Clinical Research Directory

Sotatercept in Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension

The goal of this clinical trial is to determine whether sotatercept is effective in improving diffusing capacity in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension. Participants will be asked to: * Take Sotatercept every 21 days (±3 days) * Each participant will be enrolled in the study for 29 Weeks * Visit the clinic 18 times * Have a physical exam * Perform assessments of lung function and exercise tests * Have an ultrasound of their heart * Have blood draws done at regular intervals The main objectives of the study are: Primary objective: To assess whether sotatercept will improve recruitment of diffusing membrane capacity (DM) with exercise. Secondary objective: To identify components of the diffusing capacity that respond to treatment with sotatercept in pulmonary arterial hypertension.

Endothelial Cell Activation and Total Pulmonary Resistance in PAH

To determine whether changes in endothelial cell dysfunction are associated with changes in total pulmonary resistance in patients with pulmonary arterial hypertension

Fetal Endoscopic Tracheal Occlusion for Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia (FETO)

The purpose of this research is to gather information on the safety and effectiveness of a new procedure called Fetoscopic Endoluminal Tracheal Occlusion (FETO).

: Vascular Function in Health and Disease

Many control mechanisms exist which successfully match the supply of blood with the metabolic demand of various tissues under wide-ranging conditions. One primary regulator of vasomotion and thus perfusion to the muscle tissue is the host of chemical factors originating from the vascular endothelium and the muscle tissue, which collectively sets the level of vascular tone. With advancing age and in many disease states, deleterious adaptations in the production and sensitivity of these vasodilator and vasoconstrictor substances may be observed, leading to a reduction in skeletal muscle blood flow and compromised perfusion to the muscle tissue. Adequate perfusion is particularly important during exercise to meet the increased metabolic demand of the exercising tissue, and thus any condition that reduces tissue perfusion may limit the capacity for physical activity. As it is now well established that regular physical activity is a key component in maintaining cardiovascular health with advancing age, there is a clear need for further studies in populations where vascular dysfunction is compromised, with the goal of identifying the mechanisms responsible for the dysfunction and exploring whether these maladaptations may be remediable. Thus, to better understand the etiology of these vascular adaptations in health and disease, the current proposal is designed to study changes in vascular function with advancing age, and also examine peripheral vascular changes in patients suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), Sepsis, Pulmonary Hypertension, and cardiovascular disease. While there are clearly a host of vasoactive substances which collectively act to govern vasoconstriction both at rest and during exercise, four specific pathways that may be implicated have been identified in these populations: Angiotensin-II (ANG-II), Endothelin-1 (ET-1), Nitric Oxide (NO), and oxidative stress.

Non-Invasive Measurements of Changes in Pulmonary Artery Pressure in Intensive Care Unit Patients Using Electrical Impedance Tomography - A Feasibility Study

To assess whether changes in electrical impedance - measured using an electrical impedance tomography (EIT) chest belt - can be used to derive changes in pulmonary artery pressure (PAP) in critically ill patients when compared to invasive gold-standard PAP measured using pulmonary artery catheter (PAC).

Potts-shunt for the Treatment of Pediatric Patients With Severe Pulmonary Hypertension

This is a multi-center, perspective, and exploratory study aimed at evaluating the 3-years clinical outcome of Potts-shunt procedure for pediatric patients with severe pulmonary artery hypertension (PAH). The included criteria are as followed: 1)6 months \< age ≤ 18 years; 2) ESC 2022 Group I PAH; 3) Have received standardized drug therapy for at least 6-9 months and still remain at intermediate to high/high-risk status of the criteria of ESC2022; 4) Presenting with significant clinical manifestations (i.e., progressive symptoms/syncope history/growth and development restriction, etc); 5) Informed consent form signed by the patient and their guardian. The excluded criteria are as followed: 1) ESC 2022 Group II-V PAH; 2) Poor right ventricular function: RVEF \< 25% or RVFAC \< 20%; 3) Deteriorated general condition: requiring ICU resuscitation or ECMO assistance; 4) Pulmonary artery pressure/main arterial pressure ratio \< 0.7; 5) Six-minute walk distance \< 150 meters (only applicable to patients aged 8 and above); 6) No significant improvement in RVEF under triple drug therapy. All of the pediatric patients with severe PAH who attend to pediatric cardiac outpatient clinic and meet the designed included criteria and excluded criteria will be enrolled in this study. All of the participants will be divided into two groups (Potts-shunt combined with conventional drug therapy group and only conventional drug therapy group) according to their individual health status (i.e., some contraindications of surgery) and their (or their parents') aspiration for Potts-shunts procedure. Follow-up is designed (eight-times follow-up) at the time of Potts-shunt procedure, post-operative ICU period, one month, three months, six months, one year, two years, and three years after Potts-shunt procedure or the rejection of Potts-shunt procedure. The items of follow-up include state of survival, whether or not have the lung transplantation (LTx), clinical manifestation, laboratory examination, function of right ventricle (detected by echocardiogram and cardiac magnetic resonance imaging), and the pulmonary circulation pressure (detected by right heart catheterization or Swan-Ganz catheterization). Primary outcome is the incidence rates of death or LTx three-years after Potts-shunt. Secondary outcomes are as followed: 1) Number and incidence rate of postoperative complications in patients undergoing Potts-shunt procedure; 2) Three-year WHO cardiac functional and 6-minute walk distance after Potts-shunt procedure; 3) the NT-ProBNP levels three-years after Potts-shunt procedure; 4) Right ventricular function on echocardiography three years after Potts-shunt procedure; 5) Right ventricular function on cardiac magnetic resonance imaging three years after Potts-shunt procedure; 6) Pulmonary circulation pressure measured by right heart catheterization or Swan-Ganz catheterization three years after Potts-shunt procedure; 7) Three-year mortality or LTx incidence rates after only conventional drug therapy.

REstoration of VItamin D in Pulmonary Arterial Hypertension

Background. Pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) is a heterogeneous pathophysiological condition characterized by progressive pulmonary vascular narrowing that ultimately results in right-sided heart failure and eventually death or lung transplantation. The effectiveness of current pharmacological treatments is suboptimal and a large proportion of patients still had events or died despite receiving combination therapy. Vitamin D deficiency has been found to be much more frequent in PAH patients than in the general population or even compared to patients with other severe cardiovascular diseases. Moreover, vitamin D deficiency has a negative prognostic impact in PAH. Animal studies support that vitamin D deficiency worsens PAH. Hypothesis. In patients with PAH and vitamin D deficiency, restoration of vitamin D status with calcifediol improves their symptomatology and prognosis. Design: Multicenter clinical trial with the participation of 9 hospitals, placebo-controlled, randomized (1:1 ratio), in two parallel groups (without crossover), triple blind, and add-on on existing treatments (add-on). It will include at least 102 subjects (51 in the calcifediol group and 51 in the placebo group) followed for 24 weeks of treatment. Inclusion criteria: Patients of both sexes (18-75 years) with hemodynamic diagnosis of PAH and severe vitamin D deficiency (25-OHvitD \<= 12 ng/ml) and without previous diagnosis of osteoporosis or osteomalacia. Treatments: 1) Calcifediol Hydroferol® 0.266 mg once every 10 days for the first 12 weeks and once every two weeks for the following 12 weeks. 2) Placebo. Main objective: A composite endpoint of clinical improvement without clinical worsening at week 24. Expected outcome: Restoration of vitamin D status is an unexpensive measure, very easily implantable and that could improve the evolution of the disease as well as other aspects such as bone or immune health and that has few side effects.