Boston University - Clinical & Translational Science Institute

Persistent developmental stuttering affects more than three million people in the United States, and it can have profound adverse effects on quality of life. Despite its prevalence and negative impact, stuttering has resisted explanation and effective treatment, due in large part to a poor understanding of the neural processing impairments underlying the disorder. The overall goal of this study is to improve understanding of the brain mechanisms involved in speech motor planning and how these are disrupted in neurogenic speech disorders, like stuttering. The investigators will do this through an integrated combination of experiments that involve speech production, functional MRI, and non-invasive brain stimulation. The study is designed to test hypotheses regarding the brain processes involved in learning and initiating new speech sound sequences and how those processes compare in persons with persistent developmental stuttering and those with typical speech development. These processes will be studied in both adults and children. Additionally, these processes will be investigated in patients with neurodegenerative speech disorders (primary progressive aphasia) to further inform the investigators understanding of the neural mechanisms that support speech motor sequence learning. Together these experiments will result in an improved account of the brain mechanisms underlying speech production in fluent speakers and individuals who stutter, thereby paving the way for the development of new therapies and technologies for addressing this disorder.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Apr 2023

open study

To evaluate the safety and effectiveness of Embrace Hydrogel Embolic System for the transcatheter embolization of peripheral arterial bleeds.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Dec 2022

open study

A prospective, single-arm, multi-center study designed to gather additional information on the LimFlow System.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Dec 2022

open study

Developing novel methods of patient communication is crucial in providing value-based care to orthopedic patients. Healthcare technology platforms have been developed to improve patient communication methods particularly for the administration of patient-reported outcome measures (PROMs). However, the majority of these interventions rely on web-based platforms that require patients to have computer access. Among American households earning less than $30,000 per year, only 59% have access to a desktop or laptop and just 47% have broadband internet at home compared to mobile phone penetration which is estimated at 95% of which 93% regularly use text messages. The use of phone messaging may be the most effective means to have patients complete PROMs. The Patient-Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System (PROMIS) is an NIH-funded, clinically validated method of tracking patient-reported outcomes to efficiently assess patient health status. PROMIS utilizes Item Response Theory (IRT) and computerized adaptive testing (CAT) to improve measurement precision and decrease survey time as compared to traditional PROMs. The purpose of this two-phase study is to utilize Memora Health's text-messaging platform to collect web-based PROMIS CAT surveys from patients (Phase 1) and use this information to right-size clinic visits (Phase 2).

Type: Interventional

Start Date: May 2021

open study

This study is a postmarketing requirement jointly carried out by four NDA holders (Bayer AG, Bracco, GE Healthcare and Guerbet) and the CRO IQVIA. The study aims to create detailed images of the organs and tissue of the human body during x-ray, CT-scan or MRI investigations, doctors are using contrast media (a kind of dye) which can be given to patients by injection into a blood vessel or by mouth. In this study researchers want to find out whether so called gadolinium-based contrast agents (GBCAs) have an effect on body movement and mental skills when given to participants multiple times within 5 years. The study plans to enroll about 2076 participants suffering from a condition for which they are likely to have at least annually a MRI or another imaging examinations. Only adults up to 65 years will be considered to join this study. During the study duration of 5 years participants will receive annually a MRI or other imaging tests (such as CT-scan, x-ray) and will visit the study doctor at least 7 times for physical examinations, laboratory investigations and tests on body movement and mental skills.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Mar 2021

open study

This phase III trial studies magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) surveillance and prophylactic cranial irradiation (PCI) to see how well they work compared to MRI surveillance alone in treating patients with small cell lung cancer. MRI scans are used to monitor the possible spread of the cancer with an MRI machine over time. PCI is radiation therapy that is delivered to the brain in hopes of preventing spread of cancer into the brain. The use of brain MRI alone may reduce side effects of receiving PCI and prolong patients' lifespan. Monitoring with MRI scans alone (delaying radiation until the actual spread of the cancer) may be at least as good as the combination of PCI with MRI scans.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: May 2020

