View clinical trials related to Lung Diseases, Interstitial.
Filter by:There is a rare condition causing scarring of the lungs termed interstitial lung disease. This comprises a group of conditions which can be divided into separate diseases. The aim of this study is compare a group of patients (the cases) with 2 types of this disease (fibrotic non-specific interstitial pneumonia (NSIP) and idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF)) with patients without the disease. The study will look at the 2 groups and their exposures to factors such as medications, smoking, previous jobs, previous medical problems and specifically heart disease and any operations or procedures involving the heart. There have been previous studies showing a link between heart disease and scarring of the lungs. This study will look at whether this association is stronger in one or the other type of lung scarring diseases.
We hypothesize that a peripheral blood biomarker or biological signature (gene or protein expression pattern) of idiopathic interstitial pneumonias (IIPs) will simplify and improve the accuracy of diagnosis of IIP and diagnose individuals at an earlier, more treatable, stage of their disease.
Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) is a progressive scarring condition of the lungs the cause of which is unknown.There are currently no effective treatments for IPF and the condition tends to cause progressive disability and death with an average survival of 3.5 years from diagnosis. The condition is responsible for the deaths of 4000 people per year in the UK. At present the definite diagnosis of IPF rests on the identification of a specific pattern of fibrosis when a section of fibrotic lung tissue is examined under a microscope. Unfortunately, the process of obtaining a lung biopsy requires an operation and is not with out risk. The investigators hope to identify specific markers in the blood and lungs of patients with IPF that will enable the condition to be diagnosed without biopsy. Furthermore, the investigators hope to identify indicators(biomarkers) that will predict which patients have more aggressive and progressive disease and also to identify biomarkers that might be useful in identifying a response to treatment and might therefore be used in future clinical trials in IPF. As well as looking at markers in the blood and lungs the investigators also plan to assess the use of daily home lung function measurement and a computerised technique for analyzing lung sounds to see if these are investigations that are able to predict the development of worsening lung fibrosis.
The purpose of this study is to investigate inherited genetic factors that play a role in the development of familial pulmonary fibrosis and to identify a group of genes that predispose individuals to develop pulmonary fibrosis. Finding the genes that cause pulmonary fibrosis is the first step at developing better methods for early diagnosis and improved treatment for pulmonary fibrosis. The overall hypothesis is that inherited genetic factors predispose individuals to develop pulmonary fibrosis.
Recently, early biomarkers of renal interstitial fibrosis have been identified, amongst them de novo expression of vimentin by tubular epithelial cells, which is an intermediate filament, and the translocation of beta-catenin into their cytoplasm. These markers, when present, suggest that the epithelial cell undergoes a phenomenon well known as "epithelial to mesenchymal transition" (EMT) and could behaves like a myo-fibroblast. EMT is highly instrumental in several models of tissue fibrosis, including in the kidney. Actually, it has not only been demonstrated that these markers are detectable in the renal graft at an early time point post-transplant (i.e. as soon as three months), but also that the intensity of their expression correlates with the progression of interstitial fibrosis of the graft between 3 and 12 months
Transbronchial lung biopsy (TBLB) is a bronchoscopic procedure used to obtain peripheral lung tissue. Small size and artefacts cause variable, and usually poor, diagnostic yield. The use of cryoprobes may allow for larger size and better quality biopsy samples. Objectives:To analyze the histological quality and immunohistochemical findings of samples obtained by cryoprobe compared with TBLB obtained by conventional forceps and to assess the safety and complications of TBLB with cryoprobe versus the conventional method. Methodology: Prospective randomized study of 80 patients. The transbronchial lung biopsy was indicated for diagnoses of a interstitial lung disease. In both procedures the videobroncoscopy used will be a Olympus 260-T. The transbronchial lung biopsy will be carried out with conventional forceps (Boston ® Biopsy Forceps, Ref 1556 and Olympus ® FB-19E) and cryoprobe (Erbokryo AC ®). TBLB will be performed by fluoroscopy guided and the cryoprobe or forceps will place in an area of the peripheral lung previously selected according to CT findings. Lung biopsies will be processed: The samples submitted for histological analysis will be fixed in formalin and embedded in paraffin. Staining will perform with hematoxylin-eosin and Masson's trichrome and the samples will be analyzed by a pathologist according to a protocol. The samples submitted to immunohistochemical study will be frozen (liquid nitrogen) for later transport.The specifical monoclonal antibodies will be used for immunohistochemical analysis.
The purpose of this study is to determine if pulmonary rehabilitation has any effect on breathlessness, quality of life, physical function and depression in persons with interstitial lung disease.
We hypothesize that hypoxia-induced pulmonary vascular remodeling is mediated by macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF), that remodeling is in fact the reflection of a chronic inflammatory process, and that MIF may be a useful biomarker of the severity and progression of both ILD and PH.
Scleroderma is a rare, long-term autoimmune disease in which normal tissue is replaced with dense, thick fibrous tissue. Normally, the immune system helps defend the body against disease and infection. In people with scleroderma, the immune system triggers fibroblast cells to produce too much of the protein collagen. The extra collagen becomes deposited in the skin and organs, causing hardening and thickening that is similar to the scarring process. Although scleroderma most often affects the skin, it also can affect other parts of the body, including the lungs, and in its most severe forms scleroderma can be life-threatening. Scleroderma-related interstitial lung disease is one example of a life-threatening scleroderma condition. In people with symptomatic scleroderma-related interstitial lung disease, scarring occurs in the delicate lung tissue, compromising lung function. The purpose of this study is to determine whether people with symptomatic scleroderma-related interstitial lung disease experience more respiratory benefits from treatment with a 2-year course of mycophenolate mofetil or treatment with a 1-year course of oral cyclophosphamide.
Treatment in interstitial lung diseases (ILD) is frequently ineffective. Pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) is an excellent therapeutic option in another chronic lung diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). This prospective randomized controlled study aims to evaluate the short and long-term effects of PR in patients with ILD. For this purpose, 60 ILD patients will be randomly assigned to a PR or a control group. The investigators hypothesize that PR will improve exercise capacity, increase muscle force, reduce dyspnea and improve quality of life and daily life activities in ILD patients.