Clinical Research Directory

A Non-Interventional Pilot Study to Explore the Role of Gut Flora in Disease

This study seeks to correlate microbiome sequencing data with information provided by patients and their medical records.

Study of Mesenchymal Stem Cells for the Treatment of Medically Refractory Crohn's Colitis

Crohn's disease has several phenotypes (inflammatory, stricturing, fistulizing) and location (small bowel, ileocecal, colon, and perianal). Approximately one third of patients have inflammation limited to the colon. Up to two thirds will become medically refractory and require a total abdominal colectomy for symptom control. The purpose of this study is to determine the safety and efficacy of using allogeneic bone marrow derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) delivered by targeted endoscopic delivery to treat people for medically refractory Crohn's colitis.

Personalized Risk Estimation for Crohn's Disease (PRE-Crohn's): Implementation and Feasibility

The aim of this study is to develop and assess the feasibility and effect of a web-based, personalized risk-estimation for Crohn's disease (PRE-Crohn's) tool on behaviors and biomarkers associated with risk for Crohn's disease in unaffected first-degree relatives of patients with inflammatory bowel disease. We hypothesize that personalized risk disclosure via the PRE-Crohn's educational tool is both feasible and successful in modifying behaviors associated with Crohn's disease risk and normalizing pre-clinical disease biomarkers when compared to standard Crohn's disease education. Broadly, completion of this project will also help elucidate the role of lifestyle and dietary factors in pre-clinical Crohn's disease development in high-risk individuals, and provide novel insight into potential strategies for disease prevention in this population.

Investigation of VAP-1 Expression and Tissue Blood Flow by PET-MRI in Patients With Crohn's Disease

This is an observational, single center, imaging study. The CD patients with active disease will be assessed by \[68Ga\]Ga-DOTA-Siglec-9 and \[15O\]H2O PET/MRE. Patients with high clinical suspicion of small intestine's CD in outpatient gastroenterology clinic of Turku University Hospital will be recruited. The patients must fulfil the eligibility criteria and give their signed approvement prior to their enrolment into the study. 20 patients with high suspicion of active small bowels CD will be enrolled to being evaluated for potential participation in this study. In patients with diagnosed small bowels CD, PET-MRE will be repeated 3 months after the initial imaging (and based on clinical diagnostic started medication) to verify disease remission/inadequacy of the treatment. Assessments for CD clinical disease activity will be performed at screening and \[68Ga\]Ga-DOTA-Siglec-9 and \[15O\]H2O PET/MRE assessments will be performed within a month for each patient. After PET/MRE all patients can be treated according to patients' needs with immunosuppressive drugs. Follow-up visits are organized at after PET/MRE imaging at gastroenterology outpatient clinic.