Clinical trials

The aim of this prospective, randomized, controlled trial is to provide evidence for adjuvant IgGAM treatment with regard to 1. Improvement of patient outcomes for peritonitis. Improvement in outcome will be determined by scores such as MOF, SOFA and survival. 2. Identification of biomarkers (including immunoglobulin levels, HLA-DR, NF-kB1 and other immunological biomarkers) to identify patient subpopulations that benefit most from IgGAM treatment. These patients will form the basis for a further randomized, controlled, double-blind Phase III trial (RCT) to demonstrate the benefit of this treatment. 3. In addition, these biomarkers could help to guide a targeted, i.e. "personalized", adjuvant therapy with Pentaglobin® (IgGAM) in the indication of peritonitis.

The study investigates the adjuvant SBRT following TACE in early and intermediate stages HCC not amenable for surgical resection.

The German Dementia Registry (DEMREG) is a large-scale national prospective biomarker-based study for cognitive impairment and dementia, providing an integrated clinical research platform for research studies.

The gold standard of twitch transdiaphragmatic pressure recordings would ultimately clear the fog around the rate of development of Ventilator induced Diaphragm Dysfunction (VIDD) in mechanically ventilated patients over time. Through measurements made even after mechanical ventilation (MV) it could be clarified to what extent patients recover from VIDD. Paired with cortical stimulation and electromyographic recordings of diaphragm muscle potentials, it could be explored to what extent decreased diaphragm excitability due to long term MV contributes to VIDD on the level of motor cortex. Against that background the present project aims at determining the rate of decline in diaphragm function, strength and control in patients undergoing MV (including measurements after extubation).

Nicotine is the most common preventable cause of death and is responsible for over seven million deaths worldwide. If current trends continue, tobacco will kill more than eight million people worldwide every year by 2030. Smoking tobacco products is the most important risk factor for the development of lung cancer. Passive smoking is also a major cause of lung cancer. Since July 2024, smokers and former smokers have been able to receive a low-radiation CT scan under certain conditions to detect lung cancer at an early stage. It is therefore to be expected that the number of diagnoses of pulmonary lesions or nodules will increase in the near future. The risk of developing and dying from tobacco-related diseases is reduced once nicotine cessation begins. Screening all patients for tobacco use, e-cigarette use, and providing behavioral counseling and pharmacotherapy to quit smoking are among the most valuable preventive services we can offer in healthcare. Nicotine dependence can be estimated using the so-called Fagerström test. An additional evaluation of nicotine behavior can be carried out by testing cotinine in urine, a method that is used, for example, in the listing for lung transplantation. Cotinine is a degradation product of nicotine that can be detected in the urine of smokers and passive smokers. Cotinine levels in urine depend on the frequency and quantity of nicotine consumption. The half-life of cotinine is 16 to 22 hours, which means that half of the cotinine is excreted from the body after this time. Another marker that can be used as a measure of tobacco consumption is carboxyhaemoglobin (COHb). This is hemoglobin with carbon monoxide at the binding site for oxygen. The reference range for carboxyhaemoglobin is 0.4 - 1.6 %. In smokers, values of 3-10 % are still considered normal. In our department, the smoking status of patients is assessed upon first contact. Support options for smoking cessation are offered and, upon request, initiated. Previous studies have shown that smoking is a risk factor for complications after thoracic surgical procedures and that patients who underwent thoracic surgery quit smoking almost twice as often compared to patients who did not undergo surgery. However, to the best of our knowledge, there is currently no study regarding smoking cessation before intervention in patients with nodules needing clarification (bronchoscopy or CT-guided puncture). Therefore, the aim of the study is to support and monitor smoking cessation before intervention in patients with nodules needing further diagnosis (bronchoscopy or CT-guided puncture).

Dyspnea is among the most common symptoms in patients with respiratory diseases such as Asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), Fibrosis, and Pulmonary Hypertension. However, the pathophysiology and underlying mechanisms of dyspnea in patients with respiratory diseases are still poorly understood. Diaphragm dysfunction might be highly prevalent in patients with dyspnea and respiratory diseases. The association of diaphragm function and potential prognostic significance in patients with respiratory diseases has not yet been investigated.

The project will be pursued in our respiratory, autonomic nervous system physiology laboratory (Respiratory, autonomic nervous system physiology laboratory, Department of Pneumology and Intensive Care Medicine, RWTH Aachen University Hospital; Head of Department: Professor Michael Dreher). Overactivity of the sympathetic nerve activity (SNA) axis with "centrally" increased heart rate and peripheral vasoconstriction is a known phenomenon in patients with systolic heart failure (HF) and has recently been described in patients with primary lung disease as seen in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). However, systematic analyses on this clinically relevant topic are currently lacking. Thus, using a comprehensive, multimodal approach and state-of-the-art technology, this research project is designed to determine the extent and nature of increased SNA in COPD (AIM 1) and evaluate the underlying mechanisms (AIM 2). The project will address the following hypotheses: 1. In COPD, concomitant obstructive sleep apnea is independently associated with increased SNA. 2. Precapillary pulmonary hypertension (PH), inspiratory muscle dysfunction and systemic inflammation describe a COPD phenotype characterised by increased SNA with a different subtype.

