Clinical Research Directory

A Study of Noninvasive Methods to Evaluate Skin and Mucosal Conditions

The purpose of this study is to find out whether using noninvasive methods to study the appearance of lesions can improve diagnostic accuracy before a biopsy is required and help guide treatment planning. The database created to store these images is called an Image Repository, and it will be used to support clinical practice, teaching and training, and future research.The High-resolution OCT (Apollo Medical Optics) device ApolloVue® S100 Image System (medical device Class II) can provide both cross-sectional and en-face images with cellular information.

Pilot Study on In-vivo Non-invasive Skin Imaging Using Multiphoton Microscopy

The purpose of this pilot study is to employ multiphoton microscopy to non-invasively image in-vivo pigmented and non-pigmented human skin lesions for characterization of their morphologic and functional features.

The Impact of Non-motor Symptom on the Outcome of Stroke Subjects

The most common symptoms of stroke were focal weakness, hemiparesis, speech disturbance, diplopia and ataxia. Beside those symptoms, there are still many symptoms occurring after stroke, which may affect the life quality of participants. Compared to motor symptoms, the study of these non-motor symptoms was too small. At present, the most reported non-motor symptoms after stroke are sleep disorder, depression and post-stroke pain. There are still many symptoms that were not investigated. The study investigates the prevalence of non-motor syndromes in acute ischemic stroke patients and the impact of these syndromes on the outcome of ischemic stroke patients. The non-motor syndromes that were researched include dizziness, pain, skin lesions, sensory impairment, fever, infection, delirium, depression, insomnia, confusion, delirium and headache. Delirium may occur after stroke. Delirium may impair the mentality, thinking, attention and consciousness level of participants. There are many causes reported attributed to confusion including infection, old age, stroke, hemorrhage… Early diagnosis and early treatment for confusion may improve outcome and decrease mortality in stroke populations. One of the aims of the study is to investigate the prevalence, causes and outcome of treatment in stroke populations who hospitalized to the hospital. Fatigue is a feeling of tiredness or lack of energy. Fatigue is not the same as the feeling drowsy or sleepy. When a person is fatigued, they lose motivation and energy. Fatigue may be mild to severe. It may be related to a physical or mental health condition. The study investigates the prevalence and impact of fatigue on stroke populations' outcomes. In depression, a person experiences a loss of pleasure or interest in activities and feels sad, irritable, and empty. Post-stroke depression is common. When a stroke person has a depressed mood, they may have no motivation for activity. This may interfere with physical therapy and affect the outcome of a stroke. The study investigates post-stroke depression prevalence and impact. The study investigates the prevalence and impact of sleep apnea on stroke outcome.

Applicability of a Cellular Resolution Full-field OCT Image System for Pigmented and Non-pigmented Skin Tumors

The incidence of skin cancer has been continuously increasing over the past decades und the number of non melanoma skin cancer is well as melanoma is still going to increase. Invasive biopsy and histological examination represents the gold standard in diagnosis of benign and malignant skin tumors. However, novel technologies such as reflectance confocal microscopy (RCM) and optical coherence tomography (OCT) have been introduced in dermatology. Multiple studies have shown the applicability of both technologies for diagnosis of skin tumors as well as other skin diseases and to increase the specificity of diagnosis resulting in the reduction of unnecessary biopsies. New technological developments resulted in a high resolution OCT scanner (AMO, Taiwan), which allows vertical and horizontal evaluation (3D) of the skin at cellular resolution and up to a depth of around 400 μm and thus combines the advantages of both above mentioned techniques. ApolloVue® S100 Image System is a FDA-cleared 510(k) Class II medical device. Other non-invasive imaging method (reflectance confocal microscopy and conventional optical coherence tomography) will be used to evaluate a subset of skin lesions.