View clinical trials related to Endothelial Dysfunction.
Filter by:Extreme preterm birth interferes with the development of the cardiovascular system. Both macro- as well as microvasculature undergoes extensive, organ specific maturation. Under normal fetal conditions, microvascular growth drives renal development and continues until 34-36 weeks of gestational age, while retinal vascular growth continues until term age. Studies show that there is association between low birth weight and cardiovascular dysfunction. According to the Barker hypothesis, this is due to nutritional shortage. In extreme preterm birth cases, this growth restriction is observed in neonatal life. In adult life, this suboptimal growth is associated with impaired renal and (micro)vascular function, hypertension, glucose intolerance and cardiovascular disease. According to the Brenner hypothesis, disrupted renal development results in hyperfiltration and hypertension, a process that subsequently promotes itself and leads to renal impairment. We will investigate macro- and microvasculature in different organs, including eye, kidney, heart and sublingual mucosa in former preterm infants, now aged 8-13 years old and age-matched controls. The expectation is that the results of this project will identify risk factors for cardiovascular-renal disease in the adult life of former preterm infants compared to the controls, while further analysis on mediators in neonatal life of this cardiovascular-renal outcome may provide new information on perinatal risk factors.
Cardiovascular disease is a major public health problem in our country. Among the causes of cardiovascular diseases are High Blood Pressure (HBP) and Diabetes Mellitus (DM). Type 2 diabetes (DM2) is associated with a twofold risk of cardiovascular disease, and endothelial dysfunction is an early marker of vascular complications. There is evidence of action of glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) on endothelial cells and vascular smooth muscle. Vildagliptin is a drug used in the treatment of DM2 able to prolong the activity of GLP-1, improving glycemic control and endothelial function. Objectives: To evaluate the effect of vildagliptin on endothelial function in patients with DM2 and hypertension using the Endo-PAT 2000 device.
Hypoxemia may contribute increased morbidity and mortality in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) patients. We aim to characterize the role of acute and chronic hypoxemia for vascular function. For this purpose we measure capillary oxygen concentration and vascular. Vascular function is assessed by flow-mediated dilation oft he brachial artery, forearm blood flow and laser doppler perfusion imaging. We hypothesize that hypoxemia leads to impaired vascular function.
Complaints about memory and thinking are common in women as they go through menopause and estrogen levels fall. The ovarian hormone estrogen is important for supporting normal cognitive function, and changes in brain activity and function occur when estrogen levels are decreased. Estrogen is also important for maintaining healthy blood vessels which also support normal cognitive function. In Alzheimer's disease and other types of dementia, there is significant damage to the blood vessels in the brain. This study will test whether changes in brain activity and function with the loss of estrogen are related to changes in vascular function. The investigators will measure vascular function using ultrasound, and brain activity using MRI scans in women who are enrolled in the Females, Aging, Metabolism and Exercise (FAME) study (NCT01712230). In the FAME study, healthy premenopausal women either take a medication to decrease their estrogen levels, or a placebo. This sub-study may provide new information about how estrogen affects vascular function and cognitive function, and lead to new ways to prevent or delay cognitive impairment or dementia.
SCUBA diving frequently involves repetitive exposures over multiple days. The goal of this study was to see how exercise impacts microparticles (MPs), endothelial function, and venous gas emboli (VGE) over a series of dives. 16 divers in 2 groups each completed 6 dives. One group completed 3 control dives followed by 5 days rest then 3 dives preceded by exercise. The other group completed the opposite protocol. Flow-mediated dilation (FMD) data and blood for MP analysis was collected before and after each dive. VGE were monitored via transthoracic echocardiography 30, 60, and 90 min after surfacing. Exercise before diving consisted of 60 min running outdoors including 8x4 min intervals at 90% VO2max effort.
The purpose of this study is to investigate the role of endothelial dysfunction in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.
