Bitar G, Alexandrides J, Missirian R, Sotereanos D, Nystrom A Carpal tunnel release in the United States and Sweden: reimbursement patterns, cost for treatment, and return to work. Plast Reconstr Surg. 2002 Apr 15;109(5):1574-8; discussion 1579-80.
Boyd JG, Gordon T Neurotrophic factors and their receptors in axonal regeneration and functional recovery after peripheral nerve injury. Mol Neurobiol. 2003 Jun;27(3):277-324. Review.
Bunge RP Expanding roles for the Schwann cell: ensheathment, myelination, trophism and regeneration. Curr Opin Neurobiol. 1993 Oct;3(5):805-9. Review.
De Grandis D, Minardi C Acetyl-L-carnitine (levacecarnine) in the treatment of diabetic neuropathy. A long-term, randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled study. Drugs R D. 2002;3(4):223-31.
Evans JD, Jacobs TF, Evans EW Role of acetyl-L-carnitine in the treatment of diabetic peripheral neuropathy. Ann Pharmacother. 2008 Nov;42(11):1686-91. doi: 10.1345/aph.1L201. Epub 2008 Oct 21. Review.
Fu SY, Gordon T Contributing factors to poor functional recovery after delayed nerve repair: prolonged denervation. J Neurosci. 1995 May;15(5 Pt 2):3886-95.
Gordon T, Amirjani N, Edwards DC, Chan KM Brief post-surgical electrical stimulation accelerates axon regeneration and muscle reinnervation without affecting the functional measures in carpal tunnel syndrome patients. Exp Neurol. 2010 May;223(1):192-202. doi: 10.1016/j.expneurol.2009.09.020. Epub 2009 Oct 1.
Grandis DD Tolerability and efficacy of L-acetylcarnitine in patients with peripheral neuropathies: a short-term, open multicentre study. Clin Drug Investig. 1998;15(2):73-9.
Hall SM The biology of chronically denervated Schwann cells. Ann N Y Acad Sci. 1999 Sep 14;883:215-33. Review.
Kaplan DR, Miller FD Neurotrophin signal transduction in the nervous system. Curr Opin Neurobiol. 2000 Jun;10(3):381-91. Review.
Kotil K, Kirali M, Eras M, Bilge T, Uzun H Neuroprotective effects of acetyl-L-carnithine in experimental chronic compression neuropathy. A prospective, randomized and placebo-control trials. Turk Neurosurg. 2007 Apr;17(2):67-77.
McKay Hart A, Wiberg M, Terenghi G Pharmacological enhancement of peripheral nerve regeneration in the rat by systemic acetyl-L-carnitine treatment. Neurosci Lett. 2002 Dec 16;334(3):181-5.
Sulaiman OA, Gordon T Effects of short- and long-term Schwann cell denervation on peripheral nerve regeneration, myelination, and size. Glia. 2000 Dec;32(3):234-46.
SUNDERLAND S Rate of regeneration in human peripheral nerves; analysis of the interval between injury and onset of recovery. Arch Neurol Psychiatry. 1947 Sep;58(3):251-95.
Wilson AD, Hart A, Brannstrom T, Wiberg M, Terenghi G Primary sensory neuronal rescue with systemic acetyl-L-carnitine following peripheral axotomy. A dose-response analysis. Br J Plast Surg. 2003 Dec;56(8):732-9.
You S, Petrov T, Chung PH, Gordon T The expression of the low affinity nerve growth factor receptor in long-term denervated Schwann cells. Glia. 1997 Jun;20(2):87-100.
Youle M, Osio M; ALCAR Study Group A double-blind, parallel-group, placebo-controlled, multicentre study of acetyl L-carnitine in the symptomatic treatment of antiretroviral toxic neuropathy in patients with HIV-1 infection. HIV Med. 2007 May;8(4):241-50.
Acetyl-l-carnitine to Enhance Nerve Regeneration in Carpal Tunnel Syndrome; a Randomized Control Trial.
Interventional studies are often prospective and are specifically tailored to evaluate direct impacts of treatment or preventive measures on disease.
Observational studies are often retrospective and are used to assess potential causation in exposure-outcome relationships and therefore influence preventive methods.
Expanded access is a means by which manufacturers make investigational new drugs available, under certain circumstances, to treat a patient(s) with a serious disease or condition who cannot participate in a controlled clinical trial.
Clinical trials are conducted in a series of steps, called phases - each phase is designed to answer a separate research question.
Phase 1: Researchers test a new drug or treatment in a small group of people for the first time to evaluate its safety, determine a safe dosage range, and identify side effects.
Phase 2: The drug or treatment is given to a larger group of people to see if it is effective and to further evaluate its safety.
Phase 3: The drug or treatment is given to large groups of people to confirm its effectiveness, monitor side effects, compare it to commonly used treatments, and collect information that will allow the drug or treatment to be used safely.
Phase 4: Studies are done after the drug or treatment has been marketed to gather information on the drug's effect in various populations and any side effects associated with long-term use.
