View clinical trials related to Heart Transplantation.
Filter by:The primary objective is to evaluate the efficacy of desensitization therapy, which includes VELCADE® (bortezomib) and plasmapheresis, on select sensitized patients awaiting heart transplantation.
The aims of this 3-year randomized, single-blinded clinical trial are to compare the effect of high and low feedback about performance on the bedside exercise device in heart or liver transplantation recipients during the hospitalization immediately after transplantation. The hypotheses of the study are heart/liver transplantation recipients who have high feedback about performance on the bedside exercise device will progressively increase their level of exercise over the course of their hospitalization, more independent in ambulation level, better walking speed and 6-minute walk test at discharge, and better cardiorespiratory fitness at 4-8 weeks after transplantation than those who receive low feedback. The adult patients who newly receive heart or liver transplantation at National Taiwan University Hospital will be evaluated for eligibility of the study in the acute postoperative period. The study will be conducted in both the intensive care unit and ward environments. The study subjects will be randomized to either high or low feedback about performance on the bedside exercise device which uses hand/foot pedals that record exerted forces against adjustable resistances, measure repetitions of upper and lower extremity cycling movements, and give feedback about performance via a wireless internet connection. The study will also monitor the amount of daily movement activity of all subjects in this trial by using triaxial accelerometers, and the activity recognition algorithms developed by engineers and computer scientists at University of California Los Angeles. The outcome measures include level of independence for walking, walking speed, 6-minute walk test, and cardiopulmonary exercise testing by the blinded observers. The study expects to enroll at least 50 heart transplantation recipients and 60 liver transplantation recipients in 3 years. The results of this study will offer much insight into activity levels of heart or liver transplantation recipients during early postoperative period. Besides, heart transplantation recipients will receive routine phase I cardiac rehabilitation program by the physical therapists during the study but not liver transplantation recipients. We might be able to evaluate the interaction effects of routine physical therapy and UCFit exercise among our study subjects. Our data will also provide insight into just how active or inactive transplantation recipients may be and help generate ideas of organ transplantation rehabilitation program to increase their fitness-related activity prior to discharge.
Kidney disease is a common problem after heart transplantation. It may be caused by anti-rejection medications such as cyclosporine or tacrolimus. However, the reason why some people develop kidney problems after a heart transplant, but other people do not, is not fully known. This study plans to learn more about the relationship between a person's genetic make-up (DNA; deoxyribonucleic acid) and the risk of kidney problems after a heart transplant. The long-term goal of this research is to identify genetic variations that may help predict the development of kidney problems after heart transplantation.
Tacrolimus is a standard and widely used maintenance immunosuppressive agent after solid organ transplantation.The purpose of this trial is to determine if dosing of tacrolimus through genetics will help in early attainment and maintenance of the correct dosage level in the early post-transplant period. This pilot dose-finding trial will help to determine a dosing strategy guided by genotypes and age for solid organ transplant recipients that will be further validated through a multi-centre trial as an immediate next step. The study hypothesizes that dosage levels determined through age and genotype will be attained faster and more accurately than the standard dosing procedures in the 14-days after the transplant. Further, this study hypothesizes that a genotype and age dosing strategy will cause a faster recovery (tested through the kidneys' ability to clear creatine from the blood) and result in lower frequencies of adverse effects and rejection of the transplant.
The purpose of this study is to compare how the body absorbs and processes two different formulations of the anti-rejection medication tacrolimus (Advagraf® or Prograf®) in children receiving an organ transplant, and how safe and effective they are over a longer period of time. This study is for children less than 16 years old. No minimum age has been set, however, to be included in this study participants must able to swallow the medication capsules intact.
Over the past decades, survival rates in heart transplantation recipients improved significantly, due to advancements in regimens of immunosuppressives and surgical techniques, but are still limited to the first 12 months post transplantation. Long-term survival remains almost unchanged indicating the need to identify and improve relevant factors. Evidence in other chronically-ill patient populations shows that the healthcare system (e.g. level of chronic illness management (CIM)) and patient self-management (e.g. adherence) drive improvements in outcomes. The BRIGHT study is the first multi-centre, multi-continental study examining healthcare system and heart transplant centres chronic illness management practice patterns and potential correlates of immunosuppressive medication nonadherence. The knowledge gained will inform clinicians, researchers and healthcare policy makers about the level(s) interventions need to be implemented at to improve long-term outcomes for transplant recipients.
Background: Patients may develop antibodies (human leukocyte antigen [HLA] alloantibodies) to other human tissues via pregnancy, transfusions or previous transplantation, which limits the ability to find an acceptable donor heart for transplantation. Such patients are at high risk for antibody mediated rejection, graft failure, and acute rejection (i.e. death). For successful transplantation, patients must receive organs from donors who lack the HLA antigens that correspond to their alloantibody specificities. No successful desensitization strategy currently exists. Purpose: To determine if desensitization by deletion of immunologic memory with a multi-drug approach including anti-T and B cell therapies and anti-plasma cell therapy can effectively eliminate or significantly reduce alloantibody levels and permit highly sensitized patients to obtain a heart transplant. This therapy is anticipated to remove immunologic memory and will require re-immunization.
The ongoing success of transplantation is largely due to the development of drugs to stop the patient's body from rejecting the new organ. In addition to steroids, two main types of drug are used to suppress the immune system following heart transplantation: calcineurin inhibitors (Ciclosporin-A or Tacrolimus) and mycophenolate. However, different patients respond in different ways to these drugs, with the same dose leading to different levels of the drug in the blood. This varies due to genetic and other factors such as age, kidney function and the use of other drugs. Therefore, the levels of immunosuppressive drugs in the blood are routinely measured and the dose adjusted accordingly. However, some patients still experience episodes of rejection despite apparently acceptable levels. In this study, the investigators will measure levels of the drugs (in the blood, in a type of white blood cell called T-cells and in the heart muscle) and the effectiveness of the drugs on T-cells. The investigators will compare these levels with patient genetic factors and the amount of rejection measured on heart biopsies. This will enable us to better understand how the blood and tissue levels of these drugs change with genetic and other factors in order to optimise immunosuppressive therapy and further improve outcomes from heart transplantation.
The purpose of this study, a follow up to study FG506-CL-0403, is to see how safe and effective Modigraf® is (Part A) and to see how safe and effective it is to change your child's medication from Modigraf® to Prograf® (Part B).
The purpose of this study is to find out how much of Modigraf is absorbed and used in the body and how fast it leaves the body (Pharmacokinetics). The results will then help to decide how much Modigraf in future can be given safely to children and young people following transplantation.