Patients accepted for the waiting list for single pancreas transplantation suffer from severe glucose instability with hyperglycemia due to diabetes type 1, but do not have significant diabetes-related complications. Pancreas transplantation restores normoglycemia in diabetes type 1 patients with unstable control of glycemia. Both hypo- and hyperglycemic events are abolished, and 70-80 % of the patients obtain satisfactory HbA1c levels (HbA1c 5.0-6.0 %) without the need of exogenous insulin. Endothelial dysfunction is considered as an early and potentially reversible stage in the atherosclerotic process. The endothelium is involved in homeostasis, leucocyte adhesion and vasomotor activity. Reduced endothelium-dependent vasodilation is associated with increments in cardiovascular risk factors, and endothelial dysfunction is a predictor for future cardiovascular disease. It has also been hypothesized that endothelial dysfunction may be involved in the impaired glycemic control by reducing the availability of glucose in peripheral muscles.Establishing normoglycemia by pancreas transplantation alone in previously diabetic type 1 patients has recently been shown to improve left ventricular ejection fraction, assessed by Doppler echocardiographic examination. In diabetic patients receiving a new pancreas it is possible to assess the effect of changing blood glucose excursions on cardiovascular risk factors, including endothelial function, without the use of antidiabetic drugs (exclude pleiotropic effects). The primary objective of the present study is to assess if endothelial function (assessed by flow-mediated dilatation of arteria brachialis) is improved when hyperglycemia is reversed by single pancreas transplantation in patients with type 1 diabetes. Secondary objectives are to investigate the changes in the following parameters by reversal of hyperglycemia by pancreas transplantation; Peripheral arterial tonometry, serum/plasma concentrations of endothelial dysfunction markers, blood pressure, lipid and lipoprotein concentrations.
In consideration of the fact that the vascular endothelium has been shown to be a target of GvHD in early stage and that the count of CEC may represent a marker of endothelial damage, we want to evaluate the changes in CEC counts of patients affected by hematological disorders undergoing allo-HSCT, as a function of endothelial damage. We will enroll 50 patients affected by hematologic disorders undergoing allo-HSCT. Peripheral blood will be drawn before (T1, baseline) and at the end of the conditioning regimen (T2, pre-transplant), upon confirmation of hematopoietic recovery (T3, engraftment) and thereafter at onset of GVHD (GVHD T4) and one week after the start of steroid therapy (T5, post-GvHD). All patients will also be checked for CEC at day + 28. CEC enumeration will be performed by using the CellSearch® System and a flowcytometry procedure. Through the conduct of this study, we expect to confirm our preliminary results on a larger series of patients, and to evaluate the predictive role of CEC on the occurrence of GvHD and prognostic response to treatment of GvHD. The possibility of early identification of patients who do not respond to traditional treatments of GvHD, and for this reason at a higher risk of morbidity and mortality, may allow greater individualization of the therapeutic program, for example with the introduction as early as possible of alternative treatments. In addition, the identification of patients at higher risk of non-responsiveness to steroid treatment, would allow, through a closer monitoring, the early introduction of additional treatment before the development of resistance/refractoriness to treatment of GvHD. The present study takes the form of a prospective study. The primary endpoint is the identification and enumeration of CECs in peripheral blood of patients with hematological disorder undergoing allo-HSCT, as a function of endothelial damage. The secondary endpoint is to define the prognostic and predictive value of the changes of CEC counts on the diagnosis of GvHD and response to treatment.
The aim of this study is to investigate the markers of bone mineral metabolism in an unconfounded group of patients with hypogonadism and to search for a relationship between endothelial dysfunction and insulin resistance.
In this randomized controlled crossover study, the investigators propose to test the hypothesis that proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) increase plasma levels of asymmetric dimethylarginine (ADMA), which is a marker of endothelial dysfunction. The authors propose to evaluate ADMA concentrations and vascular function analysis in healthy volunteers and adults with a history of cardiovascular disease given PPI vs placebo for four weeks each.