Mass General - Division of Clinical Research

Our overall objective is to obtain an initial assessment of the potential value of using [18F]3F4AP for imaging demyelinating diseases such as multiple sclerosis: - Aim 1) Assess the safety of [18F]3F4AP in healthy volunteers and subjects with multiple sclerosis (MS). Hypothesis 1: Administration of [18F]3F4AP will result in no changes in vitals or other adverse events. - Aim 2) Assess the pharmacokinetics of a bolus infusion of [18F]3F4AP in humans including healthy volunteers and MS patients. Hypothesis 2: the pharmacokinetics of [18F]3F4AP at the whole brain level will be similar in controls and MS subjects. The kinetics in demyelinated lesions will be slower than in healthy control areas. - Aim 3) Assess the reproducibility of [18F]3F4AP in humans. Hypothesis 3: the test/retest variability of [18F]3F4AP within the same subject will be lower than 10%. - Aim 4) Correlate MR brain images with [18F]3F4AP PET brain images. Hypothesis 4A: all the lesions seen on the MRI will show increased signal (VT or SUV) on the PET images. Hypothesis 4B: some of the lesions on the MRI will show increased signal (VT or SUV) on the PET but not all. - Aim 5) Correlate [18F]3F4AP PET signal with neuropsychological testing in people with MS. Hypothesis 5: increased PET signal (VT or SUV) will correlate with impaired Single Digit Modality Test (SDMT) scores. - Aim 6) Correlate [18F]3F4AP PET signal with EDSS score in people with MS. Hypothesis 6: increased PET signal (VT or SUV) will correlate with higher EDSS scores.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Mar 2021

open study

Patients undergoing radiation for the treatment of malignancies may suffer from side effects to the skin in the form of radiation dermatitis. This can lead to local wound formation with poor healing. Treatment options for the resulting wound can range from watchful waiting to more aggressive debridement and secondary grafting. Epidermal grafting is a technique in which autologous epidermis is used to cover wounds that are larger than the donor site. Previous studies have demonstrated that this is an effective treatment for different wounds and ulcers but its utility has not yet been evaluated for the treatment of radiation induced injuries. The CelluTome Epidermal Grafting System is a semi automated device that allows easy formation of epidermal Blister. Our study will evaluate the efficacy of epidermal grafts collected using the CelluTome device in the treatment of radiation dermatitis.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Jan 2021

open study

GEMMA is a multicenter longitudinal observational study that follows children who are genetically at-risk of developing autism for their first three years of life, seeking to identify potential biomarkers predictive of autism development in the blood, stool, urine and saliva. The biomarkers identified in this project will contribute to a better understanding of the pathogenesis of ASD in at-risk children and possible solutions for alleviating and/or preventing ASD and ASD-related symptoms in patients in the future.

Type: Observational

Start Date: Jul 2019

open study

Explore the effects of auricular transcutaneous vagal nerve stimulation (taVNS) on brain and stomach outcomes in functional dyspepsia and gastroparesis patients.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Nov 2018

open study

SMaHRT (Stroke Motor reHabiliation and Recovery sTudy) is a longitudinal study aimed at understanding the natural history of upper extremity motor recovery after ischemic and hemorrhagic stroke.

Type: Observational

Start Date: Jun 2017

open study

The primary aim is to test whether abatacept, as compared to placebo, is associated with a reduction in major adverse cardiac events (MACE) among participants hospitalized with myocarditis secondary to an immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI). The primary outcome, MACE, is a composite of first occurrence of cardiovascular death, non-fatal sudden cardiac arrest, cardiogenic shock, significant ventricular arrythmias, significant bradyarrythmias, or incident heart failure.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Jun 2022

open study

The purpose of the study is to determine if the type of catheter used in the mapping procedure prior to radioembolization improves the delivery of radioactivity to tumor(s) in participants with liver cancer. The name of the devices involved in this study are: - Pressure Enabled Drug Delivery (PEDD)/TriNav Infusion System - Standard 2.4F microcatheter, not otherwise specified

