Clinical Research Directory

Pumpkin Seed Oil as a Nutraceutical for Hemodialysis Patients

Patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) on maintenance hemodialysis experience chronic systemic inflammation, oxidative stress, and dyslipidemia, which together drive much of the excess cardiovascular morbidity and mortality seen in this population. Pumpkin seed oil is a nutraceutical rich in polyunsaturated fatty acids, phytosterols,and tocopherols, with documented antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, and antihyperlipidemic properties in preclinical and limited clinical studies. This study investigates the potential role of pumpkin seed oil as a nutraceutical on the clinical and biochemical outcomes of hemodialysis patients. It is a randomized, open-label, prospective interventional study in which daily oral supplementation with pumpkin seed oil (1000 mg once daily) for 3 months is evaluated against usual care. Eighty-five participants will be assigned to either an intervention group (n=45, pumpkin seed oil 1000 mg/day plus usual care) or a control group (n=40, usual care only). The biochemical outcomes assessed are changes in serum interleukin-6 (IL-6), high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hsCRP), soluble vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (sVCAM-1), lipid profile, malondialdehyde (MDA), and superoxide dismutase (SOD) from baseline to the end of the 3-month follow-up period. The study is being conducted at the Hemodialysis Center, Al-Karama Teaching Hospital, Iraq

Post Market Study for VasQ, an External Support Implant for Arteriovenous Fistula

VasQ is an external support implant for arteriovenous fistulas created for dialysis access. This is a postmarket surveillance, prospective, multi-center, randomized, controlled, open label trial enrolling 300 patients randomized into two study arms: * Treatment arm: End to side fistula supported with VasQ * Control: Standard of care end to side fistula

Study of ChoironeX GalKO Porcine Thymokidney Xenotransplantation in End-Stage Renal Disease

The goal of this clinical trial is to learn if a GalKO Porcine Thymokidney can maintain renal function, without the need for dialysis, after transplantation into adult subjects with End Stage Renal Disease.

AMSC for Reducing Anastomotic Stenosis in Primary Arteriovenous Anastomoses

Researchers are evaluating the safety of allogeneic Adipose Derived Mesenchymal Stem Cells (AMSC) use during hemodialysis arteriovenous fistula and arterial bypass creation and its efficacy on improving access maturation and primary anastomotic patency.

Association of Middle Molecules Clearance With HDF Volume

HDF is a dialysis technique which involves diffusion and convection. HDF with high convection volume has consistently shown to improve survival in dialysis patients in number of robust RCTs. The precise reason of this survival benefit remains unclear. The investigators hypothesize that this survival benefit with high volume HDF is related to enhanced middle molecule clearance and hemodynamic stability. However, this relationship has not been studied so far. This observational study is aimed to understand the relationship between HDF convection volume with middle molecules (Beta 2-Microglobulin) clearance during HDF. Exploring the relationship of HDF volume with middle molecules clearance has significant clinical ramifications. Only a minority of patients are able to achieve target convection volume. Understanding these relationships can rationalize the HDF prescription from convection volume-based prescription to β2-Microglobulin clearance-based prescription which may be applicable to wider range of patients. The relationship between pre-dialysis β2-Microglobulin levels and RKF offers the prospect of dispensing with pre- and post-dialysis urea and creatinine measurements and interdialytic urine collections, currently necessary for estimating RKF, thus simplifying its estimation. β2-Microglobulin reduction ratio and its component pre and post-dialysis β2-Microglobulin levels could therefore provide a composite estimate of small and middle molecule clearance and RKF.

VIRTUUS Children's Study

The objective of the VIRTUUS Children's Study is to adapt identified and validated adult noninvasive diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers for the characterization of allograft status in pediatric recipients of kidney allografts.

Screening for Asymptomatic Coronary Artery Disease in Kidney Transplant Candidates

The Canadian Australasian Randomized Trial of Screening Kidney Transplant Candidates for Coronary Artery Disease (CARSK) will test the hypothesis that eliminating the regular use of non-invasive screening tests for CAD AFTER waitlist activation is not inferior to regular (i.e., annual) screening for CAD during wait-listing for the prevention of Major Adverse Cardiac Events. Secondary analyses will assess the impact of screening on the rate of transplantation, and the relative cost-effectiveness of screening.

The Effect of Intradialytic Eye Exercise in Hemodialysis Patients

This pilot randomized trial will evaluate whether a structured intradialytic eye-exercise program can be delivered safely and consistently during maintenance hemodialysis and whether it shows preliminary promise for improving physical function, balance, and fall-related concern. The study is needed because hemodialysis patients commonly experience impaired physical performance, reduced balance, and fear of falling, and these problems are associated with higher fall risk; at the same time, supervised exercise during dialysis is increasingly viewed as a practical way to reach this medically complex and often sedentary population. Eye-movement and gaze-stability training has also shown benefit for balance- and fall-related outcomes in older adults and stroke survivors, but its feasibility and potential value during dialysis sessions remain uncertain.

