Rheumatoid Arthritis and Heart Disease
Patients who have recently been diagnosed (within a year) with rheumatoid arthritis are invited to participate in a clinical study designed to intervene in the risk of developing heart disease. The study will involve four visits to the Princess Alexandra Hospital, Woolloongabba, over a period of two years. If you are interested or would like more information, please email Helen Pahau at h.pahau"at" uq.edu.au or phone 07 3240 2170.
Diet and Exercise Therapy for People with Hepatitis C and Fatty Liver Disease
We are interested in finding a drug-free treatment option for people with chronic liver disease. Simple changes to what you eat and drink or increasing daily exercise may help you lose excess weight and cleanse the fat from your liver.
People who decide to participate in the study will be randomly allocated to one of two groups. People in Group 1 will see a personal nutrition expert to improve the food they eat and help lose weight. People in Group 2 will have a personal trainer to improve fitness with a circuit training program. All participants will undergo measurements of liver health, metabolism, body fat and fitness before and after the program to help the researchers understand why diet and exercise are so important for liver health.
You may be eligible to participate in this study.
1. Do you have Hepatitis C genotype 1 OR non-alcoholic fatty liver disease?
2. Are you overweight?
3. Are you willing to participate in either a better eating program OR an exercise program?
If you answered YES to these questions, please contact Dr. Stephanie Ipavec-Levasseur on (07) 3240 5114 or email s.levasseur"at"uq.edu.au.
World-first trial of interactive phone system to improve diabetes management
We are recruiting people with Type 2 diabetes who live in metropolitan Brisbane. The TLC Diabetes study is assessing a new user-friendly interactive phone system - TLC (Telephone Linked Care) Diabetes to support people to better manage their diabetes from the comfort of their own home.
If you are aged between 18 and 70 years, have Type 2 diabetes, and would like more information about this study, please contact the research team on 07 3636 5506 or email TLCdiabetes"at"coh.uq.edu.au.
The study is a collaborative project between University of Queensland, Monash University, Queensland University of Technology, and Boston University in association with Princess Alexandra Hospital.
Rheumatoid Arthritis Vaccine
We have developed a dendritic cell vaccine for testing in a phase I clinical trial in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), known as Rheumavax. The vaccine consists of dendritic cells, grown in the laboratory from the blood of the patient to be immunised, and antigen relevant to the disease. If you are interested in further information on the RA vaccine trial, please email Helen Pahau at h.pahau"at" uq.edu.au or phone 07 3240 2170.
Type 1 (Juvenile) Diabetes
We have developed a new diagnostic test which identifies individuals with type 1 diabetes and some of their relatives at risk of diabetes. We are now extending these studies to determine the value of the test for predicting whether otherwise healthy siblings of children with type 1 diabetes will develop diabetes in the future. This would allow us to identify those at risk from the disease so that they could be treated earlier or encouraged to make preventative changes to their lifestyle. We are studying a large cohort of families, drawn from an existing diabetes research project. The aim of the longitudinal study is to determine the sensitivity and specificity for predicting type 1 diabetes or possibly a predisposition to autoimmune disease, associated with cut-off points in the test– rather like a bone density test for predicting fractures.
If you have type 1 (juvenile) diabetes or your family has a member with the disease and you would like to participate in a study of a new blood test, please email Helen Pahau at h.pahau"at" uq.edu.au or phone 07 3240 2170.
A Study to Evaluate the Effects of Simvastatin in Reducing Atherosclerosis in Early Rheumatoid Arthritis
The aims of this study are to examine the effectiveness of cholesterol-lowering medicine in atherosclerotic disease progression in rheumatoid arthritis. Patients with rheumatoid arthritis symptoms beginning within the past 12 months, and who have no history of cardiovascular or cerebrovascular disease are eligible. Sensitive ultrasound measures of the arteries, and blood tests are taken before and after treatment to assess the progression of disease. Patients are randomly allocated to receive cholesterol-lowering therapy with either simvastatin or no active substance (placebo) for 2 years. Ultrasound and blood measurements are taken yearly to assess progression of arthritis and atherosclerosis.
If you have recently been diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis and you would like to participate in this trial, please email Helen Pahau at h.pahau"at" uq.edu.au or phone 07 3240 2170.