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Mar 2022

open study

The primary objective of this study is to determine if the correction of functional iron deficiency by administering a single dose of intravenous iron (ferric derimaltose or Monoferric®) in participants with heart failure with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF) will improve exercise capacity as measured by the change in peak oxygen uptake (peak VO2) from baseline to 12 weeks.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Nov 2021

open study

Our objective is to find an effective prophylactic intervention by evaluating IV acetaminophen's impact in reducing the frequency of postoperative delirium, one of the most common and detrimental complications of cardiac surgery in older adults.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Aug 2020

open study

Older people with HIV (OPWH) are disproportionately impacted by cardiovascular disease (CVD) attributable to behavioral risk factors, and chronic HIV immune dysregulation resulting inflammation. Systemic inflammation is exacerbated by psychological distress via activating the immune response and driving pro-inflammatory CVD risk behaviors. There is promising evidence to suggest that mindfulness could be an effective intervention to reduce psychological distress and support behaviorally- and inflammatory-mediated CVD risk reduction. This project aims to refine and synthesize mindfulness and behavior change content from evidence-based protocols (mindfulness-based stress reduction and diabetes prevention program) to develop and pilot test a new text message-enhanced intervention called "One Mind One Heart" (OM-OH) using feedback from semi-structured interviews with OPWH in psychological distress (N=20), and my multidisciplinary mentorship team (Aim 1). An open pilot (N=5) with exit interviews and pre-post self-report assessments, will inform the initial acceptability of OM-OH and further refine OM-OH as needed (Aim 2). Finally, a pilot randomized controlled trial (RCT; N=50) will be conducted to a.) evaluate benchmarks of feasibility and acceptability of study methods and refined OM-OH compared to enhanced usual care, and b.) investigate potential for effects on psychological distress, inflammation, and behavioral CVD risk (Aim 3). Findings will provide the foundation for an R01 application to conduct an efficacy trial of OM-OH to reduce inflammatory-mediated CVD risk among OPWH.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Sep 2023

open study

The purpose of this study is to investigate if repeat bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccinations can confer a beneficial immune and metabolic effect in new onset pediatric Type 1 diabetes.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: May 2023

open study

There are few treatment options available for patients once they have failed standard psychopharmacological therapy for generalized anxiety disorder. Existing brain stimulation methods such as rTMS fail to target deep brain structures associated with anxiety disorders; structures such as the amygdala. In this double-blind sham-controlled clinical trial, the investigators propose to establish baseline severity of anxiety in 48 patients, then deliver eight treatments over four sessions of focused ultrasound stimulation to the amygdala. Anxiety severity will be assessed using standard psychometric scales after each session, and at follow-ups.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Jul 2021

open study

The aim of "iSCAD," the International Spontaneous Coronary Artery Dissection (SCAD) Registry, is to serve as an internationally collaborative, multicenter registry coordinated by an experienced and centralized coordinating center in an effort to increase the pace of participant recruitment, and thereby increase statistical power of studies related to SCAD. The ultimate goal of iSCAD Registry is to facilitate the development of best practices and clinical guidelines for preventing SCAD or its recurrence. This observational study will be prospective and retrospective in its recruitment and will collect clinical information to better understand the natural history and prognosis for SCAD.

Type: Observational [Patient Registry]

