Clinical Research Directory

Videoconferencing for the Management of Paediatric Dyspnoea in an Emergency Medical Call Centre

Dyspnoea is defined as the sensation of difficult or uncomfortable breathing experienced by a patient. It is a significant concern in emergency care, accounting for 8% of calls to the emergency medical call centre (EMCC) and 10% of Emergency department (ED) admissions. Among paediatric patients, dyspnoea accounts from 14-27% of ED admissions, exhibiting notable seasonal variation. Approximately 10% of these patients require hospitalisation, and 1-3% of cases progress to respiratory failure. All these patients require a comprehensive clinical examination to accurately identify signs of severity, ensuring the timely initiation of specialized and effective treatment. In France, patients are encouraged to contact the local EMCC before visiting an ED. Medical dispatchers assess the clinical condition by phone, based on medical history, symptoms and current treatment. Based on this assessment, the medical dispatcher determines the appropriate decision which may include providing medical advice, directing the patient to an ED, or deploying a mobile intensive care unit (MICU). Seven percent of calls to an EMCC involve paediatric cases, with nearly half concerning children under six years of age with hyperthermia and dyspnoea as most complaints, particularly during epidemic periods. The medical assessment of paediatric dyspnoea by EMCC is particularly challenging. The inability of children to articulate their symptoms, coupled with parents difficulty in describing the situation - often exacerbated by anxiety - creates significant obstacles. Furthermore, the absence of a direct observation by the physician adds to the complexity and could lead to an inappropriate triage and management. Telemedicine uses communication technologies for remote consultations, electronic record management, and document sharing. It enables real-time visual evaluation, thereby improving diagnostic accuracy and decision-making. While evidence supports its benefits in managing adult dyspnoeic patients, further research is essential to validate its efficacy in paediatric settings, particularly within EMCC. This study will aim to evaluate the effectiveness of telemedicine within an EMCC and utilising real-time visualization in reducing inappropriate triage of children requiring care for acute dyspnoea.

Su Jok for Dyspnea and Fatigue

As the disease progresses, dyspnea and fatigue may increasingly interfere with daily activities, reduce patients' independence, and negatively affect their quality of life. Therefore, in addition to pharmacological treatment, there is a need for safe and supportive interventions to help alleviate these symptoms. This study aims to evaluate the effects of Su Jok therapy on dyspnea and fatigue in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The findings are expected to provide evidence regarding the potential role of Su Jok therapy as a complementary intervention for symptom management. The results may contribute to improving patients' symptom control and quality of life while providing healthcare professionals with evidence to support clinical decision-making and nursing care.

SU JOK THERAPY TO IMPROVE DYSPNEA AND INSOMNIA IN ASTHMA

Asthma is a long-term lung disease that can make breathing difficult and can also affect sleep. Even with regular medical treatment, many people with asthma continue to experience shortness of breath and insomnia. This study will examine whether Su Jok therapy, a complementary therapy that applies gentle stimulation to specific points on the hands and feet, can help reduce shortness of breath and improve sleep in people with asthma. Adults with asthma who agree to participate will be randomly assigned to one of two groups. One group will receive Su Jok therapy in addition to their usual care, while the other group will receive usual care only. Researchers will compare changes in breathing difficulty and sleep quality between the two groups. The results of this study may help determine whether Su Jok therapy can be used as a safe and supportive treatment alongside standard asthma care.

Structured Personalized Oxygen and Supportive Therapies for Dyspnea in Oncology

To learn about the effect of Structured Personalized Oxygen and Supportive Therapies for Dyspnea in Oncology (SPOT-ON) treatment on the severity of shortness of breath in patients with cancer.

A Stepped Intervention for Coping With Dyspnea in Patients With Lung Cancer-Phase A (Open Pilot)

