View clinical trials related to Wounds and Injuries.
Filter by:The main objective of this study is to assess the safety and the efficacy of EscharEx in preparing the wound's bed in patients with hard to heal venous leg ulcers, diabetic lower extremity ulcers and traumatic/post operative wounds. This study will be a multi-center, assessor blinded, randomized, controlled study intended to demonstrate superiority of EscharEx debriding treatment over the Gel Vehicle control treatment in patients with hard to heal wounds. 72 + 24 adults with >50% necrotic/slough/fibrin non-viable tissue on a hard to heal wound (venous leg ulcer, diabetic lower extremity ulcer or traumatic/ post operative wound) between 5 cm2 and 200 cm2 (surface area in stage 1) or 3 cm2 - 150 cm2 (in stage 2), will be enrolled into the study. Patients will undergo a 1 week screening period (2 visits) which will include: record of demographics, medical history and concomitant medications, vital signs, physical examination, clinical laboratory tests, wound photography and assessments and questionnaires (wound status and quality of life). During this period wounds will be treated by standard treatment per the decision of the physician. During this screening period, subjects whose study wound size (surface area) decreases by more than 20 percent will be excluded. Following completion of the screening process, eligible patients will be randomized to either EscharEx or Gel vehicle debridement treatments. In stage 1 (72 patients): Treatment will be performed for up to 10 applications or until complete debridement is achieved, whichever occurs first. In stage 2 (24 patients): Treatment will be performed for up to 8 applications or until complete debridement is achieved, whichever occurs first. Following each application the wound will be washed, photographed and assessed for wound size, removal of nonviable tissue and change in granulation tissue (by digital planimetry software), wound status, and safety parameters. Subsequent to each debridement treatment the wound will be dressed with moist-to-moist saline gauze (except when successive 24h or 48h treatments are performed, in the second stage). Following completion of the debridement treatment period, patients will be treated according to standard procedures and evaluated (wound assessments) once a week until complete wound closure for up to 12 weeks from last application (up to 12 visits). Only during the first stage of the study, for patients who achieved wound closure, additional 3 monthly (3 visits) follow- up visits of wound closure recurrence will be conducted. Quality of life (QoL) will be evaluated at the last follow-up visit - 3 months post wound closure follow-up period. For patients who didn't achieve wound closure only the 3 months FU visit will be conducted. For patients enrolled at the second stage, if wound closure was achieved at the 12 weeks follow-up, additional visit will be performed 2 weeks later to confirm wound closure.
The purpose of this research study is to investigate the effectiveness of a technique designed to improve processing speed (i.e. the amount of time it takes to process information) in a Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) population. The study is designed to study how well this technique can help people with TBI increase their processing speed and their ability to function better in everyday life.
This prospective study evaluates the role of negative pressure wound therapy or wound VAC as a dressing over the incision to prevent poststernotomy wound infection in high risk patients.
Transcorneal Electrical Stimulation (TES) using the "OkuStim®" device delivers electrical impulses to damaged and/or diseased photoreceptor cells. This electric stimulation of the retina may help to preserve visual acuity and/or the visual field.
Background: A traumatic brain injury (TBI) could mean a person is at high risk for other long-lasting problems. These problems could include post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), depression, and post-concussive syndrome (PCS). For example, about 700,000 Americans each year who have a TBI later go on to have PTSD also. Depression and PCS are also common in people who had a TBI. Some people will have these problems later. These problems can seriously interfere with a person s life. Some people will not have these problems at all. There are many reasons for this difference. Researchers think the main reason is that people have different genetic and environmental influences. Right now, we only have few kinds of treatments to prevent or treat these problems after a TBI. The few treatments we have often do not work well. It is important to understand what factors make a person at high risk for these problems after a TBI. This could allow researchers and doctors to help address these problems early. Addressing these problems earlier may help a person have better health in the long run. Objectives: - To study the biological changes that happen after mild to moderate TBI which could be linked to the onset of PTSD, depression, and post-concussive syndrome - To study brain mechanisms that could explain risks for getting a psychiatric disorder after mild to moderate TBI. This will be done using a test called functional MRI (fMRI). This test takes images of the brain while a person is doing a simple task. Eligibility: - Men and women who are 18 to 65 years old. - Had a mild to moderate TBI (including concussion) in the last month. Design: - 5 outpatient visits to the NIH Clinical Center over one year. - The first visit is a screening visit to see if you can join the study. This visit must happen within 30 days of the TBI. The visit includes lab work (blood and urine), a history and physical exam done by a physician or nurse practitioner, and a psychiatric interview with a behavioral health nurse. - Visits 2, 3, 4 and 5 happen at one, three, six and twelve months post-injury. At these visits participants may have some or all of the following tests: blood and saliva collection, urine collection, questionnaires and interviews to assess symptoms, a test to see your response to stress (called hydrocortisone challenge), and fMRI brain imaging. - This study does not provide treatment. - This study is not a substitute for seeing a primary care provider. - This study should not replace any therapies you may be taking.