open study

Heavy alcohol use among college students is associated with a range of negative consequences. However, college students rarely seek resources or treatment to change their alcohol use. Brief alcohol interventions (BAIs) have been developed as an alternative method to address heavy alcohol use among college students and show promise in reducing hazardous alcohol use in college students. Despite the established efficacy of BAIs, effects are often small and short-lived, and additional research is needed to investigate how BAIs can become more efficacious and endure for longer periods of time, particularly for computer-delivered interventions to improve accessibility and scalability of these interventions to a wider range of college students. Boosters or adjunctive components to BAIs have been suggested as a method to enhance the magnitude and duration of intervention effects. However, there remains a need to identify and test booster approaches that are both appealing and engaging to college students and effective in reducing heavy/hazardous alcohol use above and beyond the magnitude and duration seen by BAIs alone. The purpose of the study is to develop and test a novel, text-messaging booster as an adjunct to a current, evidence-based brief intervention, eCHECKUP TO GO, aimed at reducing college student heavy/hazardous alcohol use. Participants will complete baseline measures and will then be randomized to 1 of 3 conditions, stratified by sex at birth: 1) assessment only, 2) BAI only, and 3) Enhanced Intervention (BAI + four weeks of text messaging boosters). It is hypothesized that those randomized to the enhanced intervention condition will show a greater reduction in heavy/hazardous alcohol use at 3-month follow-up compared to the BAI and assessment only groups.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Mar 2024

open study

Common variable immunodeficiency (CVID) is the most prevalent symptomatic primary immunodeficiency. Respiratory ailments are the most frequent complications of CVID, with chronic pulmonary disease developing in 30-60% and even more experiencing frequent acute respiratory infections. This project aims to establish cutting-edge approaches to study pulmonary biology in CVID and apply novel bioinformatics strategies to study complex interactions among microbes and host cells by direct sampling of the respiratory tract. The central hypothesis for this research is that antibody (Ab) deficiency in CVID alters respiratory microbiota and host interactions to drive pulmonary disease.

Type: Observational

Start Date: Mar 2024

open study

The objectives of this research are to determine: - the burden of intestinal parasitic infections among persons living with pulmonary tuberculosis (TB) - whether intestinal parasitic infections alter TB treatment outcomes, including speed of sputum clearance and treatment outcomes - the impact of malnutrition on speed of sputum clearance and TB treatment outcomes - whether nutritional supplementation improves speed of sputum clearance and treatment outcomes In this study the researchers will investigate how intestinal parasites impact the nutritional status of TB patients before the start of nutritional supplementation and how they alter the trajectory of weight gain in those receiving supplementation by analyzing results from 2 cohorts. LEOPARD Cohort 1- - Control-Enroll TB cases, screen for undernutrition, obtain stool for intestinal parasite screening by polymerase chain reaction (PCR), and assess them for treatment outcomes and weight gain - TB LION (Learning Impact of Nutrition) - Enroll TB cases, provide nutritional supplementation for 6 months (as part of existing TB LION study), screen for undernutrition, obtain stool for intestinal parasite screening by PCR, and assess them for treatment outcomes and weight gain LEOPARD Cohort 2 - - Enroll TB cases, screen for undernutrition, obtain stool for internal parasite screening by PCR, and assess them for treatment outcomes and weight gain.

Type: Observational

Start Date: Apr 2022

open study

Hemodialysis represents a life line of patients with end stage renal disease, who are commonly maintained on hemodialysis through catheters. Prolonged exposure to these catheters eventually damages the walls of veins, which results in stenosis at the local site. This condition is called central venous stenosis (CVS) and affects number of patients on hemodialysis in the United States and can compromise the dialysis efficacy. The current diagnostic modality for CVS is venography, which has several limitations. This study proposes to examine intravenous ultrasound (IVUS) as a potentially superior modality, which will provide additional information.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Aug 2021

open study

This trial will evaluate the efficacy and safety of various therapies in patients with Stage IB, IIA, IIB, IIIA, or selected IIIB resectable and untreated non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) tumors that meet protocol-specified biomarker criteria

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Nov 2020

open study

Multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) is tuberculosis (TB) that is resistant to at least isoniazid and rifampicin, the two most important anti-TB drugs. It occurs in 3.6% of newly diagnosed TB patients in the world and 17% of patients who have been previously treated. In 2017, approximately 600,000 people were estimated to have acquired MDR-TB. However, only 25% of persons with MDR-TB were diagnosed and started on treatment, reflecting inadequate diagnostic capacity and lack of TB treatment capacity. In this multicenter, randomized, partially blinded, four-arm, phase 2 study, the investigators will examine the efficacy and safety of an all-oral regimen of bedaquiline, delamanid, levofloxacin, linezolid, and clofazimine given for 16, 24, 32 or 40 weeks

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Jun 2022

open study

The primary purpose of this population-based study is to quantify and understand the trends in pregnancy outcomes in defined low-resource geographic areas over time, in order to provide population-based data on stillbirths, neonatal and maternal mortality.

