View clinical trials related to Spinal Cord Injuries.
Filter by:Coronary heart disease (CHD) is a leading cause of death in the spinal cord injured (SCI) population, occurring at younger ages than in the able-bodied population. Conventional risk factors for CHD include high concentrations of low-density lipoprotein (LDL), low concentrations of high-density lipoprotein (HDL), diabetes mellitus (DM), smoking history, and family history. Other factors that may influence progression of CHD include C-reactive protein (an inflammatory marker), and fibrinogen (a pro-coagulant marker). Individuals with SCI with longer duration and greater completeness of injury are more likely to have significantly worse carbohydrate tolerance compared to other neurological deficit subgroups. Muscle atrophy after SCI is associated with increased insulin resistance. Prolonged inactivity has been shown to be associated with hyperinsulinemia and impaired glucose tolerance. Body composition changes after SCI to indicate significantly more total body fat mass and percent fat and less lean mass compared to able-bodied individuals. Carotid intima-media thickness is correlated with atherosclerosis progression and abdominal adiposity. Individuals with abdominal adiposity are at a higher risk for CHD, DM, hypertension, insulin resistance, and dyslipidemia. Abdominal adiposity and insulin resistance are contributors to postprandial lipemia, which may be a more sensitive indicator of CHD risk and progression. The purpose of this study is to determine the prevalence of conventional risk factors by assessing the 10-year risk for CHD, and identify emerging risk factors for CHD in the spinal cord injured population. Subjects will have the option to participate in a high fat meal test to determine postprandial lipemic responses. Knowledge of this information may be able to detect and prevent future cardiovascular events related to CHD.
Periodic screening for colon cancer has become the standard of care in individuals over the age of 50. In this context, it is generally accepted that colonoscopy is the most sensitive modality for the detection of colon cancer and/or pre malignant colon pathology. As currently performed, however, colonoscopy requires that stool be eliminated from the colon before the examination. If stool remains in the colon, visualization of the bowel will be partially or completely impaired and limits the effectiveness of the screening. A number of methods are employed for purging the bowel of waste material but they generally involve either administration of a lavage (like a flush) solution (such as Colyte or Golytely) or of an osmotic laxative (such as sodium phosphate or magnesium citrate). Neither of these approaches is uniformly effective in all individuals and neither is without potential complications, especially on the kidneys. It is the intent of the proposed research to study the relative efficacy and safety of these preparations in both able-bodied individuals as well as people with spinal cord injury. To this end, we will randomize these groups to a lavage solution, a laxative or a combination of the two prior to a routine, clinically indicated colonoscopy. The quality of the preparation will be directly assessed during the colonoscopy and the effect of these preparations on kidney function will be determined. We suspect that when it comes to preparation for colonoscopy, one shoe does not fit all sizes. The proposed research should allow us to determine which form of preparation is least harmful while achieving optimal effectiveness.
The ATLET study will assess the effect of manual or robotic body-weight supported locomotor training of patients with stable motor incomplete spinal cord injury (SCI) on gait and overall ADL function as well as on estimated health care costs.
After a spinal cord injury the brain is no longer completely in control of the body below the level of injury. This affects many organs and systems in the body, we are interested in understanding how a spinal cord injury affects blood pressure and blood flow to the brain. We are going to study blood pressure while the person is seated in a wheelchair before and after we give the subject medications which should increase blood pressure in a laboratory setting and over the course of a normal day in persons with spinal cord injury.
The purpose of this study is to determine if tetraplegic individuals with incomplete spinal cord injury (SCI) who remain unable to move their arms normally 1 year after their SCIs are able to sense and move the affected arm(s) better after 10-13 weeks of treatment with a new robotic therapy device. The hypothesis is that using the AMES device on the arm(s) of chronic tetraplegic subjects with incomplete SCI will result in improved strength, sensation, and functional movement in treated limb(s).
Individuals with spinal cord injury sustain significant loss of bone mass in their lower extremities (20-40% or more). This study evaluates the ability of PTH and weight-bearing, two interventions that build bone, to increase bone mass in this population.
This study is designed to assess the safety of autologous bone marrow derived cell transplant in chronic spinal cord injury patients. The hypothesis is that the availability of bone marrow derived mesenchymal stem cells at the sites of injury promote neuronal regeneration.
This is a phase IV, double-blind, multicenter, randomized trial evaluating the efficacy and safety of two M3 receptors antagonists (Trospium Chloride and Darifenacin Hydrobromide) with one standard drug (Oxybutynin Chloride) for treatment of overactive bladder in individuals with spinal cord injury.
Traumatic spinal cord injury is a common injury to the spine and can lead to a clinical syndrome called central cord syndrome (CCS). CCS is an incomplete spinal cord injury where one starts to lose more motor function in the upper rather than lower extremities. It affects a wide range of the population from the young to the old. However, the natural history of CCS is poorly understood. Research has shown that the injury resulting in CCS might be due to the pinching or compressing of the spinal cord. This creates damage to a part of the spinal cord and creates difficulties in the signal getting through. We believe that we can gain a better understanding of the natural history of incomplete spinal cord injury as well as the recovery process. It is possible to track many changes in the brain and motor function through a variety of methods. One can track the concentrations of different chemicals (metabolites) by using magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS), changes in brain activation by using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) and thread-like nerve fibers in the spine by using diffusion tensor imaging (DTI). In our study we will be detecting differences in brain metabolism and activation of different parts of the brain during specific movement and in the nerve fibers in the brain. We hypothesize that there will be decreased levels of N-acetylaspartate (NAA, a putative marker of neuronal function) and decreased levels of glutamate (the primary excitatory neurotransmitter) in the motor cortex in patients with CCS when compared with controls. Over time, we hypothesize that the normalization of metabolite levels will correlate with the extent of neurologic recovery. We also hypothesize a reorganization of brain activation patterns with time such that patients will show increased volumes of activation in the motor cortex with recovery and that this will correlate with the extent of neurologic outcome. Over time, we predict that there will be normalization of the fibre track anatomy that will correlate with neurological recovery.
Purpose: This project is designed to identify what the key barriers to participating in exercise are for the general population of people living with spinal cord injury (SCI) in the United States (US).