Clinical Research Directory

Ewha Birth and Growth Study (Birth Cohort)

The Ewha Birth and Growth Study is a prospective birth cohort established at Ewha Womans University Mokdong Hospital in Seoul, Republic of Korea. Pregnant women were recruited between 2001 and 2006, and their offspring were followed longitudinally from birth through childhood, adolescence, and young adulthood.

Effectiveness of a Counseling Program on Exclusive Breastfeeding Rates in a Primary Care Center

Introduction: Evidence supports that exclusive breastfeeding (EBF) is the most beneficial method of infant feeding up to 6 months of age. The practice confers numerous advantages for the infant and the mother. Many breasfeeding are abandoned early due difficulties experienced after dischargue and after returning to work. Development specific early breastfeeding support programs in the community is necessary to avoid unwanted abandonment. Objective: To analyse the differences in BF rates at six month of birth in healthy full-term newborns between the study groups. Methodology: Pilot study of a randomised clinical trial carried out in a Paediatric Nursing clinic at the Ventorrillo Health Centre in A Coruña. The study population will be mothers of healthy full-term newborns who wish to give BF at the time of delivery and whose reference health centre is the one of the study. The mother- newborn dyads in the control group (CG) will receive the usual care described in the child health Program of the Galician Health Service, and the dyads included in the intervention group (IG) will also receive specific advice on breastfeeding during the first 6 months of life. A study sample of 80 participants is estimated for each group. The study will be approved by the Research Ethics Committee of A Coruña-Ferrol. The variables under study will be collected in a data collection notebook for later statistical analysis. A significant value of p \< 0.05 being considered.

3-Dimensional Optical Scanning to Assess and Monitor Malnutrition in Eating Disorders (3D-ED) Study

People with anorexia nervosa often become medically unstable because of severe malnutrition and require hospitalization for nutritional rehabilitation. Clinicians currently rely heavily on body weight to assess malnutrition, but body weight does not always reflect the severity of illness. This study will use infrared scanning to assess body composition in adolescents and young adults hospitalized with anorexia nervosa. Researchers will then examine how organ and tissue stores relate to the degree of malnutrition, predict nutritional needs and medical restoration in hospital, and recovery outcomes over the following year. The goal is to develop more individualized approaches to nutritional rehabilitation and improve recovery for individuals with malnutrition due to eating disorders.

The Impact of Shigellosis and Recommended Treatment in Children

The purpose of this study is to evaluate whether antibiotic treatment of non-dysentery Shigella associated watery diarrhea (NDSD) cases improves clinical outcomes and growth in children. Children with NDSD seeking care for diarrhea at the study hospitals in Bangladesh and Zambia will be enrolled and randomized to receive Azithromycin or placebo (a look-alike substance that contains no drug). Enrolled children will be followed for three months with household visits. The investigators will determine whether antibiotic treatment of NDSD reduces the duration of diarrhea and time to microbiological cure (shedding of Shigella in stool), and whether it improves growth in children compared with the placebo group.

Breastmilk and the Link to Overweight/Obesity and Maternal Diet in the Mother-breastmilk-child Triad

The prospective 5-month follow-up study will involve 150 mother-infant dyads grouped based on maternal baseline BMI category (normal weight, overweight, obesity). The investigators plan 3 study visits (1, 3, and 6 months postpartum) with analysis the following parameters and outcomes: 1. maternal anthropometry and body composition; 2. maternal dietary intake and dietary patterns (with results of biomarker-based validation); 3. maternal status of lipophilic antioxidants, selected vitamins, and fatty acids profile that may be related to adipose tissue metabolism, inflammation, and cardiometabolic status; 4. maternal metabolomics, adipokines, insulin, selected biomarkers of inflammation, altered glucose metabolism, and oxidation; 5. breastmilk composition assessed by systemic approach (macronutrients, fatty acids profile, lipophilic antioxidants, adipokines, hormones, immunological profile, and preliminary lipidomic analysis in part of the study group); 6. infant growth trajectory, body composition, urine metabolomics, and biomarkers of oxidative stress. Additionally, maternal and infant stool, buccal swabs, and human milk samples will be banked for further microbiome analysis studies.

A First-ever Research Collaboration to Characterize MRI Measured Neural Flexibility Development in Chinese Toddlers

The overall objective is to characterize the developmental characteristics of MRI measured neural flexibility, as an index of cognitive flexibility, in Chinese toddlers (32 to 42 months old).

Human Microbiome Research and Development for Overcoming Pediatric Diseases

Prediction and treatment of pediatric diseases and long-term outcomes through microbiome and multi-omics analysis by life cycle: We aim to demonstrate that a wide range of diseases are associated with gut microbiome dysbiosis and to investigate the subsequent recovery (restoration) or further deterioration of the gut microbiome over time. This study seeks to offer a novel perspective on changes in the gut microbiome, particularly in the context of the gut-lung and gut-brain axes.