Clinical Research Directory

Functional Lung Avoidance SPECT-guided Radiation Therapy of Lung Cancer

Study aims to determine if functional lung avoidance based on perfusion single photon emission (SPECT)/CT scan, improves toxicity outcomes for patients with advanced lung cancer undergoing chemo-radiotherapy. Functional avoidance implies a dose plan that takes functional distribution in the lung into account, and avoids highly functional lung volumes sparing them from radiation.

Body Composition Related Evaluation of Airway Tone and Hyper-rEactivity Using Oscillometry

This study will determine if airway resistance to airflow and pressure, measured by Oscillometry, is associated with abnormal findings on methacholine challenge testing and whether these findings are associated with body habitus,

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.

Tubeless Surgery With Impaired Pulmonary Function

Some patients with impaired lung function require minimally invasive surgical treatment, including those with lung cancer, benign lung tumors, pneumothorax, or lung volume reduction surgery. Patients with borderline lung function often cannot be extubated immediately postoperatively under conventional treatment models. These patients typically need to be transferred to the surgical ICU for close monitoring. However, positive-pressure mechanical ventilation with an endotracheal tube carries risks of further airway injury and persistent air leakage from the lung surface, leading to a high incidence of postoperative respiratory failure. Non-intubated minimally invasive surgery (tubeless), which preserves spontaneous breathing without endotracheal intubation, avoids the physical stimulation of intubation and the airway damage caused by mechanical ventilation. This approach may reduce the incidence of postoperative airway injury and respiratory failure, potentially expanding the indications for minimally invasive lung surgery, lowering postoperative complication and mortality rates. The aim is to further clarify the surgical indications for non-intubated single-port minimally invasive surgery in patients with impaired lung function, the decision-making criteria for postoperative ICU transfer, and the safety and feasibility of this comprehensive management approach.

Mouthpiece With Integrated Cheek Support vs. Manual Cheek Support During Respiratory Oscillometry

The study aims to evaluate the measurement accuracy of respiratory impedance during oscillometry (or Forced Oscillation Technique - FOT) under the following conditions: 1)The subject's cheeks are manually supported by an expert (Gold Standard method), 2) The subject's cheeks are supported by an integrated cheek support in the mouthpiece. It is a prospective, randomized, cross-over study on Subjects who will present themselves at the offices of the participating doctors, aged between 5 and 75 years. The primary outcome is to Compare the respiratory impedance measurements under the two measurement conditions. Secondary Objectives are to: i)evaluate the patient's comfort during the measurement with the cheek support and compare this comfort to the gold standard condition; ii) assess the maximum and minimum face dimensions of the recruited subjects that allow for effective and comfortable cheek support; iii) evaluate the type and frequency of measurement errors introduced by the use of the integrated cheek support in the mouthpiece.

Pulmonary Ventilation Heterogeneity Determined by EIT During PFT in Subjects With Normal One-second Rates

To evaluate the demographic characteristics of normal one-second rates population in patients with pulmonary function tests recommended by outpatient physicians. To investigate whether EIT can identify spatial and temporal heterogeneity of lung ventilation in individuals with normal one-second rates during pulmonary function testing. To investigate the distribution patterns of lung ventilation in individuals with normal one-second rates using this technique, and provide references and evidence for early screening, diagnosis, treatment monitoring, and prognostic evaluation.

Permian Health Women's Lung Health Study

The goal of this cross-sectional observational study is to estimate the prevalence of lung function impairment as measured by spirometry in a population of Gambian women aged 15 and older. The main question\[s\] it aims to answer are: * What is the prevalence of lung function impairment in Gambian women * What is the prevalence of eosinophilic inflammation in Gambian women Consenting participants will undergo * Spirometry * Fractional exhaled nitric oxide (FENO) testing * α1-antitrypsin testing in patients with lung function impairment as assessed by spirometry

The Cartagena Cohort Study

Cardiovascular and respiratory diseases are the first and third cause of death, respectively. Cardiovascular risk is known to increase in groups with impaired lung function; however, the mechanisms behind this association are not fully understood. The aim of CaReS is to elucidate the shared pathophysiology of impaired lung function and cardiovascular risk, and to investigate the risk factors associated with them. The CaReS Cohort Study includes adults (18-80 years old) from Cartagena de Indias, a tropical city on Colombian Caribbean Coast, where recent population admixture settled a three-hybrid genetic structure (European, African and Ameridian ancestry). At baseline, the cohort will generate extensive data on -omics (e.g., genomics, transcriptomics, metabolomics, and epigenomics), socio-economic wellbeing, lifestyle, medical history, cardiometabolic, inflammatory and liver function markers, as well as objective measures of ventilatory and cardiovascular performance. The cohort will collect data every three years, for a total period of ten years. Prospective risk of cardiovascular disease and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) will be investigated, and their risk factors. Throughout the study period, changes in prevalence, and interactions of various risk factors with these changes will also be ascertained. A predictive risk score for cardiovascular and chronic respiratory disability will be built, using cross-sectional and longitudinal data.