Cardiovascular Diseases Clinical Trials in Canada

Frailty describes the overall health of a person. Inpatients with cardiovascular problems have a higher risk for frailty - or the sick are more likely to get sicker - causing longer hospital stays, hospital readmission, and death. Females are particularly vulnerable to these problems, generally displaying higher frailty levels than males. In hospital, patients spend almost all their time in bed, and this lack of movement worsens cardiovascular and musculoskeletal health, sometimes lengthening patients' hospital stay and priming them for another cardiovascular event. Prolonged sedentary time may be more detrimental on frailty among females than males. The proposed pilot project will test if an in-hospital General Medicine mobilization program reduces frailty (measure of overall health) in male and female inpatients with cardiovascular disease. A Kinesiologist will provide daily check-ins and promote daily movement (e.g., standing more, resistance bands, physical activity promotion, etc.). The investigators expect both males and females will lower their frailty levels, but given their higher frailty levels in general and because females are typically less active than males, the investigators expect the intervention's effects to be greatest among females. Sixty patients (30 females) will be recruited. Patients with a major heart problem, projected to be in-hospital for at least 3-days, and can independently provide consent. Frailty will be measured using a validated questionnaire. Participants will also be equipped with activity monitors for 24h/d continuous wear to measure amount of time spent stepping, sitting, and lying. Hospital records will be used for length of stay and readmissions. The investigators will compare the outcomes (activity and frailty) between males and females to determine if the intervention impacted each sex differently. This work will guide improved care plans to decrease frailty and improve health outcomes in both male and female patients with heart problems. Read Less

Prospective, controlled, multicenter clinical investigation with four trial cohorts: Randomized, Non-repairable, Severe Mitral Annular Calcification (MAC) and Severe Mitral Annular Calcification Continued Access Protocol (MAC CAP). Subjects in the Randomized cohort will be randomized in a 1:1 ratio to the trial device or to the MitraClip system. Subjects in the Non-repairable, Severe MAC, and Severe MAC CAP cohorts will receive the trial device. The objective of the Clinical Trial to Evaluate the Safety and Effectiveness of Using the Tendyne Transcatheter Mitral Valve System for the Treatment of Symptomatic Mitral Regurgitation (SUMMIT) is to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of the Tendyne Transcatheter Mitral Valve System for the treatment of patients with symptomatic, moderate-to-severe or severe mitral regurgitation or for patients with symptomatic mitral valve disease due to severe mitral annular calcification. This randomized controlled trial will provide the opportunity to evaluate the safety and clinical benefits of the Tendyne Transcatheter Mitral Valve System compared to the MitraClip System in patients with symptomatic, moderate-to-severe or severe mitral regurgitation, within approved MitraClip indications. In addition, the safety and effectiveness of the Tendyne Transcatheter Mitral Valve System will be evaluated in patients with severe mitral annular calcification who are at prohibitive risk for mitral valve surgery. Patients who are not suitable for mitral valve surgery for reasons other than severe mitral annular calcification and are also not suitable for transcatheter repair with MitraClip, will be enrolled in the Non-repairable cohort. Subjects will be seen at screening, pre- and post-procedure, discharge, 30 days, 3 months, 6 months, and annually through 5 years. Read Less

This randomized controlled trial will evaluate whether use of the PulsePoint system increases bystander CPR or defibrillator use compared to standard dispatch procedures in patients who suffer non-traumatic, out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in a public location. Half of all suspected cardiac arrest 9-1-1 calls in a public location will receive PulsePoint alerts (treatment arm). The other half of this eligible patient cohort will receive standard dispatch procedures (control arm). Read Less

The objective of the TOmAS Biobank is the conservation of biological material (plasma, saliva, and tissue explanted during surgery), genetic material (DNA, RNA, etc.), and clinical data ("material/data") collected from patients with cardiovascular diseases (CVD) as well as from control participants, in order to allow future studies evaluating novel proteomic, transcriptomic and epigenomic markers (as well as other emerging -omic technologies) for CVD (i.e. aortic stenosis, cardiomyopathy, myorcardial infarction, etc). The study of physiological and genetic factors will allow for the discovery of new genomic and other -omic (including proteomic, transcriptomic and epigenomic) biomarkers associated with CVD which will lead to an improved understanding of the underlying biology of CVD and may provide future insights into the prevention and treatment of this type of disease. Read Less

The full HER CROWN will be a prospective cohort study to propose a novel, women-specific cardiovascular risk score/ algorithm in the prediction of hard cardiovascular outcomes (myocardial infarction, unstable angina, coronary revascularization, stroke, total and cardiovascular mortality). This future study will be the first longitudinal cohort study, to our knowledge, that is focused entirely on researching the pathophysiology and natural history of cardiovascular disease in women with known female-specific risk factors. Further, the investigators are aiming to recruit a sample that is representative of the ethnic distribution in Canada. The proposed pilot study is a feasibility study as an essential preparatory step for HER CROWN. Read Less

Lp(a)-VRCE is an observational, cross sectional study looking at vessel reparative stem cell content in people with and without elevated lipoprotein (a) \[Lp(a)\]. Specifically, the type and number of these cells in peripheral blood samples will be measured in participants with Lp(a) ≥100 nmol/L and compared to participants with Lp(a) \< 100 nmol/L. Determining the presence or absence of specific cells with blood vessel repair capacity in participants with high Lp(a) will further our knowledge of potential mechanisms through which Lp(a) influences cardiovascular health. Read Less

