Clinical Research Directory

Ready to Sail 2: A Pilot Study of Sail-Assisted Telerehabilitation in Rare Skeletal Diseases

"Ready to Sail 2 - EXTEND" is a pilot randomized interventional trial designed to assess the feasibility, safety, and preliminary impact of an innovative rehabilitation model combining sailing therapy (velatherapy) with a remote telerehabilitation maintenance program in young individuals with rare skeletal disorders. Building on the promising results of the previous Ready to Sail feasibility study (NCT06397443), this study aims to validate and compare two rehabilitative approaches. A total of 24 patients aged 12-30 years with a confirmed diagnosis of a rare skeletal disorder will be randomly assigned (1:1) to either: * Group 1 (Experimental): a 5-day intensive sailing therapy intervention followed by a 3-month personalized telerehabilitation program at home; or * Group 2 (Active Control): a 3-month telerehabilitation-only program with identical frequency and progression. The primary objective is to evaluate the feasibility of the experimental program, in terms of adherence, acceptability, and safety. Secondary outcomes include motor functionality (measured by inertial sensors), psychosocial well-being (assessed through validated PROMs), health-related quality of life, and pain perception. The study also explores the medium-term sustainability of rehabilitation outcomes and the influence of individual variables (e.g., age, gender, disease subtype). The intervention is delivered through a multidisciplinary, patient-centered approach involving rare disease experts, physiatrists, biomechanical engineers, and partner sailing organizations. Sail training activities are adapted for safety and inclusion, and are conducted in two coastal settings (Marina di Ravenna and Palermo), ensuring geographical balance for participant accessibility. This trial seeks to strengthen the evidence base for integrated, inclusive, and scalable rehabilitation models that address both motor and psychosocial dimensions in rare skeletal conditions.

GROWing Up With Rare GENEtic Syndromes

Introduction Rare complex syndromes Patients with complex genetic syndromes, by definition, have combined medical problems affecting multiple organ systems, and intellectual disability is often part of the syndrome. During childhood, patients with rare genetic syndromes receive multidisciplinary and specialized medical care; they usually receive medical care from 3-4 medical specialists. Increased life expectancy Although many genetic syndromes used to cause premature death, improvement of medical care has improved life expectancy. More and more patients are now reaching adult age, and the complexity of the syndrome persists into adulthood. However, until recently, multidisciplinary care was not available for adults with rare genetic syndromes. Ideally, active and well-coordinated health management is provided to prevent, detect, and treat comorbidities that are part of the syndrome. However, after transition from pediatric to adult medical care, patients and their parents often report fragmented poor quality care instead of adequate and integrated health management. Therefore, pediatricians express the urgent need for adequate, multidisciplinary adult follow up of their pediatric patients with rare genetic syndromes. Medical guidelines for adults not exist and the literature on health problems in these adults is scarce. Although there is a clear explanation for the absence of adult guidelines (i.e. the fact that in the past patients with rare genetic syndromes often died before reaching adult age), there is an urgent need for an overview of medical issues at adult age, for 'best practice' and, if possible, for medical guidelines. The aim of this study is to get an overview of medical needs of adults with rare genetic syndromes, including: 1. comorbidities 2. medical and their impact on quality of life 3. medication use 4. the need for adaption of medication dose according to each syndrome Methods and Results This is a retrospective file study. Analysis will be performed using SPSS version 23 and R version 3.6.0.