View clinical trials related to Sarcoidosis, Pulmonary.
Filter by:The primary purpose of this study is to investigate the efficacy and safety of oral antimycobacterial therapy in patients with confirmed progressive pulmonary sarcoidosis. We suspect that the CLEAR regimen will improve the absolute FVC percent predicted in chronic pulmonary sarcoidosis participants.
This is a pilot study investigating the effect of an antioxidant, N-Acetyl-L-Cysteine (NAC), on inflammation and oxidative stress in sarcoidosis.
Sarcoidosis is a granulomatous disease for which the molecular and immunologic association with mycobacteria continues to strengthen. The investigators are interested in conducting a proof-of-concept investigation of the effects of antibiotics on sarcoidosis resolution. The investigators hypothesize that pulmonary sarcoidosis will improve faster if patients are given antimycobacterial therapy, in addition to their standard therapy.
Sarcoidosis is a inflammatory disease affecting many parts of the body, especially the lungs. While most patients do well, there is a group of patients who require continuous doses of prednisone or other drugs. The current study will determine the role of Rituximab as new agent for patients with refractory disease.
The purpose of this study is to determine the efficacy of influenza vaccine (antibody response) in patients with sarcoidosis.
The purpose of this study is to compare peoples with disease (sarcoidosis) to those without disease. We want to see if people with sarcoidosis have a different immune response to those people without disease. The goal of this study is to see if the nicotine patch is an anti-inflammatory treatment for sarcoidosis.
This study will determine if atorvastatin (Lipitor), a widely used cholesterol-lowering drug, can help patients with pulmonary (lung) sarcoidosis and replace or reduce the need for patients to take steroids, such as prednisone. Sarcoidosis is an inflammatory disease that can affect nearly any part of the body. Pulmonary sarcoidosis may resolve on its own or it may progress to irreversible lung damage, disability, and death. Many sarcoidosis patients are treated with prednisone, but the drug is not effective in all patients, and it can cause serious side effects, such as high blood pressure, sugar diabetes, eye cataracts, and bone thinning. Patients with stage II or III pulmonary sarcoidosis between 18 and 70 years of age who require prednisone may be eligible for this study. Candidates are screened with the tests and procedures described below. Participants are randomly assigned to one of two treatment groups: one group takes atorvastatin; the other takes a placebo (a look-alike pill that has no active ingredient to fight sarcoidosis). Both groups take the pills by mouth once a day for 12 months. When treatment begins, participants begin to have their prednisone dosage tapered (reduced). The tapering is done over 8 weeks until the dose is reduced by 90 percent. Patients are evaluated periodically to determine if the two groups differ in how long they can remain on the reduced dose of prednisone without having their symptoms recur, requiring an increase in the prednisone dose. A full battery of tests is done at the initial screening visit and at the 26- and 52-week follow-up visits, requiring hospitalization for 3-5 days. Additional interim outpatient assessments are done at 6, 12, 18 and 36 weeks. The full battery of tests at the initial screening and the 26- and 52-week visits includes the following: - Medical history, physical examination, blood and urine tests, assessment of disease severity and activity. - Questionnaires. - Chest x-ray (CXR) and computed tomography (CT) scan. - Abdominal ultrasound. - Six-minute walk test (6MWT): test to see how far the subject can walk in 6 minutes. - Exercise testing and blood gases: Patients exercise on a stationary bicycle or treadmill while their heart and lung function are monitored. During the test, arterial blood gases are measured to determine the amount of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the blood. - Pulmonary function tests (PFT): Patients are asked to breathe deeply and, occasionally, to hold their breath. They may be given a medicine called albuterol that dilates the airways. - Maximum incremental ventilatory performance test (MIVP): Patients breathe normally through a mouth piece. The test system makes it increasingly difficult to inhale. Patients stop when they feel fatigued. - Exhaled nitric oxide and carbon monoxide (Exhaled NO and CO): Patients breathe out into a tube that collects exhaled air (gases). - Bronchoscopy and lavage: The patient's mouth and throat are numbed with lidocaine; a sedative and morphine-like drug are given for comfort. A tube is passed through the nose or mouth into the lung airways to examine the airways. Saline (salt water) is then injected through the bronchoscope into the air passage, and a sample of fluid is withdrawn for microscopic examination. Patients who do not have confirmation of their lung disease may also undergo biopsy at the time of lavage. For the biopsy, a small piece of tissue is extracted from the wall of the breathing tubes (bronchi) or the lymph nodes. Interim testing at 6, 12, 18 and 36 weeks includes PFT, MIVP, Exhaled NO and CO, CXR, questionnaire, blood tests, and 6MWT. Six months after completing the study, participants fill out a questionnaire.
Sarcoidosis is a disease most commonly affecting the lungs, but it can also involve lymph nodes, skin, liver, spleen, eyes, bones, and glands. The cause of the disease is unknown. When it occurs it can produce an inflammatory reaction leading to irreversible organ damage and disability. In sarcoidosis granulomas can form in various organs (primarily lung) which can lead to its dysfunction. Granuloma is formed by clusters of inflammatory cells. The formation of these granulomas is influenced by the release of a substance called TNF-alpha (tumor necrosis factor alpha) which is found in some white blood cells. A drug known as pentoxifylline (POF) is known to markedly reduce the release of TNF-alpha. The standard medical treatment for sarcoidosis is steroid therapy. However, steroid therapy is associated with significant side effects and often must be stopped. Unfortunately, some of these patients can relapse when the steroid therapy is discontinued. Because of this, researchers are interested in finding alternative therapies for the treatment of sarcoidosis. This study will evaluate the effectiveness of giving POF to patients with sarcoidosis currently taking steroids. Researchers will compare the results between patients taking steroids with pentoxifylline and those patients taking steroids alone.