View clinical trials related to Emphysema.
Filter by:The purpose of this study is to evaluate the safety of the Biologic Lung Volume Reduction System (BLVR) for patients with advanced emphysema.
The Comprehensive Lung Center (CLC) at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC Health System) provides patients with any type of breathing or lung disorder a full range of diagnostic and therapeutic services. The Emphysema/COPD Research Center (ECRC) is a specialty clinic, within this center, that attempts to advance the understanding of emphysema and to evaluate new therapies for patients with emphysema. The Emphysema Research Registry will enable pulmonary research physicians to: 1) gather information and create a research registry of people who have been diagnosed with emphysema; 2) utilize this research registry with the purpose of conducting research that attempts to advance the understanding of emphysema and to evaluate new therapies; and, 3) use the research registry to identify potential candidates for future research programs. These aims will be achieved by the collection of DNA (genetic material)for analysis and storage in addition to pulmonary function tests and other medical information.
Cigarette smoking causes an increase in inflammation in the lungs. In about 20% of smokers this inflammation leads to damage in lungs including making holes in the lung tissue. This damage can not be repaired and these people find it very difficult to breathe. One of the problems with this disease called chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD for short, is that by the time patients visit their doctor with symptoms, the damage has already been done. At the moment, there is no way to predict which smokers will go on to develop COPD. The aim of this research is to look at smokers who breathe normally and use an imaging technique called a CT scan, to look at their lungs in more detail. Some of these people will have spots on their scan which may be caused by inflammation. We want to look at the cells at these spots to see if they make more proteins and enzymes that cause lung damage when compared to people that do not have these spots. We would then be able to predict which smokers are likely to develop COPD and treat them early before they have damaged their lungs.
Patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) that have frequent chest infections are the patients most likely to become worse over time. Why these people are more susceptible to chest infections is not known. One reason might be that the white cells in their lungs called macrophages do not work properly. Normally, these cells remove all the debris inhaled into the lung. This can also include bacteria. In patients with COPD, these macrophages are not able to remove these particles. The research question addresses why this happens
A new artificial lung device has been developed that potentially provides added support to mechanical ventilation for severely damaged lungs. The Hattler Respiratory Assist Catheter is designed to provide gas exchange (deliver oxygen and remove carbon dioxide) for a period of up to 7 days, providing more time for the lungs to improve. Extrapolating from large animal data, the hypothesis is that the Hattler Catheter will be capable of providing 30% to 40% of the basal requirements of carbon dioxide exchange in a manner that is dependable and reproducible.
This study evaluates the safety of medicine on COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease). This study will last up to 56 weeks, and subjects will visit the clinic 16 times. Subjects will be given breathing tests, and will record their breathing symptoms daily on diary cards.
The goal of this trial was to explore the utility of evaluating emphysema progression through CT scans measuring lung density during a 2 year period of weekly infusions of either placebo or human alpha-1-antitrypsin (AAT; Prolastin®). Exacerbation data recorded in patient diaries were also collected. All efficacy data were analyzed for potential use in evaluating Prolastin efficacy in this and other clinical trials.
This is a randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blind, multicenter phase III/IV study to compare the efficacy and safety of Zemaira® with placebo in subjects with emphysema due to alpha1-proteinase inhibitor deficiency. The effect of Zemaira® on the progression of emphysema will be assessed by the decline of lung density, measured by computed tomography (CT).
To evaluate the long-term safety and monitor the long-term efficacy of arformoterol over a period of 6 months in subjects with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).
The purpose of this research study is to determine whether analysis of genes in sputum is a useful noninvasive technique for measuring response to drugs in patients with COPD. We propose to use polymerase chain reaction to evaluate gene expression in induced sputum from adult current smokers with moderate COPD, adult former smokers with moderate COPD. This study is designed to determine whether changes in expression of previously-identified inflammatory markers in induced sputum can be detected in response to drug therapy in COPD and to evaluate potential differences in the expression of these markers in adult smokers with and without COPD. Pre- and post-treatment serum will be obtained to facilitate proteomic analysis of therapeutic response as well. Changes in sputum gene expression in response to treatment will be the primary outcome variable in this study. Secondary outcomes will include changes in lung function, as well as changes in induced sputum inflammation. These endpoints will be evaluated before and directly after 6 weeks of randomly-assigned treatment with either salmeterol xinafoate or fluticasone propionate/50mcg salmeterol xinafoate combination DPI bid. Endpoints will be re-evaluated following a 4 week wash-out period.