CAPABLE Transplant

The purpose of this mixed methods study is to adapt CAPABLE as CAPABLE Transplant to accomplish two things: 1) To resolve barriers to being classified as active on the Kidney Transplant (KT) waitlist, 2) as a surgical prehabilitation intervention targeting the pre-frail/ frail KT waitlist population. It consists of two phases- an open label pilot and a randomized waitlist control trial, and 3) pilot test the feasibility and acceptability for CAPABLE Transplant in symptom and waitlist specific metrics amongst low-income active kidney transplant waitlist candidates.

Safety & Tolerability Study of Chimeric Antigen Receptor T-Reg Cell Therapy in Living Donor Renal Transplant Recipients

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the safety and tolerability of TX200-TR101 and its effects on the donated kidney in living donor kidney transplant recipients. TX200-TR101 is a product made from a kidney transplant recipient's own immune cells, which are genetically modified and designed to help the transplant recipient's body accept their donated kidney and prevent their immune system from rejecting it.

Light Therapy in End Stage Kidney Disease

The goal of this clinical trial is to test light therapy in patients with end stage kidney disease who are receiving hemodialysis. The main aim is to determine if light therapy decreases fatigue severity. Participants will receive light therapy using special glasses for one hour during the dialysis sessions for four weeks of treatment.

Reduction of Plasma Free VEGF-A Using Low-dose Bevacizumab in Hemodialysis Patients

The primary purpose of this pilot study is to assess the pharmacokinetic profile of low-dose bevacizumab and its effectiveness in reducing plasma free VEGF-A levels safely in hemodialysis patients. This information will be used to plan a phase 1 clinical trial evaluating bevacizumab's role in hemodialysis vascular access failure.

BicMag Study - Improving Mineral Buffering Capacity in Dialysis Patients

The BicMag study is a prospective, randomized, controlled cross-over study that aims to examine the potential additive effect of a dialysate enriched with both bicarbonate and magnesium on mineral buffering capacity in the blood of chronic hemodialysis patients.

Study to Evaluate the Efficacy and Safety of Pegcetacoplan in Adults at High Risk of Delayed Graft Function (DGF) Following Kidney Allograft Transplantation

A Phase 3 Study to Evaluate the Efficacy and Safety of Pegcetacoplan in Adults at High Risk of Delayed Graft Function (DGF) Following Kidney Allograft Transplantation

Development and Test of a Communication Skills Training for Transplant Providers - Aims 2 & 3

The goal of this clinical trial is to understand the communication occurring between Black and Caucasian patients and their transplant providers during transplant evaluation consultations and assess relationships between these communicative elements and patient and provider factors, patient-reported outcomes and living donor transplant outcomes - living donor referrals, evaluations, and transplants. We will use these findings to inform the development of a communication skills training for transplant providers and test the impact of the training on providers' communication about live donor kidney transplants with Black and Caucasian patients and living donor transplant outcomes. The main questions it aims to answer are: * How does the use of the use of instrumental, relational and affective communication by patients and providers during the transplant consultation differ by patient and provider factors, patient-reported outcomes and patient ethnicity? * What elements of instrumental, relational and affective communication will be predictive of live donor kidney transplant (LDKT) process outcomes (LD inquiries and evaluations, and actual LDKTs)? Participants will be asked to complete brief surveys before and after the transplant consultation and to give permission for the consultation to be audiorecorded. This data will be used to develop a training to educate providers on the key communication factors predictive of LDKT process outcomes specific to Black and Caucasian patients, and provide guidance on their application during patient consultations. Researchers will then compare communication and patient-reported and LDKT process outcomes between trained and untrained providers to see whether the training has any effect on living donor inquiries and evaluations, and actual LDKTs.

Genetic Causes of FSGS, Nephrotic Syndrome, or Kidney Failure

The investigators are trying to learn more about the cause of kidney diseases such as Focal Segmental Glomerulosclerosis (FSGS) and Nephrotic syndrome by studying genetics. The investigators are interested in discovering which genes play a role in causing a predisposition to FSGS/NS. The investigators also want to learn why FSGS/NS can run in families. Participation in our study involves a saliva sample and a urine sample that you can give from home. There is no cost to participate. All information is kept private and confidential. The investigators also like to include healthy volunteers (parents, spouses) if interested/available but of course this is completely optional.

PReSeRVE-HD: Observational Study of the Merit HeRO® Graft and Super HeRO® in Patients on Hemodialysis

The goal of this observational study is to increase the understanding of the safety and performance of Merit Medical's HeRO Graft System (HeRO) and Super HeRO Adaptor and Support Seal System (Super HeRO) devices. This study includes adults that are being treated with one of these devices as part of their regular medical care for maintaining long-term dialysis access when all other dialysis access options have failed. If participants in the study are not seen for a standard of care clinic visit during the 4 visit timepoints over 2 years, the participant will be followed by phone to check their current health and dialysis status.

Communication During Hospitalization About Resuscitation Trial

This multicenter RCT of 200 hospitalized patients and their family members evaluates an "informed assent" approach to discussing cardiopulmonary resuscitation, compared to usual care, in older seriously ill hospitalized patients with severe life-limiting illness or severe functional impairment.