Start Date: Mar 2019

open study

Femoro-acetabular impingement is a well known cause of damage to the acetabular labrum and chondrolabral junction. Additionally, it has been proposed that disruption of hip biomechanics resulting from a labral tear causes a faster progression towards osteoarthritis (OA). This progression has been observed to begin with breakdown of the chondrolabral junction with later development of diffuse osteoarthritis. Use of hip arthroscopy has increased dramatically in recent years to treat symptomatic labral tears and potentially avoid the morbidity and cost associated with hip osteoarthritis. Correction of labral pathology presents a technical challenge and many techniques currently exist. Increased understanding of the structure-functional relationship dictated by labral anatomy has led to the development of methods aimed at restoring functional anatomy by re-establishing the labrum's native position and contour on the rim of the acetabulum. Therefore, akin to repairing a torn meniscus in the knee, restoring the anatomic footprint of a torn labrum will reconstitute normal joint biomechanics. Despite the advances in techniques for labral repair, strategies for mitigating or repairing damage to the chondrolabral junction do not yet exist. This area has been shown to consist of hyaline and fibro cartilage. Many techniques for cartilage repair exist, although most are not feasible due to technical challenges specific to the hip joint. The management of articular cartilage defects is one of the most challenging clinical problems for orthopaedic surgeons. Articular cartilage has a limited intrinsic healing capacity, and pathology frequently results in gradual tissue deterioration. Currently, the standard surgical intervention for end-stage degenerative joint pathology is total joint replacement. Early surgical interventions for symptomatic cartilage lesions including cell based therapies such as autologous chondrocyte implantation (ACI), bone marrow aspirate concentrate (BMAC) implantation, or microfracture have been suggested to restore normal joint congruity and minimize further joint deterioration. Techniques such as ACI, which have been successfully used in the knee joint, have limited application in the hip due to the technical difficulties of open procedures.

Type: Observational

Start Date: Sep 2019

open study

Right ventricular (RV) pacing can cause left ventricular systolic dysfunction in 10- 20% of patients. Biventricular pacing had previously been shown to prevent left ventricular systolic dysfunction. However, implantation of coronary sinus lead increases procedural risk and can be limited by higher threshold and phrenic nerve capture. HIS pacing has been evaluated as an alternative pacing strategy, but its routine use was limited by difficulty of the procedure, success rate and high pacing threshold. Left bundle branch area pacing (LBBAP) is a promising physiologic pacing technique that has been proposed as a pacing strategy to prevent pacing induced cardiomyopathy and for treatment of desynchrony in heart failure. LBBAP has been adopted widely and performed routinely on patients with AV block. Currently, it is up to the discretion of the proceduralist whether LBBAP is performed given that there is lack of evidence to guide pacing strategies.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: May 2023

open study

The purpose of this Phase 1b proof of concept study, randomised, placebo controlled, double blind, multicentre study is to asssess safety and efficacy of 2 doses of VAD044 in adult HHT patients

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Jul 2022

open study

Patients who undergo cardiothoracic surgery often experience pain and anxiety around the time of surgery. Currently, treatments for pain and anxiety around the time of surgery include opioids and benzodiazepines, which can have severe side effects and can be ineffective. Interventions combining virtual reality with olfactory stimuli are a promising alternative to opioids and benzodiazepines in the treatment of pain and anxiety around the time of surgery. The aim of this study is to evaluate the feasibility of a virtual reality and olfactory stimuli multimodal intervention in patients undergoing cardiothoracic surgery. In addition, the investigators will evaluate the preliminary effects of the VR/OS intervention on patient pain and anxiety before and after cardiothoracic surgery. Patients who meet study inclusion criteria and are undergoing cardiothoracic surgery may participate in this study. Patients have an equal being assigned to undergo the virtual reality and olfactory stimuli intervention or continue getting usual medical care with their doctor. If the patient is assigned to receive the virtual reality and olfactory stimuli intervention, the first therapy session will take place approximately two to four weeks before surgery. This will involve wearing a virtual reality headset and scented necklace for approximately 10 minutes. The second session will occur 90 minutes before the surgery. Additionally, for each day the patient recovers in the hospital after surgery, the patient will receive one session in the afternoon. During the patient's in-hospital recovery at night, they will receive lavender scented therapy.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Oct 2022