Background \& Rationale: Breast cancer (BC) is the most commonly diagnosed malignancy in women worldwide (2.1 million diagnoses in 2018, 25% of new cancer cases). In Canada, early stage BC mortality rates have decreased by 48% over the past 30 years as a result of advances in prevention, detection, and treatment. However, competing risks for mortality from non-cancer causes have emerged, where cardiovascular disease (CVD) is now a leading cause of death for BC survivors. The direct toxic effects of BC treatment on the heart (cardiotoxicity) are well characterized by the investigators and many others, as a contributor to elevated cardiovascular risk. However, BC treatment and the associated lifestyle changes (i.e. physical inactivity, poor diet quality, stress) are increasingly recognized to also strongly affect metabolism negatively manifesting as insulin resistance, dyslipidemia and adipose tissue (fat) accumulation. These adverse metabolic changes are strongly linked to CVD risk and represent a currently underappreciated contributor to the elevated CVD risk among BC survivors. Preliminary data and recent publications demonstrate that regional fat accumulation occurs during BC treatment and that the fat burden in key locations is associated with poor cardiorespiratory health. A trigger of these adverse metabolic and inflammatory effects is excess fat specifically within ectopic fat (viscera, intermuscular, or hepatic) regions. In 2019, a member of the study team found that the volume of visceral and intermuscular but not subcutaneous fat at BC diagnosis were linearly associated with CVD events within 6 years, even among those with normal BMI and after adjustment for pre-existing CVD risk factors and for BC treatment type. Using MRI, investigators found that \~1 year after chemotherapy, BC survivors had significantly larger depots of visceral fat (49% larger) and thigh intermuscular fat (41% larger) compared to age and sex-matched controls, despite similar BMI and subcutaneous fat volumes in the two groups. Investigators also showed that the fat fraction within the thigh muscle and visceral fat volumes independently explained \~50% of the variation in cardiorespiratory fitness (measured by peak VO2). In particular, peak VO2 is one of the most powerful predictors of all-cause and CVD mortality and health care costs, and is the most consistently reported negative sequelae after treatment for BC. Unfortunately, there are no known therapies to recover long-term myocardial damage (i.e. cell death, fibrosis) from cancer therapies. There are several reasons to target fat as a therapeutic target in BC patients: 1) The study team have compelling preliminary data showing accelerated formation of ectopic fat during BC treatment. 2) Investigator's recent data showed that high fat content in key fat pools was associated with reduced peak VO2. 3) The burden of fat and the associated metabolic abnormalities are dynamic and malleable, and thus highly treatable. Research Question \& Objectives: The primary purpose of this study is to evaluate the effect of a behavioural intervention involving supported time-restricted eating (TRE), diet quality improvements, and reduced sedentary time versus usual cancer and nutrition care in BC patients receiving chemotherapy treatment on ectopic fat, cardiometabolic profile, and chemotherapy outcomes. The investigators hypothesize that the intervention will attenuate the growth of ectopic fat during chemotherapy and reduce chemotherapy symptoms. Read Less

The goal of this pragmatic trial is to provide Real World Evidence (RWE) on the impact of the result of a polygenic risk prediction test of cardiorenal complications of T2D, so that more patients at high risk of these complications achieve over an 18 months period, recommended therapeutic targets. This will be demonstrated as a significant improvement in a composite value including HbA1c or systolic blood pressure (SBP) or albuminuria (UACR), or glomerular filtration rate (GFR) lowering. Researchers will compare the recommended therapeutic targets of uninformed and informed patients to see if the knowledge of the risk by the patients and their treating physicians improves achievement of these targets. Participants will: Have a saliva sampling to determine the genetic risk. Visit the clinic once every 3 months for checkups and tests Answer two questionnaires on quality of life. Read Less

The goal of this observational study is to learn whether the healthy lifestyle choices made around surgery can influence an individual's long term risk of developing cardiovascular disease. Patients will be observed 1-month prior to and 3-months following surgery to assess their risk of developing cardiovascular disease. Read Less

The Investigators will create a clinical database and a Biobank of stem cells derived from the blood of participants with cardiovascular disease. The Investigators will recruit participants from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds with equal representation from both sexes. The Investigators expect to create stem cells and analyze the blood for protein biomarkers and genetic causes of cardiovascular disease. The stem cell biobank and clinical data will be a powerful tool for studying cardiovascular disease. Read Less

The Canadian Australasian Randomized Trial of Screening Kidney Transplant Candidates for Coronary Artery Disease (CARSK) will test the hypothesis that eliminating the regular use of non-invasive screening tests for CAD AFTER waitlist activation is not inferior to regular (i.e., annual) screening for CAD during wait-listing for the prevention of Major Adverse Cardiac Events. Secondary analyses will assess the impact of screening on the rate of transplantation, and the relative cost-effectiveness of screening. Read Less

Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) is a leading cause of death in the developed world. Atherosclerosis causes plaques in the blood vessels and is a common form of CVD. Inflammation is now recognized as a major cause of atherosclerosis. Therapies that target inflammation are being examined as a potential treatment option. Imaging to detect inflammation may be a solution to understand mechanisms and to optimize patient selection and outcomes for these drugs. Fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) PET imaging can detect inflammation in the plaque and identify patients vulnerable to plaque rupture which cause events such as myocardial infarctions (MI) and strokes. The primary objective of this proposal(CADENCE) is to determine if the drug colchicine has an effect on plaque inflammation in patients at high risk for events (patients with diabetes or pre-diabetes and recent myocardial infarction, stroke or transient ischemic attacks (TIAs)). This mechanistic and proof-of-concept study will set the stage for future studies that will determine if inflammation imaging can be integrated into clinical practice to personalize decisions for anti-inflammation therapies. Read Less