Clinical Trials

Have you been diagnosed with peripartum cardiomyopathy and are within 5 months of your due date? This study is evaluating the effectiveness of a medicine called bromocriptine to treat peripartum cardiomyopathy, or weakness of the heart muscle that occurs during or shortly after pregnancy. To participate in this study, you must be at least 18 years old, diagnosed with peripartum cardiomyopathy, and within 5 months of your delivery date. This study takes place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Are you an adult with a history of heart failure, or do you just want to help people who do? This study is recruiting people with heart failure and people with normal heart function to explore the role of the gut microbiome in heart and blood vessel function. Participants in this study must be at least 18 years old and willing to provide blood and stool samples. This study takes place in Gainesville, Florida.

Do you have heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFPEF)? This study is testing the efficacy of a diuretic medicine called spironolactone that stops your body from absorbing too much salt and keeps your potassium levels from dropping too low. Participants of this study must be between 50 and 99 years old and already taking diuretic medicine. This study takes place in multiple locations across the United States and Sweden.

Are you the parent or caregiver of a 12- to 15-year-old child with asthma who uses an inhaled corticosteroid to treat symptoms? This study is testing whether a mobile health tool, called AIM2ACT, can help adolescents and their caregivers manage symptoms of asthma. To participate in this study, you must be between 18 and 70 years old. This study takes place in Gainesville, Florida.

Do you or your child have severe asthma that is not easily controlled by inhaled corticosteroids? This study evaluates the use of five different asthma medicines to treat adults and adolescents with severe asthma. To participate in this study, you or your child must be 12 years old or older. This study takes place in multiple locations across the United States.

Do you have a child with Down syndrome and obstructive sleep apnea who is treated with positive airway pressure (PAP)? This study is testing a new intervention that was informed by the families to help children with Down syndrome and obstructive sleep apnea stick to their PAP treatment. The study will test the effectiveness of a new treatment plan that involves regular telephone and in-person check-ins with a PAP specialist. This study is for 6 -18 year old and is located in Cincinnati, Ohio; and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

The purpose of the research is to understand structural plaque abnormalities that make a carotid plaque unstable and brake off (embolize) which would help to predict and treat individuals who are likely to suffer not only classic episodic major strokes but also cognitive impairment.

The main goal of this study is to determine whether the treatment will lead to a complete absence of severe vaso-occlusive events (VOEs) in patients with severe SCD.

This study will pilot test a just-in-time (JIT) adaptive intervention to reduce severe respiratory illness, for children with severe cerebral palsy (CP). The intervention program, called RE-PACT, delivers timely, customized action planning and health coaching when mobile text messaging with families predicts hospitalization risk is elevated. A total of n=90 caregivers of children with severe CP will be enrolled from the University of Wisconsin-Madison (UW) and the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) and can expect to be on study for up to 6 months.

The purpose of this research is assess imaging and identification of soft plaque that undergoes large deformations or strain will identify plaque vulnerable to rupture which could lead to 'silent strokes'. Validation of current study results with MRI will foster use of real-time ultrasound (US) strain imaging and strain indices as a screening tool for identifying normal human participants susceptible to increased vascular aging and developing plaque prone to rupture or micro-embolization.

Current research will evaluate Lagrangian carotid strain imaging (LCSI) for prediction of vascular health on volunteers. In this study, investigators will evaluate age-related strain variations (due to plaque deposition) in the carotid artery, establishing groundwork that will help identify typical and atypical values for these indices. Investigator's hypothesis is that plaques with higher strain indices (softer plaques) are more prone to rupture than plaques with lower strain indices (stiffer) plaques, thus requiring intervention. Clinical criteria for treatment has focused primarily on the degree of stenosis. Long-term objectives are to provide non-invasive methods for screening participants at risk for vascular aging or plaque rupture in asymptomatic participants, expanding upon current criteria for risk assessments based on focal transient ischemic attack (TIA) or strokes. Variations in vessel strain have been associated with, or are precursors to, plaque deposition, vascular aging, or cerebrovascular diseases. Increased arterial strain and pressure changes have been linked to brain aging using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) based vascular indices, and memory deficits commonly linked to Alzheimer dementia. Stiffening and thickening of the arterial walls have also been associated with cerebrovascular disease. Investigators hypothesize that strain indices as vascular biomarkers can be utilized for screening possible 'vulnerable participants' validated with MRI, with the potential ability to improve endothelial function and reverse vascular aging. Strain indices may enable differentiating study participants with vascular cognitive impairment (VCI) from other dementias. Cognitive testing is unable to make this differentiation.