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Spinal Cord CompressionNCT00280306

White Matter Fiber Tracking and Assessment of White Matter Integrity in the Cervical Spinal Cord

An observational study of Spinal Cord Compression, run by Weill Medical College of Cornell University at 1 site in United States.

Completed

Finished. The study has ended and is not enrolling. Results may be posted on the official record.

Official record
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Trial summary

White matter fiber tracking may provide a novel tool to assess the integrity of injured motor tracts in the cervical spine. It provides information about fiber directions which is not given by conventional MRI. Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 21 years and olderHealthy volunteers can take part
Conditions the study is for
Spinal Cord Compression
How many people
35 participants
Where
1 siteUnited States
Study dates
Nov 2005to Oct 2008
Phase
Observational
Are there results?
None posted in the registry

Key requirements

Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.

  • Ages 21 years and older
  • All sexes
  • Healthy volunteers accepted
  • Adult, Older adult

Study population: Cervical spinal cord compression

Who may be able to join

  • Normal controls Spinal cord injury

Who cannot join

  • N/A

Trial locations and contacts

1 site in 1 country.

United States1 site
  • Weill Medical College of Cornell

    New York, New York, 10021

Other trials in United States

About this study

Official title: White Matter Fiber Tracking and Assessment of White Matter Integrity in the Cervical Spinal Cord - Pilot Study

White matter fiber tracking may provide a novel tool to assess the integrity of injured motor tracts in the cervical spine. It provides information about fiber directions which is not given by conventional MRI. White matter fiber tracking in the brain is used at several institutions, including our own medical college, for presurgical planning of tumor excision. We believe that the technical and clinical experience gained for the brain can be applied to fiber tracking in the cervical spine as well.

Read the detailed description

White matter fiber tracking may provide a novel tool to assess the integrity of injured motor tracts in the cervical spine. It provides information about fiber directions which is not given by conventional MRI. White matter fiber tracking in the brain is used at several institutions, including our own medical college, for presurgical planning of tumor excision. We believe that the technical and clinical experience gained for the brain can be applied to fiber tracking in the cervical spine as well. White matter fiber tracking in the cervical spine has some important clinical applications:

  • A better understanding of the relationship between abnormal cervical spinal anatomy and the impact on fiber tracts would be helpful in determining the best treatment for a particular patient. It may be able to define the indication and role of surgical decompression and stabilization based on quantifiable and reproducible data obtained with this new imaging technology.
  • It could help the surgeon to determine what type of surgical approach to choose (anterior versus posterior surgery, depending on the degree of compression / impingement on nerve fibers).
  • Correlation between quantitative diffusion measures and spinal cord injury may be used in monitoring the response to treatment and may therefore be an important parameter for clinicians to follow.
  • White matter fiber tracking may also help to determine the pathophysiology underlying cervical spondylotic myelopathy. Currently, there is a debate as to whether cervical spondylitic myelopathy is caused mainly by compressive narrowing of the spinal canal, which may lead to focal ischemia and tissue injury, or whether excessive motion due to cervical spondylosis results in increased strain and shear of spinal axons resulting in injury (Henderson et al., Neurosurgery 56(5):1101-13, 2005). If the latter is correct one would expect diffusion changes along the course of white matter tracks above and below the spondylotic changes.

We will first study a pool of 15 normal control subjects to refine our data acquisition and postprocessing tools, and to sample quantitative diffusion based data for the normal cervical spine. A second group of subjects will include 10 patients with significant cervical spondylosis and upper extremity radiculopathy without myelopathy. The third group will be 10 patients with cervical spondylosis and signs and symptoms of myelopathy. The two patient groups will allow us to define systematic differences between normal values and values in the injured spine.

The DTI data will be processed using tools for artifact correction first and then tools for rendering T2 weighted images, diffusion weighted images, ADC maps and FA values.

Being tested
No interventions
Medical subject headings
Spinal Cord Compression

What participants receive

What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.

  • No interventionsOther

    No intervention

What is being measured

The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.

  1. Imaging study of white matter in spinal cord; define systematic differences between normal values and values in the injured spine

    Measured: Up to 3 years

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

  1. First posted20 Jan 2006 (estimated)
  2. Study startNov 2005
  3. Primary completionOct 2008
  4. Study completionOct 2008

Resources

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design
Study type
Observational
Observational model
Case-control
Time perspective
Cross-sectional
Enrolment
35 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT00280306
Sponsor's protocol ID
1-Voss
Status last verified
Jun 2015
First submitted
17 Jan 2006
Last updated
4 Jun 2015
Results posted
No

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

An observational study of Spinal Cord Compression, run by Weill Medical College of Cornell University at 1 site in United States.

The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.

Who may be eligible to take part?

The sponsor lists 1 inclusion and 1 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.

Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?

The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 4 Jun 2015. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 1 site in United States. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.

Are results available for this study?

The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.

How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?

The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

Imaging study of white matter in spinal cord; define systematic differences between normal values and values in the injured spine (time frame: Up to 3 years). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?

No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.

How often is this information updated?

AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 4 Jun 2015.

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