Patients with lung cancer often experience shortness of breath, also known as dyspnea. It affects over 80% of patients with lung cancer at diagnosis and is linked to poorer quality of life and functioning. Unfortunately, current treatments-such as opioids, which are the most studied treatment for dyspnea-fail to provide patients with adequate care, and dyspnea can remain a chronic issue in many. Even when new treatments are developed, the benefit to public health is often limited by healthcare systems not having enough resources to use new treatments. The investigators' aim is to test a personalized treatment for dyspnea that can address patients' unique needs while efficiently using healthcare resources to make the treatment as accessible as possible for future widespread use. This project builds upon rhe investigators' prior work creating two promising psychological treatments for dyspnea. The first (a two-session behavioral treatment provided by nurses) targets dyspnea-related discomfort. The second (a five-session psychological treatment provided by psychologists) targets dyspnea-related anxiety and overall health outcomes. The investigators combined these complementary treatments with a stepped-care model into a treatment called INSPIRE. In INSPIRE, all patients will receive the brief treatment to learn basic behavioral coping skills to manage the discomfort of dyspnea before escalating to the more intensive treatment that focuses on providing patients with the confidence to cope with dyspnea and related anxiety, but only if patients' dyspnea does not improve after the first treatment. The investigators will first ask for initial feedback from patients who are receiving INSPIRE for dyspnea and the patients' study clinician to make sure the treatment and study procedures fit their needs. The investigators want to see if this approach can work in patients with lung cancer, is well-received, and shows early signs of improving dyspnea. The investigators' goal is to provide personalized relief for breathing difficulties while making the best use of healthcare resources. These findings will help the investigators learn more about how to support patients with dyspnea and provide information on how to further test INSPIRE. Additionally, this personalized supportive treatment for dyspnea may potentially help reduce the use of opioids currently used in the treatment of dyspnea.

ER-VISION-AI Study

Prospective, multicenter, randomized, open-label, blinded-endpoint (PROBE-like) clinical trial evaluating whether physician-supervised Generative Pre-trained Transformer (GPT)-assisted multimodal diagnostic support improves diagnostic concordance in emergency department patients presenting with acute cardiopulmonary symptoms.

Endoscopic Treatment

The placement of an endoprosthesis in the airways leads to rapid and dramatic clinical improvement in the majority of cases of central airway obstruction. However, the limited diversity of device shapes available on the market is a major limitation, as these devices are poorly adapted, or not adapted at all, to the patient's anatomy. The main consequences of this lack of congruity are stent migration and granulomatous inflammatory reactions. The investigators hypothesized that personalized endoprostheses could significantly reduce the complication rate and improve tolerability. In this randomized controlled trial, the investigators propose to evaluate whether personalized endoprostheses allow for better management of non-malignant central airway stenoses by comparing this new approach to standard care.

The Impact of Telemedicine, Using the Caller's Mobile Phone Camera, on the Quality of Care Provided to Adult Patients Contacting the 15 Centre for Acute Dyspnea

Dyspnea is the subjective sensation of difficult or uncomfortable breathing. It accounts for approximately 10% of emergency department visits and 8% of calls to Emergency Medical Communication Centers. Nearly half of patients presenting with dyspnea require hospital admission, 15% require ventilatory support, and approximately 5% die. Early recognition of signs of respiratory severity is therefore essential to accurately assess clinical urgency, guide diagnostic evaluation, and inform appropriate management decisions. In France, patients are encouraged to contact an Emergency Medical Communication Centers before presenting to an emergency department. Calls are managed by an emergency physician responsible for medical regulation, who performs a remote clinical assessment and determines the most appropriate level of care. Depending on the clinical evaluation, the physician may provide medical advice, refer the patient to an emergency department, dispatch emergency medical services, or send a physician-staffed mobile intensive care unit for life-threatening emergencies. The remote assessment of patients presenting with dyspnea is particularly challenging. The inability to directly observe or examine the patient, combined with the caller's difficulty in accurately describing the clinical situation, may impair the recognition of disease severity and result in inappropriate triage decisions, including under-triage and over-triage : Under-triage, characterized by failure to dispatch appropriate emergency resources or to refer the patient to an emergency department when indicated, may delay treatment and increase the risk of adverse outcomes, including mortality. Conversely, over-triage, defined as unnecessary referral to primary care or emergency departments or inappropriate dispatch of emergency resources, contributes to emergency department overcrowding, inefficient use of prehospital resources, and increased healthcare costs. In a previous study, we demonstrated that video-assisted medical triage improved emergency physicians' ability to assess the severity of patients presenting with acute dyspnea. This telemedicine tool enables real-time transmission of a live video stream from the caller's smartphone camera to the emergency physician through a secure digital platform, providing direct visualization of the patient's clinical condition. By enhancing remote clinical assessment, video-assisted triage has the potential to reduce both under-triage and over-triage. In the present stepped-wedge cluster randomized trial, we hypothesized that incorporating real-time video support into the medical regulation of adult patients contacting an Emergency Medical Communication Centers for acute dyspnea would improve the quality of medical decision-making compared with standard telephone triage alone.

