fish oil supplements) that significantly attenuates the inflammatory response the investigators wish to examine the effects of an endotoxemia model for inducing inflammation. Based on previous research, low dose LPS administration affects metabolism in humans with only minimal clinical effects (such as "flu" like illness). Therefore, each of the six subjects included in this small pilot study will receive a low dose of LPS and placebo in order to learn more about the metabolic changes that occur during administration and inflammation. The investigators hypothesis that LPS administration will elicit only minimal clinical effects (such as "flu" like illness) when compared to placebo (saline--water with the same amount of salt as in your blood).
Background: In recent years, the prevalence of both asthma and obesity has risen dramatically among children and adolescents in the United States. Given the concurrent rise in the two epidemics, there may be an underlying link. Obesity contributes to asthma severity and control, and may play a role in its underlying cause. Obesity is associated with a state of heightened inflammation that may lead to an increase asthma symptoms and severity. Obese adult patients treated with montelukast, an anti-inflammatory agent, seemed to have better asthma control than those treated with other standard asthma medications. The use of montelukast in obese children and adolescents has not been specifically studied. Hypotheses and Specific Aims: The use of montelukast will improve asthma symptoms and objective markers of asthma to a greater degree in obese, as opposed to non-obese children and adolescents. The investigators would like to determine if the use of montelukast will improve objective asthma scores, pulmonary function, markers of inflammation and medication use to a greater degree in obese as opposed to non-obese children/adolescents. Potential Impact: Given the growing epidemic of obesity-associated asthma in the U.S., a tailored approach focused on obese asthmatic children may help reduce the burden of this disease, health care costs and potential long-term complications as these children enter adulthood. Furthermore, this study may help clarify the underlying mechanisms that link asthma and obesity. Although this proposal is focused on one medication, it provides an example of how certain medications may have differential efficacy in the obese asthmatic.
The aim of this case-control study is the characterization of the bronchial and systemic inflammation of children and young adults with bronchiolitis obliterans. On the first visit subjects are asked to perform a lung function test (spirometry, body plethysmography with helium). Further levels of eNO and eCO are determined. A blood sample is drawn to describe the inflammatory status. Bronchial inflammation will be measured in induced sputum. At the second visit, a non-specific bronchial provocation testing (PD20 FEV1 methacholine) is performed.
Doxycycline is known to exhibit immune modulatory activities beyond its antibacterial effects. In particular, doxycycline is a potent inhibitor of matrix metalloproteinase 9, which is a protease derived largely from neutrophils. Recent studies demonstrate a significant correlation between pulmonary disease severity and sputum concentrations of MMP-9 in patients with CF. In addition, sputum MMP-9 levels are associated with airway remodeling in CF. The goal of this study is to determine the therapeutic potential of doxycycline in modulating host airway inflammation in patients with CF. Specifically, the study will characterize the PK /PD of doxycycline, evaluate the safety of short term therapy, and explore the concentration effect relationship between doxycycline exposure and sputum biomarker levels.
Opioids are the corner stone in the treatment of post operative pain. Because of the several side effects of opiods, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are usually added postoperatively to decrease the total requirements of opioids. However, non steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs have side effects of their own. Vitamin C, with virtually no side effects when used on short-term basis, has been shown to have promising analgesic effects in chronic pain and acute pain relief following orthopedic surgeries. The investigators propose to assess the role of a prophylactic single dose (2g) of vitamin C in reducing the intensity of pain and the consumption of opioids in patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy at AUB-MC. All eligible patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy at AUB-MC will be included in the study. Patients will be randomized into two groups to receive either single dose oral vitamin C (2g) (Study Group) or identically looking placebo capsules (Control Group). Both the patients and the investigation team will be blinded to the type of intervention. Intraoperative anesthesia management will be similar for both groups. Postoperative pain control will be achieved with patient controlled analgesia via a patient controlled morphine pump in both groups. At several time intervals and up to 24 hours postoperatively, the pain scores, morphine consumptions, nausea/vomiting scores, sedation scales, itching scales, and patient satisfaction scales will be obtained for all patients. Also, the peak vitamin C concentration will be determined for each patient. Patients demographics will be obtained and compared between both groups. The differences in pain scores, morphine consumptions, nausea/vomiting scores, and sedation, itching, and patient satisfaction scales will be compared between the two groups with the Student-t test, the analysis of variance, the Fisher exact test, and the Kruskal-Wallis test. The peak vitamin C plasma concentration will be correlated with the pain scores in each group using regression analysis. This study will provide relevant information on whether a single dose (2g) of vitamin C can reduce morphine requirements and non steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs need and thus eliminating their side effects in patients undergoing laparoscopic cholecystectomy.
The purpose of this study is to compare the effects of homogenized, unhomogenized and skimmed milk on postprandial metabolism in healthy overweight men