Type: Observational

Start Date: May 2008

open study

This is a NIAMS-sponsored clinical trial being conducted through the NIH Helping to End Addition Long-term (HEAL) Initiative's Back Pain Consortium (BACPAC) Research Program. This is a single-arm controlled trial with individuals aged 18-70 with low back pain (LBP). This study investigates the effect(s) of augmenting physical therapy (PT) interventions with the use of an experimental wearable soft robotic device ('exosuit').

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Mar 2024

open study

In this study, the investigators will use a novel electroencephalogram (EEG) system that participants will wear during a single in-person research session to investigate whether ERPs are now ready for validation as a tool clinicians can easily implement to increase diagnostic accuracy and confidence. This EEG will not be used to treat, cure, mitigate or diagnosis any disease and there will be no safety or efficacy data collected about the machine for any purpose including support of FDA submission. The investigators will compare the ERP data to that of neuropsychological testing in order to determine the degree of correlation between these two measures. Questionnaires on cognition, mood, and fluency will be administered prior to the EEG to establish a baseline. ERP data from the EEG session will be compared with the results of the neuropsychological battery in order to determine whether the implementation of ERPs in the existing workflow of clinicians can aid in diagnostic accuracy, thus altering clinical management.

Type: Observational

Start Date: Mar 2023

open study

Patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) have changes in blood vessel health that can lead to a higher chance of developing heart attacks or strokes. New medications for T2DM including dapagliflozin, which is a Sodium-Glucose Cotransporter-2 inhibitor (SGLT2) inhibitor, may help protect the heart and blood vessels. The overarching objective of this mechanistic study is to learn how a Sodium-Glucose Cotransporter-2 (SGT2) inhibitor, dapagliflozin, impacts vascular health in patients with Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM). The investigators will compare the changes in vascular health to changes in endothelial cell (EC) phenotype including non-coding RNA (ncRNA) to develop evidence supporting the mechanism of cardiovascular benefit of SGLT2 inhibitors. This study will provide novel information regarding the mechanism of effects of novel treatments for endothelial function and vascular health in patients with T2DM to reduce cardiovascular (CV) risk. The research aims to assess the: - effects of dapagliflozin on EC phenotype. - impact of dapagliflozin on vasodilator function and additional measures of vascular health including arterial stiffness and circulating markers of vascular health.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: May 2022

open study

Evidence-based interventions to improve linkage and outcomes for heart failure (HF) patients requires input from stakeholders: patients, community health workers (CHWs), healthcare staff, and health system administrators. In this research the investigators will assess a CHW intervention designed to improve linkage to care for HF patients. This intervention was systematically adapted for use in rural Haiti in a prior study using the Assessment, Decisions, Administration, Production, Topical Experts, Integration, Training staff, Testing (ADAPT-ITT) framework. The ADAPT-ITT framework provides 8 sequential phases to adapt interventions and programs to new target audiences. It has been applied successfully to the adaptation of several interventions for HIV among under-resourced communities leading to randomized clinical trials. With the first 6 steps of the ADAPT-ITT framework completed in a prior study, this protocol outlines the training and testing of the adapted CHW intervention. In addition to assessing the feasibility, appropriateness, and acceptability of the adapted intervention through participants' feedback, the investigators will assess its efficacy in improving HF outcomes. The proposed intervention is targeted at both the patient domain - through improved peer support - and health system domain - by improving health system navigation.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Jan 2023

open study

Efforts to examine the utility of alternate modalities for genetic results disclosure has widespread implications for how precision medicine research might yield direct health benefits for study participants. This study will examine the efficacy of an online self-guided program to return genetic results to a racial minority cohort population. Study results will provide empirical evidence on the effectiveness of alternate modalities for genetic results return, inform ongoing efforts to establish scalable approaches for effective return of genetic research results, and increase access to personal health information among African American women.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Mar 2023

open study

This research is studying the effect of Antibody-Drug Conjugate Sacituzumab Govitecan in Combination with the Poly (Adenosine Diphosphate [ADP]-Ribose) Polymerase (PARP) Inhibitor Talazoparib in Patients with Metastatic Triple-Negative Breast Cancer.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Oct 2019

open study

This research compares a chairside Titanium Mesh frame fabrication used during bone grafting procedures with the use of a computer-aided design/computer-assisted manufacture (CAD-CAM) Titanium Mesh frame. In addition, a novel method of measuring soft tissue thickness will be tested using an Optical scanner at various times during the sequence of surgeries. The device used for shaping is a very thin, perforated titanium metal sheet with numerous small perforations (referred to as Micromesh). The construction of this device is usually accomplished chairside at the time of the surgery with custom cutting and shaping done using cues from the geometry of the surgical defect. An alternative approach will be tested where the mesh is pre-designed using digital information provided by a special xray and an optical scan device which takes a digital impression of the tooth and soft tissue surface. A digitally designed frame can then be printed using CAD-CAM software prior to surgery. This should reduce surgical time. A randomized control trial of 30 patients needing 3-D bone augmentation will be conducted comparing chairside fabrication of Ti-MESH or TEST- CAD-CAM designed and preprinted Ti-MESH to investigate these objectives: 1. Compare the operative times required for placement and removal of two different Ti-MESH frame fabrications 2. Compare post-op wound healing -Ti MESH exposure rates, bone production (volume, contour, and quality) and soft tissue thickness changes during the 1-year study period.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Jan 2024