The purpose of this study is to determine 1. if it is practical to treat moderately to severely brain injured patients who have problems with their balance and mobility in a group "boot camp" (3 days a week, 6 hours/day for 4 weeks) exercise class. 2. If they show improvements compared to 4 weeks of not receiving this treatment 3. If electronic daily monitoring of their center of foot pressure during a standardized balance task will allow us to see small changes in ability. A baseline assessment of all outcome measures will be performed. This will be repeated 4 weeks later. The intervention will be delivered (4 weeks) and a follow up assessment of all outcome measures will be performed one week later. A follow up of the Primary outcome measure, the PART-O participation questionnaire will be done 12 weeks later. Participants will attend group therapy consisting of a variety of exercises designed specifically to target balance and mobility deficits and based on the concept that through Repetitive Functional Task Practice (RFTP), recovery of function can occur as the result of neural adaptation. Exercises will be both individualized (delivered in a circuit) and group activities. Supervision and guidance will be provided by a registered Physical Therapist and a Rehabilitation Assistant. During the intervention, the amount and type of RFTP, any adverse events, and any need for extra staff will be recorded on a daily basis. As well, a standardized individualized task will be performed with center of foot pressure recording on a daily basis. Analysis: changes in outcome measures immediately after the non-intervention compared to the after the intervention period will be statistically determined to estimate efficacy of this treatment model. Descriptive measures of RFTP time/day, staffing levels/day and adverse events will be used to support feasibility and safety of this model.
- Lower limb amputations are performed usually as a last resort in patients with acute and chronic limb ischaemia (CLI) caused by vascular disease, poorly controlled diabetes or, infection. - In the period 2003-2008 there were approximately 5,000 amputations per year in the UK. - The Centre for Disease Control defines a Surgical Site Infection (SSI) as an infection within 30 days of an operation or up to one year if an implant is left in place and the infection is related to an operative procedure. - Figures from the Surgical Site Infection Surveillance reported that the highest rate of surgical site infection was reported in association with lower limb amputation at 13.1%. - There is a clear under-representation and the infection rate within our institution is approximately 25% which reflects the infection rate reported in a recent trial by Sadat et al (22.5%) - Prevention of surgical site infections is of paramount importance to patients, healthcare providers and policy-makers, as they impact on morbidity and mortality and have significant time and cost implications. - Currently there is NO CONSENSUS as to what the best practice is towards antibiotic administration in such patients. From a questionnaire-based audit we performed including vascular departments across the entire country, practice varies in both course duration (single dose → 5 days antibiotic course) as well as choice of antibiotics. - The guideline at our institution suggests the 5-day course of antibiotic prophylaxis. The course duration varies depending on the clinical picture as well as microbiology results and recommendations. - There are no randomised control trials that have investigated this aspect of patient care. We have set up one such trial and through it, we are looking to establish a standard practice which will hopefully be as beneficial as possible to the patient but also cost-effective for NHS.
Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is the most common cause of death and disability in young adults. Patients can experience significant problems with concentration, attention, and memory (so called 'cognitive impairments') following TBI. These cognitive impairments can drastically impact on a patient's well-being, and can lead to significant economic and social consequences. Roughly a quarter of TBI patients improve but an equal number deteriorate over time. The investigators know little about why patients vary so much in how they recover. Crucially, the investigators have no treatments to improve brain functioning or recovery after TBI. Trials investigating ways of protecting the brain just after injury have been disappointing. An alternative strategy, however, is to improve the function of brain regions that remain intact, but that function inefficiently after TBI. The investigators know that dopamine (a chemical in the brain) is known to influence many brain functions and the investigators know that pathways in the brain that use dopamine are affected by TBI. In humans, drugs that increase dopamine in the brain, such as methylphenidate, are sometimes used to enhance cognitive function after TBI, but the response to treatment can be highly variable between patients. Therefore, what is needed in the clinic is a way to target the use of these drugs to patients who are likely to respond. In a single centre study, the investigators will use SPECT (Single Photon Emission Tomography) imaging to measure dopamine levels in the brain. MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) scans will assess brain structure and function. The investigators will test whether treatment with methylphenidate improves cognitive functions in TBI patients who have ongoing cognitive problems, whether the mechanism involves a normalisation of brain functioning and whether brain dopamine levels can predict the magnitude of any improvement in symptoms.
The investigators hypothesize that a risk score composed of age, sex, and the components of commonly ordered laboratory panels will be predictive of mortality in trauma patients, and will help improve clinicians' ability to make more accurate mortality predictions at the time of admission.
This study will evaluate the bio-mechanical and biochemical abnormalities in acute ACL-injured knees over time. Data will be collected through advanced quantitative MR imaging, functional testing, and bio-specimen collection. Researchers will collect this data from the time of baseline visit, which is within 28 days of injury, through the temporal sequence of post-operative or post-injury recovery and return to activity. The hypotheses for this study are (1) that T1ρ and T2 will be significantly elevated in the lateral side of ACL-injured knees immediately after injury (indicating damage caused by initial injury), and will not fully recover at 6-month, 1-year follow ups; (2) that T1ρ and T2 will be significantly elevated in the medial side of ACL-injured knees at 1-year follow-up; and (3) that differences in the bio-marker expression patterns can be correlated with the initial MRI findings, which would provide information regarding the full spectrum of intra-articular pathology and the subsequent clinical outcomes.