What is it?
The TAP trial is an AWH investigator-initiated trial.
Pain after an operation is not just an undesired effect of having surgery but causes many adverse health issues. Post-operative pain that requires greater amounts of strong pain medication (typically narcotics such as morphine or oxycodone) results in more complications (such as slow recovery of the bowel function, nausea, vomiting, aspiration, and increased falls). Pain management, with the goal of minimising narcotics, is important, and regional anaesthesia has a pivotal role in this. Regional anaesthesia involves placing local anaesthetic in a specific location to reduce the pain signals from nerves supplying the affected area with minimal whole-body effects. In the case of abdominal surgery, a proven way to do this is the transversus abdominus plane (TAP) block. This has been well studied and put into practice with reliable results when done either by the anaesthetist (guided by ultrasound) or by the surgeon during the operation. Our aim in the study is to see if surgically (laparoscopic) placed TAP blocks reduce postoperative pain and complications in emergency laparoscopic surgery.
Who do I speak to?
Where do I find more information?
For more information, contact Kate Reid
Thunderstorm asthma is a recurring public health emergency in South-Eastern Australia which occurs in springtime. The major identified risk factors for thunderstorm asthma is hay fever and allergy to ryegrass pollen.
The goal of the CARISTA study is to identify the risk of springtime allergic and thunderstorm asthma in allergic adults living in South-Eastern Australia.
To do this the CARISTA Study will recruit 530 people who have hay fever and test them for allergy to ryegrass pollen and undertake simple breathing tests.
Importantly, the CARISTA Study asks participants to track their hay fever and asthma symptoms during the rye grass pollen season in south-eastern Australia (October to December) over 2 consecutive years using a secure electronic diary.
By tracking these symptoms, we aim to identify indicators (biomarkers) in the body that helps identify people at risk of worsening asthma and severe asthma during ryegrass pollen season.
This knowledge will contribute to developing targeted protective strategies and treatments to reduce the burden of springtime asthma in the community.
Phone Number: +6183444578, Email: jdouglass@unimelb.edu.au
Name: Rachel Tham, PhD
Phone Number: +61390356053, Email: CARISTA-Study@unimelb.edu.au
See the CARISTA trial website
The DETECT-PM study aims to determine the sensitivity and specificity of tumour DNA detection in peritoneal fluid collected at the time of surgery for non-metastatic locally advanced (cT4, N0-2, M0) or perforated colon cancer to predict for peritoneal recurrence.Who is it for?You may be eligible for this study if you are a male or female over the age of 18 and have histologically confirmed colon adenocarcinoma that is amenable to curative intent surgery.Study details:Blood samples will also be collected pre-surgery, 4-6 weeks post surgery, 12 months post surgery and at recurrence (if applicable) for circulating tumour DNA (ctDNA) analysis. Participants with non-metastatic resectable colon cancer who have a high risk of peritoneal recurrence, defined as those with perforation or clinical T4 disease will have peritoneal fluid collected at the time of surgery.It is hoped that findings from this study will provide opportunity for earlier intervention to prevent peritoneal recurrence through the detection of clinically occult peritoneal metastasis.
See the Detect-PM trial information on the ANZ clinical trial registry
The AIROPLANE Trial compares two different oxygen concentrations to help support a baby's breathing in the first few minutes after birth. The trial assesses whether either approach leads to babies having less need for later breathing support, oxygen treatment or less time in hospital.
The hospitals taking part in the AIROPLANE Trial will be allocated to use an initial oxygen concentration of either 21% or 30% for a period of approximately 12 months. After this time, the hospital will then change to using the alternative oxygen concentration for a similar period of time.
Safety measures have been built into the study design to ensure that every AIROPLANE baby always receives a safe level of oxygen. Should additional care be needed at any time this will always be provided immediately.
This trial has been initiated out of Murdoch Children's Research Institute and you can contact the AIROPLANE trial team AIROPLANE.Trial@mcri.edu.au
Our local Principal Investigator is Dr Mark Norden, Director of Women's and Childrens Services.
See the AIROPLANE Trial Website
What is it? Acute wheezing illnesses present a huge health and economic burden and are the most common reason that preschool aged children are admitted to hospital in Australia. Current strategies to prevent hospital admissions due to preschool wheeze are ineffective, and parents and paediatricians identify developing effective treatments to prevent hospital admission as a research priority. OM-85 is an orally administered bacterial lysate that stimulates immune responses associated with defence against viral infections and reduces the excessive inflammation of the respiratory mucosa associated with wheezing episodes. This large multi-centre trial has been funded through NHMRC and has leveraged the Children’s Inpatient Research Collaborative of Australia and New Zealand (CIRCAN): a team that includes clinicians from 35 hospitals across Australasia. AWH is a recruitment site for the trial and patients that meet the inclusion criteria are offered the opportunity to join the study.
This trial has been initiated out of Deakin University and you can contact the ARROW trial team at arrowtrial@deakin.edu.au Our local Principal Investigator is Dr Mark Norden, Director of Women's and Childrens Services.
The ARROW Trial was registered with the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (Registration number: ACTRN12620001370998p).
See the ARROW trial website
See Border Mail article
What is it?An adaptive clinical trial design to evaluate a wide variety of mobility training after stroke. Fifty hospitals in seven countries (Australia, Malaysia, United Kingdom, Ireland, India, Brazil, Singapore) are expected to participate. The study hopes to determine the optimal early mobility intervention for patients with mild and moderate ischemic stroke.
This trial has been initiated out of the Florey Institute, and our local Principal Investigator is Vanessa Crosby.
Further trial information can be found on twitter: @AVERTDOSEtrial.
Also see the summary provided in the International Journal of Stroke
A stepped-wedge randomised controlled trial to explore the improved implementation of heart failure guidelines, using telehealth to increase access to specialist services in regional health services.
The study has the potential to keep patients out of hospital and improve outcomes for regional heart failure patients.
This trial has been initiated out of Deakin University and you can contact the iHEART trial team lead Andrea Driscoll on andrea.driscoll@deakin.edu.au.
Our local Principal Investigator is Associate Professor and Cardiologist David Prior.
The i-HEART Trial was registered with the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (Registration number: ACTRN12621001353886.
The study is about the side-effects experienced by patients receiving haemodialysis for kidney failure and hopes to further understand the impact this treatment has on their quality of life. The SWIFT trial aims to explore if symptom monitoring with feedback to nurses, kidney doctors and patients, improves health-related quality of life. SWIFT will also test if collecting information about symptoms with a tablet computer is cost effective.
This trial has been initiated out of the NHMRC Clinical Trials Centre, University of Sydney, and you can contact the study team here swift@anzdata.org.au.
Our local Principal Investigator is Shiree Panozzo, the Nurse Unit Manager of the AWH Dialysis Unit.
The SWIFT Trial was registered with the Australian New Zealand Clinical Trials Registry (Registration number: ACTRN12620001061921.
More information is available on the SWIFT page on the ANZDATA website
AWH welcomes new studies from commercial sponsors and collaborative groups. The AWH Research Office has a Clinical trial Research Support Service, and uses SiteDocs to facilitate clinical trial document management. Standard Operating Procedures are available on request.