View clinical trials related to Emphysema.
Filter by:The purpose of this protocol is to obtain biologic materials from the blood and lungs from patients with lung disease in order to develop an understanding of the etiology and pathogenesis of these disorders. General admission criteria for this project will require at least one of the following: (1) symptoms consistent with pulmonary disease; (2) chest X-ray consistent with lung disease; (3) pulmonary function tests consistent with lung disease; (4) lung biopsy consistent with lung disease; (5) family history of lung disease; and (6) patients with diseases of organs with known association with lung disease.
Current treatment for emphysema is limited to measures that include inhaled oxygen, bronchodilators, anti-inflammatory drugs and pulmonary rehabilitation. Highly invasive procedures such as lung volume reduction surgery or lung transplantation are also performed. Treatment using the Exhale Drug-Eluting Stent (DES) is a minimally invasive bronchoscopic treatment that has the potential to reduce shortness of breath in emphysema patients. This study tests the safety and effects of Exhale DES in the treatment of patients with emphysema.
The purpose of this study is to determine the effective dose of the Aeris BLVR System in patients with advanced emphysema.
The purpose of this study is to evaluate the safety and efficacy of the Aeris BLVR System in patients with advanced emphysema.
The study will evaluate the efficacy and safety of basiliximab Vs placebo as induction therapy combined with standard triple immunosuppression therapy, in the prevention of acute rejection episodes and prevention of Bronchiolitis Obliterans Syndrome.
The purpose of this study is to show that one form of mechanical airway clearance techniques, High Frequency Chest Wall Oscillation (HFCWO)using a pneumatic vest, will diminish exacerbations of COPD which will improve respiratory health status.
Systemic inflammation is present in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), which has been linked to cardiovascular morbidity and mortality. We determined the effects of oral and inhaled corticosteroids on serum markers of inflammation in patients with stable COPD.
The aim of this study is to investigate the mechanisms whereby lung function is decreased in COPD. The hypothesis is that in diseases such as COPD, inflammatory cells including neutrophils, macrophages and lymphocytes migrate to the lung and release either more or different types of inflammatory mediators and/or destructive enzymes compared to subjects without COPD. We aim to investigate these separate cell types in the blood of subjects with COPD and identify which genes are more highly expressed when compared to cells obtained from patients without COPD. We will also investigate the lung macrophages from these subjects to identify whether the same or different genes are expressed in these cells. We will isolate different leukocyte populations from the blood and extract ribonucleic acid (RNA) from these samples. The type and quantity of RNA in these samples is a reflection of the specific genes expressed in these cells. This RNA will be sent to Gene Logic and this company will test these samples to identify which genes have been expressed. Similar experiments will be performed using macrophages obtained following bronchoalveolar lavage of these subjects. We would aim to examine the responses of leukocytes from three groups of subjects, namely (i) non-smoking controls (ii) smokers without clinical or histological signs of COPD and (iii) smokers with COPD. The isolated leukocytes will either be immediately solubilized in solutions to purify RNA or we will then use these isolated cells in vitro and following stimulation investigate whether different genes are expressed or at a differential rate in the disease state. The objective is to identify which genes are specifically expressed in patients with COPD with a view to identify novel targets for drug therapy. We will examine both leukocytes derived from peripheral blood and macrophages obtained from bronchoalveolar lavage with the aim to determine whether differences attributable to disease can be identified in both circulating cells and those at the site of disease. This is a preliminary study to determine the profile of inflammatory mediator expression from leukocytes and as such power calculations to determine the number of subjects is not appropriate.
The aim of this study is to investigate the mechanisms whereby leukocytes are recruited to the lung in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and cause tissue destruction. The hypothesis is that in COPD more leukocytes enter the lung and it is these cells that are responsible for the degradation of lung tissue. We, the researchers at Imperial College London, will isolate leukocytes from the blood of patients with COPD, healthy smokers and normal subjects and measure the movement of the leukocytes to chemoattractants. We will examine further, which cell surface receptors are responsible for this trafficking of cells. Furthermore, the differentiation of these cells in vitro will be compared with cells from healthy smokers and normal subjects. Specifically, the expression of enzymes that are responsible for tissue destruction and the cell surface receptors on these cells will be investigated. The objective is to identify the mechanisms whereby leukocytes from COPD patients behave differently to cells from healthy smokers and normal subjects with a view to identify novel targets for drug therapy.
The aim of this study is to examine the inflammatory mechanisms involved in the pathogenesis of inflammatory lung disease, in particular to compare the inflammatory profile seen in asthma and COPD. Evidence for inflammation in asthma and COPD is based on the finding of increased numbers of macrophages and neutrophils in the lungs and respiratory secretions of these patients. The inflammatory cells produce proteases, as well as, reactive oxidant species resulting in a protease/anti-protease imbalance which favours lung destruction. The aim is to examine the inflammatory mediators released by inflammatory cells (such as, macrophages and lymphocytes) in order to determine whether there are differences between non-smoking subjects, smoking subjects and patients with asthma or COPD. Monocytes are precursors of alveolar macrophages, and both monocytes and neutrophils are recruited to the lung from the blood via the action of specific chemoattractants. We have evidence that in inflammation there are higher levels of these chemoattractants. Therefore these cells might also demonstrate the same changes seen in alveolar macrophages from these patients. We also aim to assess the role of the macrophage precursor (monocyte) and neutrophils in the blood. We will also assess lymphocyte/monocyte interaction. We will do this as the lymphocyte may be involved in the initial recruitment of inflammatory cells. We will also assess the role of cytokines involved with monocyte/macrophage/neutrophil migration in induced sputum as well as the role of induced sputum in the migration of monocytes and neutrophils into the lung. Our aim is to link the initial changes in blood to the changes causing disease in the lungs. We aim to examine cellular responses in four groups of subjects, namely (i) non-smoking controls, (ii) smokers without clinical evidence of COPD or asthma, (iii) smokers with COPD (iv) asthmatic patients.