open study

This phase III trial compares the effect of the combination of ramucirumab and pembrolizumab versus standard of care chemotherapy for the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer that is stage IV or that has come back after a period of improvement (recurrent). Ramucirumab is a monoclonal antibody that may prevent the growth of new blood vessels that tumors need to grow. Immunotherapy with monoclonal antibodies, such as pembrolizumab, may help the body's immune system attack the cancer, and may interfere with the ability of tumor cells to grow and spread. Chemotherapy drugs work in different ways to stop the growth of tumor cells, either by killing the cells, by stopping them from dividing, or by stopping them from spreading. This trial may help doctors find out if giving ramucirumab with pembrolizumab is more effective at treating patients with stage IV or recurrent non-small cell lung cancer than standard chemotherapy.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Mar 2023

open study

The efficacy of psychological interventions for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is likely limited by the difficulty participants have learning and remembering important therapy content. Accordingly, the present study will examine the utility of integrating a Memory Support (MS) intervention into Cognitive Processing Therapy (CPT), an empirically supported and widely disseminated treatment for PTSD. MS was designed to integrate techniques aimed at facilitating encoding, consolidation, and retrieval of new learning into existing treatments, and has been shown to improve outcomes when integrated into cognitive therapy for depression. A pilot randomized controlled trial (n=52) comparing CPT with Memory Support (CPT+MS) to CPT-alone will be conducted. Study participants will be adults diagnosed with PTSD. The primary aim of the trial will be to determine if CPT+MS will lead to greater memory and learning of therapy content relative to CPT-alone, and to establish the acceptability and feasibility of integrating MS into CPT. Secondary aims include a preliminary examination of treatment efficacy, as indicated by the magnitude of changes in PTSD symptoms between conditions, and target validation, as indicated by associations between memory and learning of therapy content and treatment response. Exploratory analyses will examine several indicators of baseline memory-related cognitive functioning as predictors of memory and learning of therapy content, providing preliminary data to inform future research on personalized application of MS. Results of the trial will advance scientific knowledge about methods for optimizing memory and learning as a mechanism for improving PTSD treatment outcomes.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Jan 2023

open study

The proposed research will test the efficacy of group conversation treatment for people with aphasia and explore whether the effects of treatment differ as a result of the following factors: 1. Group size: Do large groups of 6-8 people with aphasia or dyads of 2 people with aphasia demonstrate different levels of improvement with this treatment? 2. Group composition: Do effects of conversation group treatment differ if the groups include members with similar or different types of aphasia? 3. Aphasia severity: Do effects of conversation group treatment differ if the individuals within the group have mild-moderate or moderate-severe profiles of aphasia? Treatment sessions will occur in groups of 6-8 people with aphasia or with 2 people with aphasia. During treatment sessions, discourse will be facilitated on a focused set of every day topics, such as current events or travel. Linguistic and multi modal cueing hierarchies will be tailored to individual client goals and used to maximize communication success. The prediction is that conversation treatment is an effective method for improving communication in people with aphasia, but that specific benefits may differ based on variables such as group size, group composition, and aphasia severity. The results will help inform best practices for aphasia treatment and refine a hypothesized model about the mechanisms underlying conversation treatment.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Apr 2022

open study

Phase 2 - Multiphase Optimization Strategy (MOST) Optimization Phase: 1. To conduct a factorial experiment that will allow us to evaluate the impact of each of the 4 intervention components on yoga dosage received. We will enroll a total n=192. All participants will receive the core yoga intervention, with random assignment to the four intervention components outlined above. 2. Use results from Phase 2 to choose an efficient combination of intervention components that, together with standard yoga classes, maximizes yoga dosage. 3. Examine mechanisms by which components are hypothesized to work.

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Feb 2022

open study

This study aims to improve adherence to American Academy of Pediatrics safe sleep (SS) recommendations and improve rates of initiation and duration of partial and exclusive breastfeeding (BF) through direct education of mothers using Mobile Health (mHealth) technologies (ex. text messaging).

Type: Interventional

Start Date: Jan 2022

open study