There are about 6915 clinical studies being (or have been) conducted in Austria. 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.
Age related macular degeneration (AMD) is a multifactorial disease with a strong genetic component. Most importantly a genetic polymorphism in the gene encoding for the complement factor H (CFH) has been recently identified which is highly associated with an increased risk of developing AMD. This Tyr402His polymorphism located on chromosome 1q31 has been implicated to play a role in the development of the disease. For this purpose a total of 200 patients with wet AMD will be included in the study. As described in detail below, the current study aims to identify potentially non-responders to anti-VEGF therapy based on genetic analysis of VEGF polymorphism and complement factor H polymorphism.
Topical brimonidine is a recently introduced alpha 2 receptor agonist which is used in the therapy of intraocular pressure (IOP) reduction in patients with open angle glaucoma. Although adequate IOP reduction is achieved in many patients there is a considerable degree of variability in IOP reduction among subjects. The reason for this interindividual variability is not entirely clear. Obviously differences in pharmacokinetic properties due to variable penetration of the drug through the cornea may be responsible. Alternatively, polymorphisms of the alpha-2 receptor may account for the differences in IOP-lowering efficacy of topical brimonidine. This hypothesis is tested in the present study. Polymorphisms of the alpha-2 receptor have been described in a number of previous studies. In addition, polymorphisms in the alpha-2 receptor gene have been shown to be functionally important, particularly a polymorphism of the alpha-2B receptor, which has a high allele frequency in caucasians.
This study will involve the use of therapeutic hypothermia. This prospective cohort pilot study will evaluate the clinical performance of a new device, the ThermoSuit™ System, to achieve therapeutic hypothermia in comatose patients following resuscitation from cardiac arrest, and the impact of the vasodilator, magnesium sulfate, on cooling performance and hemodynamics in these patients. The study hypothesis is that magnesium sulfate will significantly increase the rate of cooling.
Autoregulation is the ability of a vascular bed to maintain blood flow despite changes in perfusion pressure. The existence of an effective autoregulation in the optic nerve circulation has been shown in animals and humans. The exact mechanism behind this autoregulation is still unknown. The motive for the investigation of optic nerve head (ONH) blood flow autoregulation is to enhance the understanding of pathologic eye conditions associated with ocular vascular disorders. To clarify the regulatory mechanisms of ONH microcirculation is of critical importance to understand the pathophysiology of glaucoma because there is evidence that glaucoma is associated with optic nerve head ischemia. Several studies indicate that a disturbed autoregulation might contribute to glaucomatous optic neuropathy. Previous findings suggest endothelial dysfunction in glaucomatous optic neuropathy, in particular alterations in endothelin- and nitric oxide- system, which both play an important role in local regulation of vascular tone. In the present study, changes in ocular perfusion pressure will be performed during administration of drugs, which may potentially alter the pressure-flow relationship. These drugs include endothelin-1 and the nitric oxide synthase inhibitor NG-monomethyl-L-arginine (L-NMMA).
The visual disorder of amblyopia affects 2% to 3% of the population. Amblyopia is a developmental condition that is characterized by reduced vision of the eye due to the presence of a sensory impediment during visual development, such as strabismus (ocular misalignment) or anisometropia (unequal refractive error), occurring early in life. Recent studies in humans and animals point towards a cortical locus for the processing deficit in amblyopia, revealing sensory deficits at the signal cell level that include reduced spatial resolution, reduced contrast sensitivity, and a reduced number of binocular neural cells. In the retina, however, no abnormalities have yet been reported. Like in the brain blood flow in the retina is coupled to neuronal activity. This phenomenon has been measured by different study groups with non invasive techniques in the brain and retina. We therefore use a Zeiss fundus camera for the assessment of retinal vessel diameters. This so called retinal vessel analyzer (RVA) is a combination of a fundus camera connected to a high resolution video camera equipped with a software based analyzing system. An unprecedented reproducibility and sensitivity of retinal vessel diameter measurements is attained with this system. In addition this system allows real time analysis of retinal vessels as well as off-line determinations from video tape. A special provocation test, which minimizes risk and discomfort to the subject under study is applied through the illumination pathway of the fundus camera: Diffuse luminance flicker is used as a stimulus to augment intrinsic mechanisms by which the retina can vary the vascular supply, in correspondence with local variations of functional activity. This system allows to study the flicker response of retinal vessels, which is within a magnitude of 6 to 8%. However, the exact mechanisms underlying this phenomenon are not fully understood. Especially in the eye it is not clear whether it is an exclusive metabolic effect within the retina and the surrounding blood vessels or dependent of central regulatory brain functions. The purpose of the current study is to improve our understanding of the mechanisms underlying flicker evoked responses of retinal blood vessels in humans. It is not clear whether the retina of amblyopic eyes can regulate retinal blood flow in response to increased metabolic demands as induced during flicking light stimulation. A detail understanding of the metabolic and functional processes within the retina of patients with amblyopia is a prerequisite for further research to prevent amblyopia.
Background Autoregulation is the ability of a vascular bed to maintain blood flow despite changes in perfusion pressure. The existence of an effective autoregulation in the optic nerve circulation has been shown in animals and humans. The exact mechanism behind this autoregulation is still unknown. The motive for the investigation of optic nerve head (ONH) blood flow autoregulation is to enhance the understanding of pathologic eye conditions associated with ocular vascular disorders. To clarify the regulatory mechanisms of ONH microcirculation is of critical importance to understand the pathophysiology of glaucoma, because there is evidence that glaucoma is associated with optic nerve head ischemia. Several studies indicate that a disturbed autoregulation might contribute to glaucomatous optic neuropathy. Currently, five classes of intraocular pressure (IOP) reducing drugs are available for topical therapy in patients with glaucoma or elevated intraocular pressure. These drugs have also vasoactive properties, which may influence both the resting ocular circulation and the autoregulatory mechanisms of blood flow during changes in ocular perfusion pressure. Study objective To investigate the influence of common topical glaucoma therapy on ONH blood flow regulation during changes in IOP and systemic arterial blood pressure.
This is a multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-design, exploratory study of orally administered ERB-041 in subjects with active IC. The primary objectives of this study will be to investigate ERB-041's activity on levels of urinary APF, explore the gene expression response in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC), and to evaluate the safety of ERB-041 in women with active IC.
RATIONALE: Biological therapies such as KRN7000 use different ways to stimulate the immune system and stop cancer cells from growing. PURPOSE: Phase I trial to study the effectiveness of KRN7000 in treating patients who have solid tumors that have not responded to previous treatment.
RATIONALE: Monoclonal antibodies can locate tumor cells and either kill them or deliver tumor-killing substances to them without harming normal cells. PURPOSE: Phase II trial to study the effectiveness of monoclonal antibody therapy in treating patients who have primary myelodysplastic syndrome.
RATIONALE: Drugs used in chemotherapy use different ways to stop tumor cells from dividing so they stop growing or die. PURPOSE: Phase I trial to study the effectiveness of CHS 828 in treating patients who have solid tumors.