Prospective Multicentre Study on Symptoms in First-onset Bronchial Asthma in Children and Adolescents

Bronchial asthma may present with symptoms other than the commonly reported complaints (cough, chest tightness, shortness of breath and wheezing). Less common symptoms include chronic or recurrent productive cough, inspiratory dyspnoea or recurrent pneumonia. Children presenting with these symptoms are often diagnosed with asthma bronchiale and benefit from antiasthmatic management.

Multi-site Trial of a Brief Behavioral Intervention for Dyspnea in Patients With Advanced Lung Cancer

Dyspnea, or breathlessness, is one of the most common and distressing symptoms experienced by patients with advanced lung cancer. The purpose of this multi-site trial is to test the effectiveness of a dyspnea intervention (called BREEZE+) that includes three brief nurse-delivered sessions and access to a digital health app that teaches and reinforces patients' use of skills for managing and coping with this highly debilitating symptom. This study will lay the groundwork for a follow-up pragmatic implementation trial integrating BREEZE+ into usual oncology care for patients with advanced lung cancer experiencing dyspnea.

Evaluation of the Effectiveness of the Cardiostory Device in Distinguishing Heart Failure From Other Causes in Patients Presenting With Dyspnea.

This is a prospective, observational study conducted in the emergency department. Adult patients presenting with dyspnea will be enrolled, and study data will be collected from routine clinical assessments, including medical history, physical examination, laboratory tests, and echocardiography results, as well as non-invasive cardiovascular measurements obtained using the CardioStory device.

Improving Diagnostic Accuracy for Acute Heart Failure

Acute heart failure is a common reason for emergency department visits and hospitalization, but the diagnosis can be challenging because of non-specific symptoms and signs. The current diagnostic approach to acute heart failure has modest accuracy, leading to delayed diagnosis and treatment, which associate with worse prognosis. Prior work suggests diagnostic accuracy can be improved with the addition of multiple circulating biomarkers discovered through proteomics, and this study will derive and validate a multi-marker model to improve diagnostic accuracy for acute heart failure in the emergency department.

Contactless Ultrasound Data Acquisition in Emergency Departments to Discriminate the Origin of Dyspnea and Chest Pain

PAnDA-One is a prospective, multicenter, interventional study (10 centers, France) aimed at developing and validating a diagnostic support algorithm based on the ADx-One medical device, which non-invasively acquires thoracic vibrations using airborne ultrasound. The study will enroll 2,500 patients presenting to the emergency department with acute dyspnea or non-traumatic chest pain, divided into a development cohort (N = 1,500) and an independent test cohort (N = 1,000). The deep learning algorithm will be trained to discriminate cardiovascular from non-cardiovascular origins of symptoms, and its performance will be assessed by AUROC, sensitivity, and specificity against a final diagnosis established by an expert adjudication committee. Patient management will not be modified by study participation.

Ventilation/Perfusion PET/CT With Galligas and 68Ga-MAA for Regional Lung Function Assessment After Pulmonary Embolism

In patients with pulmonary embolism (PE), after three or six months of anticoagulation, persistent dyspnea and impairment of quality of life are observed in at least 30% of cases. The "RAMBO" trial is a French academic, multicenter, randomized (1:1 ratio), parallel arm, controlled, that aimed to assess the efficacy of pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) on the quality of life in patients with an acute symptomatic PE treated with anticoagulant therapy during at least 3 months and who present an impairment of quality of life and/or persistent dyspnea despite anticoagulant therapy. Ventilation/Perfusion (V/Q) PET/CT is a novel imaging modality for the assessment of regional lung function. The same carrier molecules as conventional V/Q imaging are used, but they are labeled with 68Gallium, a ß+ isotope, instead of 99mTc, allowing acquisition of images with PET technology. The EOLE study is an ancillary pilot study of the RAMBO trial, in which patients will benefit, in addition to the extensive work up scheduled as per study protocol, from a V/Q PET/CT scan before and after PR. The aim of the study is to assess the impact of PR on regional lung function with lung V/Q PET/CT imaging.