In the last years, the imbalance between excitatory and inhibitory neuronal activity has come to the fore as a possible molecular disease mechanism of schizophrenia . Pharmacological studies have suggested different fMRI and EEG markers of that molecular dysfunction (resting state connectivity changes, auditory mismatch and steady state deficits). However, previous research is inconclusive regarding their genetic basis, their reliability, inter-individual relationship as well as disease specificity. Therefore, in this study we aim at estimating the effect sizes, test-retest-reliability and clinical correlates of the respective markers in a comparative fashion in patients with schizophrenia, their relatives and healthy control subject. To assess their molecular validity, we will assess their relationship with glutamatergic and GABAergic genotypes and cellular disease models. The proof of such a relation would give the opportunity of detecting a glutamatergic and GABAergic imbalance throughout non-invasive imaging. Furthermore, it would help deepening our understanding of the molecular pathophysiology of mental disorders which will be essential for the development of more effective drugs.

We examine patients with different autonomic neuropathies and Ehlers Danlos syndromes compared to healthy controls at three different points over time (baseline, after 3 months and after 1.5 years) to gain knowledge about the course of this disease and understand its pathophysiology, with a focus on Small Fiber neuropathy. Moreover we will validate the german version of the Malmö POTS Score and establish an easy diagnostic scheme for patients in outpatient care.

Evaluation of patient characteristics, involved physicians and therapists as well as therapies in a German University Center for the Treatment of patients with intellectual disabilities and severe multiple disability (MZEB Aachen)

The primary aim of the current study is a better understanding of the role of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus (T2DM) in heart failure and, in particular, changes in cardiac metabolism, which may contribute to heart failure. Various biomarkers in the coronary artery blood, as well as in the arterial and peripheral venous blood, are to be identified for this purpose. Included are patients with and without T2DM and with or without heart failure (HFpEF, HFmrEF, HFrEF), who have a clinically indicated and guidance-appropriate Cardiac Resynchronisation Therapy (CRT) implantation or pulmonary vein ablation/electrophysiological examination. Not all patients currently benefit from the implantation of a CRT system (so-called non-responder). Despite narrow inclusion criteria, these "non-responders" cannot be unmasked in advance of the implantation. A further aim of this study is to identify biomarkers, which can be determined in advance of implantation to differentiate between responders and non-responders.

The objectives of this two-arm phase-IIa randomized, controlled study are: * to prove whether the combination of a clinic-guided personal counseling with a therapy-assistive digital support (blinded care approach) and a training of digital and mental health literacy is superior to a teacher-guided training of digital and mental health literacy only (treatment as usual) concerning the reduction of psychiatric burden in adolescents. * to improve the well-being and level of participation in adolescents at risk for psychiatric disorders. * to reduce the expression of psychiatric symptoms in adolescents with enhanced psychiatric burden. * to test whether the combination of a clinic-guided personal counseling with a therapy-assistive digital support is well accepted by students, their parents, and teachers. * to identify individual factors predicting the improvement of well-being and level of participation in adolescents as well as the acceptance of the prevention program in all subjects involved (students, parents, teachers, psychologists). * to investigate whether the clinic-guided personal counseling with a therapy-assistive digital support causes reduction of primary and secondary costs in the psychosocial support system and represents an economic advantage.

1. Questionnaire for supraventricular tachycardia: About history and targeted diagnosis of supraventricular tachycardia 2. Extended Signal-averaged ECG for detailed P-Wave analysis and to calculate a virtual atrial electrocardiogram (ECG)

The open abdomen can occur as a result of various diseases. After infections of the abdomen, compartment syndromes or traumata, it is essential for survival (1). This condition of the open abdomen lasts from days to months. Within a very short time, the fascia and abdominal wall structures retract in such a way that direct abdominal closure is often impossible. In addition, there is a pronounced intraabdominal oedema, which additionally increases the space required by the abdominal organs. Therefore, it is clinically indispensable to increase the space of the intraabdominal organs in this life-threatening situation. After the laparotomy (opening of the abdomen) has been performed, it is therefore not closed. However, the natural traction on the abdominal wall, in particular on the fascia, the attached musculature as well as skin and subcutis, no longer exists in this situation. As a result, these structures retract over the period of the existing laparostoma. In the present study, the CE-certified medical device Fasciotens Abdomen will be used to prove the functionality of this device and the user feasibility. The basic principle of Fasciotens Abdomen is the ventrally directed pulling force on the two fascial edges via an external device with support on the thorax and pelvis. The possibility to apply a traction to the fascia from the moment of opening the abdomen without reducing the intraabdominal space is absolutely new and the rationale of this technique. The objective of this study is to prove the obvious prevention of fascial retraction through the Fasciotens Abdomen device.

This project will generate a prospective cohort of geriatric patients with polypharmacy which will be characterized for vulnerability profiles of adverse drug reactions.

The storage and use of biomaterial samples is an important requirement for accompanying research and the acquisition of new knowledge to improve prognosis and therapy. Biobanking is explicitly recommended in official guidelines. In order to preserve the biomaterial, the patient must consent to the removal, transfer and storage of the biomaterial separately from the consent to the register. The biomaterial is taken at times at which a blood or urine sampling takes place anyway in the clinical routine. Therefore no additional interventions are necessary.

The aim of this study is to collect non-individual related blood samples for the compelling of a unique database of tissue samples to understand the inflammatory responds after cardiac surgery on an on-going basis. This includes especially protein analyses and genetic testing for certain neurotransmitters in the blood and tissues to understand disease markers related to heart disease. The study is designed as an openly recruiting biobank with the purpose to later serve multiple study purposes. Outcomes refer to protein analyses and genetic testing for neurotransmitters in the blood and tissues.