The Danish Pre-HCQ COVID Dialysis Study

Hydroxychloroquine has been shown to inhibit replication of SARS-CoV-2 in vitro. The presented multicenter parallel-group open-label randomized clinical trial aims to investigate the efficacy of prophylactic hydroxychloroquine on mitigation of risk of hospitalization due to COVID-19 in patients with end-stage renal disease.

Kidney Alone Versus Islet-After-Kidney in Type 1 Diabetic Kidney Transplant Recipient.

Islet transplantation is associated with a benefit on glycaemic control compared to optimized insulin therapy in recent clinical trials. However, there is a lack of evidence concerning the long-term impact of islet transplantation on type 1 diabetic kidney transplant recipients' prognosis. The objective of the study is to assess the impact of islet transplantation in patients with type 1 diabetes and a kidney transplantation on the risk of graft failure. Every type 1 diabetic recipient transplanted with a kidney in France between 2000 and 2017 is included. Patients transplanted with pancreatic islets are compared to controls treated with insulin alone according to a matching method based on time-dependent propensity scores which allow to ensure patients comparability at the time of islet transplantation. Time-dependent propensity scores are built according to variables associated with both the probabilities of being transplanted with islets and the outcome of interest. These variables are assessed by a direct acyclic graph. The primary outcome consists in death-uncensored graft survival, defined by death or return to dialysis. Secondary outcomes include the risk of death, or the risk of death-censored graft survival.

Proteinuria and Renal Perfusion in Renal Transplant Recipients

Cardiovascular disease remains one of the major cause of mortality in renal transplant recipients, with the rate of cardiac death 10-times higher than that of the general population. An independent association between post-transplant proteinuria and cardiovascular risk has been previously reported. Diseased native kidneys with residual urine output or the transplanted kidney could be the source of proteinuria following renal transplantation. A clear differentiation of the source of proteinuria (native kidneys versus allograft) could be important for appropriate management. Proteinuria from native kidneys falls rapidly after renal transplantation, and persistent or worsening proteinuria is usually indicative of allograft pathology. The mechanisms behind the resolution of proteinuria of native kidney origin in the early post-transplant period are not well described. An association between vascular parameters of the macrocirculation and post-transplant proteinuria has been described. To the best of our knowledge no data is available describing a link between post-transplant proteinuria and vascular parameters of the microcirculation. In this study our goal is to analyze in a clinical trial in patients with end stage renal disease and residual urine output the relationship between proteinuria and renal perfusion of native kidneys before and after renal transplantation. In addition the investigators analyse if pre or post-transplant proteinuria is associated vascular and circulatory changes in the retinal circulation. Our hypothesis is that renal perfusion of native kidneys correlates with early post-transplant proteinuria. Moreover the investigators hypothesize that post-transplant proteinuria is associated with vascular remodeling processes of the microcirculation 2 and 4 to 12 months after transplantation. To prove this hypothesis the investigators aim to include 25 pre kidney transplant patients of our living donor kidney transplantation program. Total duration of this study for each patient is 5-12 months with total 4 visits, of which all are performed at the Clinical Research Center of the Department of Nephrology and Hypertension, University of Erlangen-Nuremberg. This study is important to better understand the mechanisms behind the fall of proteinuria after renal transplantation and the association between post-transplant proteinuria and cardiovascular risk.

An Extension to Assess the Effect of Expanded Dialysis on Patient Reported Symptoms Using LEVIL

Investigators know that many patients who are on dialysis suffer from burden of unwanted symptoms, which can affect quality of life. The understanding and treatment of symptom burden by healthcare providers is limited and should be recognized as a high priority in the care of the dialysis population. In this study, the investigators will be assessing symptom burden using the London Evaluation of Illness "LEVIL," an application based platform where patients self-report their symptoms with one to three hemodialysis treatments per week for 28 weeks. The investigators would like to compare the currently available dialyzer with a new dialyzer that is capable of removing solutes of higher molecular weight that may or may not cause patients to experience symptoms related to increased amounts of toxins in their blood.

Maturation of Arteriovenous Fistula With Automated Sonography Assessments Trial

This is a prospective, multi-center, two-arm, randomized trial to quantify the performance of the EchoMark®/EchoSure® System for AVF diagnostic ultrasound when used under a protocol of biweekly use for assessing fistula maturation and reducing time to Clinical Maturation.

Shared Decision Making for Kidney Transplant Candidates to Plan for an Organ Offer Decision

The goal of this pilot randomized trial is to learn about shared decision making in kidney transplant candidates. The aim of this proposal is to evaluate the Donor Plan Donor Choice tool to promote high-quality Shared Decision Making for providers and kidney transplant candidates at two transplant centers. Participants will: * Review an online education tool, Donor Plan Donor Choice. * Discuss a Kidney Offer Plan with a transplant provider. * Answer questions about willingness to consider different donor types. Researchers will compare the Shared Decision Making group to usual care to generate pilot data and implementation outcomes for a larger trial.