Early Exercise-Based Rehabilitation in Patients Hospitalized for Acute Pulmonary Embolism

Up to half of patients with pulmonary embolism (PE) suffer from impaired quality of life, reduced physical capacity, and symptoms like shortness of breath even three months after diagnosis, despite standard treatment with anticoagulation (blood thinners). The randomized RehabPE trial investigates whether an early, structured rehabilitation program with physical training and patient education can prevent such long-term effects. The study includes hospitalized patients with acute symptomatic PE who are at increased risk of impaired quality of life three months after diagnosis. After informed consent, patients are randomly assigned to one of two groups: one receives an early 6-8-week, center-based rehabilitation program; the other receives standard follow-up care without rehabilitation. The intervention group completes 16-18 outpatient sessions of endurance and strength training, along with two education sessions covering the condition, treatment, and symptom management. Over 180 days, changes in quality of life, physical exercise capacity, breathlessness, and psychological symptoms, and the time to return to work / usual daily activities will be monitored and compared between groups.

Lung and Heart Function Across Decades of Life in Health

The main objective of this study is to develop baseline "normal" reference values of both lung and heart function for healthy adults within the age range relevant to the United States Veteran population who served in the Southwest Asia theater of military operations. This study will involve performing key components of the Department of Veterans Affairs the Airborne Hazards and Open Burn Pit Center of Excellence (AHOBPCE) and a VA network of Post-Deployment Cardiopulmonary Evaluation Network (PDCEN) Core Clinical Evaluation in asymptomatic unexposed healthy controls without known lung or heart disease to serve as a "normal" control comparator group for veterans evaluated by PDCEN.

Dexamethasone in Controlling Dyspnea in Patients With Cancer

This phase II trial studies how well dexamethasone works in controlling dyspnea in patients with cancer. Dexamethasone may help control dyspnea (shortness of breath) and improve lung function and quality of life in cancer patients.

Evaluation of the Benefits of Hypnosis in Improving the Quality of Life of Patients With Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) Suffering From Persistent Dyspnea

Chronic Obstructive pulmonary Disease (COPD) is a common progressive disorder characterized by persistent airflow limitation. It is usually caused by exposure to tobacco smoke, toxic particles, or toxic gases. COPD is characterized by cough, sputum production, and dyspnea, which is the cardinal symptom and is included in the criteria for severity. Dyspnea is a major source of suffering and disability, especially when it persists at rest. Despite proper medical treatment, many patients continue to suffer from persistent dyspnea that significantly impairs their daily functioning and quality of life. Complementary approaches such as yoga and relaxation techniques are therefore recommended by some experts. Hypnosis is one of these practices. It has been shown to be effective in the management of both acute and chronic pain and it can abolish several types of experimentally induced dyspnea in healthy volunteers. In adults with COPD, a single hypnosis session has been shown to reduce anxiety immediately, though only temporarily. However, according to a recent retrospective study, a median of three hypnosis sessions increases the distance covered in the 6-minute walk test in COPD patients. The investigators therefore hypothesize that several hypnosis sessions will improve the quality of life of adult outpatients with COPD who suffer from persistent dyspnea. The study plans to recruit 154 patients with severe dyspnea (mMRC(modified Medical Research Council Dyspnea Scale) 3 or 4). They will be randomly assigned to either the experimental group or the control group. Patients in the experimental group will participate in 5 sessions of medical hypnosis spaced 7 ± 2 days apart. The first hypnosis session will take place at the end of the enrollment visit. The final session will be held via teleconsultation. Four standardized telephone calls, spaced 7 ± 2 days apart, will replace the hypnosis sessions in the control group. The primary outcome of the study will be the evolution of quality of life, assessed 6 weeks after the start of the study as compared to baseline. Secondary outcomes will focus on changes in exercise capacity, dyspnea, anxiety, depression, dyspnea-related catastrophizing, self-efficacy, and pleasure in life.

Hypnosis on Breathlessness Mastery in Patients With Persistent Dyspnea

Persistent dyspnea is a debilitating symptom, that is common and difficult to treat. This symptom is found in many different diseases including chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), interstitial lung disease (ILD), chronic heart failure (CHF), and metastatic cancer. Dyspnea is associated with many other symptoms, including anxiety, depression, and fatigue and is responsible for a significant reduction in quality of life. To date, only opiates are recommended for the pharmacological treatment of persistent dyspnea. The effectiveness of hypnosis is well known in the treatment of anxiety and delivered to patients suffering from chronic dyspnea for this reason. One randomised controlled study has shown that a single 20-minute mindfulness sessions could significantly reduce general symptom burden and have a significant impact on anxiety and depression in palliative care patients. Furthermore, the intervention had no negative side effects. Our aim is to evaluate the effectiveness of three hypnosis sessions on breathlessness mastery in patients with persistent dyspnea, using as a primary outcome the mastery domain of a validated tool, the Chronic Respiratory Questionnaire (CRQ).