open study

Spinocerebellar ataxias (SCA) are genetic neurological diseases that cause imbalance, poor coordination, and speech difficulties. There are different kinds of SCA and this study will focus on types 1, 2,3, and 6 (SCA 1, SCA 2, SCA 3 , also known as Machado-Joseph disease and SCA 6). The diseases are rare, slowly progressive, cause increasingly severe neurological difficulties and are variable across and within genotypes. The purpose of this research study is to bring together a group of experts in the field of SCA for the purpose of learning more about the disease. The research questions are: 1. How does your disease progress over time? 2. What are the best ways to measure the progression? 3. Do some genes, other than the gene that is abnormal in your disease, have any effect on the way the disease behaves? This is a nationwide study and we expect that 800 patients will participate all over the USA. The participants will be in the study for an indeterminate period of time. Study visits will be done every 6 or 12 months depending on the participating site.

Type: Observational

Start Date: Apr 2010

open study

The goal of this study is to perform a quantitative assessment of the psychometric properties of the Vulvovaginal Atrophy Questionnaire (VVAQ), a novel patient reported outcome measure (PROM), through a REDCap survey of menopausal women with and without symptomatic vulvovaginal atrophy (VVA)/genitourinary syndrome of menopause (GSM).

Type: Observational

Start Date: Sep 2022

open study

This study evaluates KRT-232, a novel oral small molecule inhibitor of MDM2, for the treatment of patients with Merkel Cell Carcinoma (MCC) who have failed treatment with at least one anti-PD-1 or anti-PD-L1 immunotherapy or in combination with avelumab in MCC patients who are anti-PD-1 or anti-PD-L1 treatment naïve. Inhibition of MDM2 is a novel mechanism of action in MCC.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Mar 2019

open study

This research study is evaluating a new method for determining stage and prognosis of individuals with malignant pleural mesothelioma.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Oct 2018

open study

The goal of this intervention study is to design and learn whether peer support that is delivered through video chats and texting can decrease depression among older adults. Participants will be assigned to a peer support program where they will receive 8 video chats with a peer mentor who provide social support and supportive texts over 8 weeks.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Oct 2020

open study

This is a prospective, multi-center, observational study. Subjects will have OmniGraf™ (TruGraf® and TRAC™) testing at study enrollment and thereafter every 3 months. In addition subjects will have OmniGraf™ (TruGraf® and TRAC™) testing at any time there is a clinical suspicion of acute rejection. Data collection for the primary objective extends over a 2-year period.

Type: Observational

Start Date: Sep 2020

open study

The DETECT AS Trial is a randomized clinical trial and quality improvement initiative that seeks to investigate the impact of electronic provider notification of severe aortic stenosis (AS) on its management, on the utilization of aortic valve replacement (AVR), and on ethnic and racial disparities in AVR utilization. After the investigators identify patients in whom echocardiography shows severe aortic stenosis, defined by an aortic valve area (AVA) <1.0cm2, the ordering provider of the echocardiogram will then be randomly assigned to either the intervention group or to the control group. Providers randomly assigned to the intervention group will be sent an electronic (email or message via the electronic health record) physician notification for every one of their patients with severe aortic stenosis on TTE. Electronic notification will also highlight relevant ACC/AHA Clinical Practice Guideline recommendations regarding the management of severe AS. No intervention will be performed for patients belonging to physicians assigned to the control group. The primary endpoint will be AVR utilization, defined as the proportion of patients with a clinical indication for severe AS that undergo AVR. Clinical indications will be based upon the 2020 AHA/ACC Clinical Practice Guidelines for Valvular Heart Disease. Secondary end-points will be mortality, heart failure hospitalization, TTE utilization/surveillance, AS billing code diagnosis, and cardiology/Heart Valve Team referral. Pre-defined subgroup analyses will be performed to assess AVR utilization among women, racial/ethnic minority groups, low-gradient AS, cardiologist and non-cardiologist ordering provider, and inpatient and outpatient practice settings.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Feb 2022

open study

The primary aim of this observational registry is to study the outcomes of patients with hemorrhagic shock transported by Boston MedFlight receiving blood products during transport.

Type: Observational [Patient Registry]

Start Date: Nov 2019

open study