Vascular Disease

The purpose of this investigation is to examine NADPH oxidase as a source of reactive oxygen species contributing to aberrant microvascular function in otherwise healthy women with a history of GDM.

Women who develop preeclampsia during pregnancy are more likely to develop and die of cardiovascular disease later in life, even if they are otherwise healthy. The reason why this occurs is unclear but may be related to impaired endothelial function and dysregulation of the angiotensin system that occurs during the preeclamptic pregnancy and persists postpartum, despite the remission of clinical symptoms. The purpose of this investigation is to determine the mechanisms contributing to this lasting blood vessel damage caused by reduced endothelial function in women who have had preeclampsia compared to women who had a healthy pregnancy. Identification of these mechanisms and treatment strategies may lead to better clinical management of cardiovascular disease risk in these women.

The purpose of this study is to examine the microvascular differences in women who have had preeclampsia following activation of protective angiotensin receptors in the skin. This will help increase understanding of the mechanisms of angiotensin II receptors in these women, and how activation of these receptors may restore microvascular function.

In this study, the investigators use the blood vessels in the skin as a representative vascular bed for examining mechanisms of microvascular dysfunction in humans. Using a minimally invasive technique (intradermal microdialysis for the local delivery of pharmaceutical agents) the investigators examine the blood vessels in a dime-sized area of the skin.

Preeclampsia is a pregnancy disorder affecting \~5-10% of pregnancies in the United States. Women who develop preeclampsia during pregnancy are more likely to develop and die of cardiovascular disease later in life, even if they are otherwise healthy. The reason why this occurs is unclear but may be related to blood vessel damage and increased inflammation that occurs during the preeclamptic pregnancy and persists postpartum. Low dose aspirin (LDA; 75-150mg/daily) is currently the most effective and clinically accepted therapy for reducing preeclampsia prevalence in women at high risk for developing the syndrome. The purpose of this study is to interrogate the mechanisms by which LDA therapy mitigates persistent vascular dysfunction in postpartum women who have had preeclampsia.

In this study, the investigators use the blood vessels in the skin as a representative vascular bed for examining mechanisms of microvascular dysfunction in humans. Using a minimally invasive technique (intradermal microdialysis for the local delivery of pharmaceutical agents) they examine the blood vessels in a dime-sized area of the skin in women who have had a history of preeclampsia. As a compliment to these measurements, they also draw blood from the subjects and isolate the inflammatory cells.

In parallel with the growth of American Thrombosis and Hemostasis Network's (ATHN) clinical studies, the number of new therapies for all congenital and acquired hematologic conditions, not just those for bleeding and clotting disorders, is increasing significantly. Some of the recently FDA-approved therapies for congenital and acquired hematologic conditions have yet to demonstrate long-term safety and effectiveness beyond the pivotal trials that led to their approval. In addition, results from well-controlled, pivotal studies often cannot be replicated once a therapy has been approved for general use.(1,2,3,4) In 2019 alone, the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued approvals for twenty-four new therapies for congenital and acquired hematologic conditions.(5) In addition, almost 10,000 new studies for hematologic diseases are currently registered on www.clinicaltrials.gov.(6) With this increase in potential new therapies on the horizon, it is imperative that clinicians and clinical researchers in the field of non-neoplastic hematology have a uniform, secure, unbiased, and enduring method to collect long-term safety and efficacy data.

ATHN Transcends is a cohort study to determine the safety, effectiveness, and practice of therapies used in the treatment of participants with congenital or acquired non-neoplastic blood disorders and connective tissue disorders with bleeding tendency. The study consists of 7 cohorts with additional study "arms" and "modules" branching off from the cohorts.

The overarching objective of this longitudinal, observational study is to characterize the safety, effectiveness and practice of treatments for all people with congenital and acquired hematologic disorders in the US.

As emphasized in a recently published review, accurate, uniform and quality national data collection is critical in clinical research, particularly for longitudinal cohort studies covering a lifetime of biologic risk.(7)

This is a prospective, open- label, single arm, multicenter clinical trial to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of the Cordella PA Sensor System in NYHA Class III Heart Failure Patients compared to a Performance Goal (PG).

The overall goal of the DISCOVERY study is to better understand what factors contribute to changes in cognitive (i.e., thinking and memory) abilities in patients who experienced a stroke. The purpose of the study is to help doctors identify patients at risk for dementia (decline in memory, thinking and other mental abilities that significantly affects daily functioning) after their stroke so that future treatments may be developed to improve outcomes in stroke patients. For this study, a "stroke" is defined as either (1) an acute ischemic stroke (AIS, or blood clot in the brain), (2) an intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH, or bleeding in the brain), (3) or an aneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (aSAH, or bleeding around the brain caused by an abnormal bulge in a blood vessel that bursts).

The investigators hypothesize that:

1. The size, type and location of the stroke play an important role in recovery of thinking and memory abilities after stroke, and pre-existing indicators of brain health further determine the extent of this recovery.
2. Specific stroke events occurring in individuals with underlying genetic or biological risk factors can cause further declines in brain heath, leading to changes in thinking and memory abilities after stroke.
3. Studying thinking and memory alongside brain imaging and blood samples in patients who have had a stroke allows for earlier identification of declining brain health and development of individualized treatment plans to improve patient outcomes in the future.

This study will test the hypothesis that patients presenting within 8 hours of onset with cerebral ischemia in the setting of proximal large vessel occlusions (LVO) and low baseline NIHSS scores (0-5) will have better 90-day clinical outcomes (mRS distribution) with immediate mechanical thrombectomy (iMT) compared to initial medical management (iMM).

The purpose of this investigation is to examine the role of oxidative stress in aberrant microvascular function in otherwise healthy women with a history of GDM.

Women who develop preeclampsia during pregnancy are more likely to develop and die of cardiovascular disease later in life, even if they are otherwise healthy. The reason why this occurs is unclear but may be related to blood vessel damage and increased inflammation that occurs during the preeclamptic pregnancy and persists postpartum. The purpose of this investigation is to determine the mechanisms contributing to this lasting blood vessel damage and to test whether taking a medication that blocks angiotensin II receptors (losartan) decrease these negative effects in women who have had preeclampsia. Identification of these mechanisms and treatment strategies may lead to better clinical management,of cardiovascular disease risk in these women.

In this study we use the blood vessels in the skin as a representative vascular bed. Using a minimally invasive technique (intradermal microdialysis for the local delivery of pharmaceutical agents) we examine the blood vessels in a nickle-sized area of the skin in women who have had preeclampsia. We make these measurements after the subjects take a placebo and after they take losartan (an angiotensin II receptor blocker) to test whether this treatment improves vascular function in these women. As a compliment to these measurements, we also draw blood from the subjects and isolate the inflammatory cells to test how sensitive their inflammatory responses are following the placebo and the losartan treatment.