Cardiopulmonary Exercise Testing and Oscillometry for the Evaluation of Dyspnea

This study will determine if airway resistance to airflow and pressure, measured by Oscillometry, is associated with abnormal findings on Cardiopulmonary Exercise Testing in subjects who are experiencing shortness of breath.

INSPIRatory Efforts Estimation Under High-flow Nasal Oxygen

High-flow nasal oxygen (HFNO) is recommended as first-line treatment to prevent intubation in acute hypoxemic respiratory failure and to prevent reintubation after extubation. Accumulating data suggest that strong inspiratory efforts and their persistence are associated with HFNO failure. However, tools to monitor continuously and noninvasively inspiratory efforts are lacking. The investigators have developed an algorithm estimating noninvasively inspiratory efforts under HFNO. This pilot study aims at testing the feasibility of estimating inspiratory efforts in patients treated with HNFO.

Breathe Easier With Tadalafil Therapy for Dyspnea in COPD-PH

The investigators will study whether the drug tadalafil improves shortness of breath in 126 Veterans with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and high blood pressure in the lungs. The investigators will also assess whether tadalafil improves quality of life, home daily physical activity, exercise endurance, the frequency of acute flares of COPD, blood pressure in the lungs, and lung function. Veterans who enroll in the trial will be allocated by chance to either active tadalafil or an inactive identical capsule (placebo). Neither the Veteran nor the investigator will know whether the Veteran is taking tadalafil or placebo. Veterans will be followed closely in clinic or by telephone at 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 6 months, with attention to side effects and safety. At 1,3, and 6 months the investigators will repeat the questionnaires and testing of blood pressures in the lung and lung function. The investigators anticipate that the results of this study will determine whether tadalafil improves shortness of breath when added to usual medications for COPD.

Evaluating Dyspnea in Autoimmune Myasthenia Gravis "Why am I Short of Breath?"

Individuals with MG (IwMG) experience shortness of breath that may be activity-related, occur at rest and even happen during sleep. Dyspnea is a complex, multidimensional and multifactorial symptom involving sensory perception, cognition and emotion. Identifying the cause(s) of dyspnea in MG may assist in finding therapeutic strategies, reducing discomfort, improving QoL and potentially limiting respiratory deterioration and incidence of MG crisis.

Improving Quality of Life and Daily Life Activities With Bioarginine in Patients With COPD

Different studies have suggested that COPD is associated with elevated alveolar NO and increased expression of NOS2 in alveolar walls, small airway epithelium and vascular smooth muscle. Furthermore, arginase activity in COPD is shown to correlate inversely with total NO metabolite in sputum and with pre- and post- bronchodilator FEV1; at the same time ADMA levels in serum is shown to be correlated with airway resistance and ADMA in COPD airways was documented to be able to shift the L-arginine metabolism towards the arginase pathway. As demonstrated in a guinea pig model, the arginase inhibition can shift the L-ornitine: L-citrulline ratio towards L-citrulline, preventing neutrophilia, mucus hypersecretion and collagen synthesis. Thus, increasing substrate availability for NOS by arginase inhibition or supplementation of L-arginine or L-citrulline or a combination thereof, may represent a window of opportunity in patients with COPD. The present study was constructed in order to investigate as a primary objective whether in symptomatic patients with COPD, daily bioarginine on top of chronic inhaled therapy can improve patients' respiratory symptoms and dyspnea during daily life activities. The secondary objective of the study is to determine whether there is any correlation between improvement in respiratory symptoms and distance walked at the 6MWT and lung function parameters. In order to do so, the investigators designed a multi center, interventional, prospective, randomized, controlled vs placebo, proof of concept study: COPD patients will be randomized to receive BioArginine twice daily on top of chronic inhaled therapy or to continue their chronic Inhaled therapy plus placebo for 6 weeks. In order to evaluate the impact on respiratory symptoms and dyspnea the CRQ (Chronic Respiratory disease Questionnaire) and the LCADL (London Chest Activities of daily Living) Scale, as well as the 6MWT, will be used.