Osteoarthritis Paid Clinical Trials in Iowa

The proposed study evaluates the effect of carbon fiber brace design on forces across the ankle joint. Research suggests that ankle arthritis develops after ankle fracture, in part, due to elevated forces on the cartilage. It is expected that carbon fiber braces can be designed to reduce forces in the ankle joint and thereby reduce the risk of developing arthritis following traumatic injury. In this study, brace geometry will be varied to determine how these changes influence the forces experienced by ankle cartilage. The proposed study will provide evidence that can be used by clinicians and researchers to design braces that most effectively reduce forces on ankle cartilage. Read Less

Carbon fiber custom dynamic orthoses (CDOs) consist of a proximal cuff that wraps around the leg just below the knee, a posterior carbon fiber strut that stores and returns energy during gait, and a carbon fiber foot plate that supports the foot and allows bending of the posterior strut. The proximal cuff is a primary interface between the patient and the CDO and may influence comfort, preference, limb mechanics and loading, and effective stiffness of the CDO. The important role of the proximal cuff has not been examined. The purpose of this study is to determine the effects of CDO proximal cuff design on patient reported outcomes, limb mechanics and loading, and CDO mechanical characteristics. Read Less

The goal of this clinical trial is to examine the effect of a single autologous, intra-articular injection of MFat versus corticosteroid injection for the treatment of pain and function associated with K/L grade 2/3 knee Osteoarthritis. Participants will receive an injection of MFat or a corticosteroid. Read Less

This is a small-scale proof-of concept clinical trial of amobarbital as a treatment to prevent post-traumatic osteoarthritis in fractured ankle joints. The study is a double blind, prospective, randomized, placebo-controlled, stepwise trial. Amobarbital will be delivered to ankle joints in solution with hyaluronic acid (HA) as a vehicle. Amobarbital/HA injections (active dose) will be compared to HA alone (placebo dose). Our primary goal is to confirm safety, but we will also assess whether treatment improves chondrocyte viability and decreases synovial inflammation. The intervention that will be utilized has proven to be effective using vitro and in vivo models. The study team will assess safety and begin to evaluate efficacy of amobarbital/Gel-One in patients having sustained tibial pilon fractures. The study team will use advanced imaging-based methods we have developed to characterize how joints subjected to varying levels of fracture severity and residual elevated contact stress respond in treated and control groups. Read Less

The immediate goal of the proposed research is to test the value of a new low-cost, low-dose standing CT system for efficient early detection of both joint degeneration and elevated contact stress. The standing CT scanner holds promise for detecting arthritic changes earlier than other imaging modalities because of the combination of its 3D nature and ability to image joints in a weight-bearing pose. A secondary goal of the proposed research is to enable predictive models for osteoarthritis risk based on measures of post treatment contact stress, both to inform treatment and so that new interventions can be tested in a manner incorporating risk stratification. Read Less

A minimum of 50 patients with ankle end-stage arthritis will be randomized in two parallel groups for surgery. One group will receive a total ankle replacement through an anterior approach and the other group a total ankle replacement via a lateral approach. Patients will be evaluated for a mean follow-up of two years in terms of complications, implant survival and functional results. One of the primary objectives of the study is analyzing the safety of the lateral and anterior approaches for total ankle replacement. Read Less