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Traumatic Brain InjuryPhase 1NCT03417492

Cerebrovascular Reactivity in American Football Players

A Phase 1 study testing Sildenafil Citrate in people with Traumatic Brain Injury and Mild Traumatic Brain Injury, run by University of Pennsylvania at 1 site in United States.

Terminated

Stopped early. The study ended before it was planned to and will not resume.

Official record
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Trial summary

Investigators will measure cerebrovascular reactivity (CVR) using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) during the chronic phase after repetitive mild traumatic brain injury (rmTBI) as a biomarker of traumatic cerebrovascular injury (TCVI). Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 40 to 65 years, men only
What is being tested?
Sildenafil Citrate
Type of treatment
Pill or oral medicine
Could I receive a placebo?
No, everyone receives an active treatment
How many people
7 participants
Where
1 siteUnited States
Study dates
1 Mar 2018to 30 Jun 2022
Phase
Phase 1
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 40 to 65 years
  • Men only
  • No healthy volunteers
  • Adult, Older adult

Who may be able to join

  • Age 40-65 years
  • Former National Football League (NFL) players or former varsity college football players
  • Ability to undergo MRI scanning
  • Ability to read, write, and speak English
  • Stable doses of concomitant medications for last 2 weeks prior to enrollment
  • Diagnosis of post-concussive syndrome according to Diagnostic and Statistical Manual 5 (DSM-5) criteria

Who cannot join

  • Contraindication to sildenafil
  • Past medical history or evidence of penetrating brain injury
  • Daily therapy with a PDE5 inhibitor within the past 2 months, or taken as needed within past 4 weeks
  • History or evidence of pre-existing disabling neurological or psychiatric disorder not related to previous head injuries
  • History of melanoma
  • History of diagnosed obstructive/ restrictive pulmonary disease 7 .) Contraindication to MRI

Trial locations and contacts

1 site in 1 country.

United States1 site
  • Penn Presbyterian Medical Center

    Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 19104

Other trials in United States

About this study

Official title: Cerebrovascular Reactivity Assessed With Functional Near-infrared Spectroscopy and Magnetic Resonance Imaging as a Biomarker of Traumatic Microvascular Injury in American Football Players

Investigators will measure cerebrovascular reactivity (CVR) using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) during the chronic phase after repetitive mild traumatic brain injury (rmTBI) as a biomarker of traumatic cerebrovascular injury (TCVI). We hypothesize that CVR will be decreased in patients with rmTBI and that these decreases will correlate with clinical outcomes. Furthermore, we predict that 5 week administration of a phosphodiesterase 5 (PDE5) inhibitor, sildenafil citrate, will augment CVR in patients with a history rmTBI.

Being tested
Sildenafil Citrate
Keywords
TBI, CVR, Hypercapnia, fNIRS, functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), American football
Medical subject headings
Brain Injuries, Traumatic, Brain Concussion, Post-Concussion Syndrome, Hypercapnia

What participants receive

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

  • Sildenafil CitrateDrug

    Also called Open label forced titration with sildenafil citrate.

    Three 20 mg capsules for the single dose studies. For the 5-week treatment phase, subjects will be assigned to a titration of doses for the 5 week duration of the study. Subjects will be instructed to take 20mg twice per day for 3 days, then 40mg twice per day for 3 days, and then 80mg twice per day for 4 weeks.

Study groups in NCT03417492
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
Sildenafil CitrateExperimentalOpen label treatment with forced titration of sildenafil citrate.
Receives: Drug: Sildenafil Citrate

What is being measured

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

  1. Effect of single dose sildenafil citrate treatment on global blood oxygen level-dependent (BOLD) response to hypercapnia.

    Determine if single dose treatment with sildenafil (60 mg orally) is effective in increasing the global BOLD response to hypercapnia (5% CO2).

    Measured: Immediate

Secondary outcomes (2)
  1. Effect of single dose sildenafil citrate treatment on functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) response to hypercapnia.

    Determine if single dose treatment with sildenafil (60 mg orally) is effective in increasing the functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) response to hypercapnia (5% CO2).

    Measured: Immediate

  2. Maximum tolerable dose of sildenafil therapy without severe adverse events.

    The number of participants reporting treatment-related adverse events (AEs) and serious adverse events (SAEs) will be monitored after each dose increase. AEs and SAEs are assessed using CTCAE, v4.0.

    Measured: 5 weeks

Timeline

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

  1. First posted31 Jan 2018
  2. Study start1 Mar 2018
  3. Primary completion30 Jun 2022
  4. Study completion30 Jun 2022

Why it stopped: Difficulty enrolling participants due to COVID emergency, and planned start of new study to address this question in a more rigorous fashion.

Resources

More details

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

Study design
Study type
Interventional
Phase
Phase 1
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Not applicable
Intervention model
Single group
Model description
Open-label, non-placebo controlled
Masking
None (open label)
Enrolment
7 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT03417492
Sponsor's protocol ID
827103
Status last verified
Sep 2022
First submitted
11 Oct 2017
Last updated
21 Sep 2022
Results posted
No
Data monitoring committee
No
FDA-regulated drug
Yes
FDA-regulated device
No

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A Phase 1 study testing Sildenafil Citrate in people with Traumatic Brain Injury and Mild Traumatic Brain Injury, run by University of Pennsylvania 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 6 inclusion and 6 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: stopped early, as of the sponsor's last update on 21 Sep 2022. 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.

What does this phase mean?

Phase 1 studies test a treatment in a small group of people for the first time or in a new way, mainly to check safety and find the right dose.

Not every study follows the same path, and some studies (observational studies, device studies) have no phase.

Are results available for this study?

The study was stopped early (reason given: Difficulty enrolling participants due to COVID emergency, and planned start of new study to address this question in a more rigorous fashion.). Results are not available in the source record.

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?

Effect of single dose sildenafil citrate treatment on global blood oxygen level-dependent (BOLD) response to hypercapnia. (time frame: Immediate). 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 21 Sep 2022.

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