Clinical Trials

Have you been diagnosed with peripartum cardiomyopathy and are within 5 months of your due date? This study is evaluating the effectiveness of a medicine called bromocriptine to treat peripartum cardiomyopathy, or weakness of the heart muscle that occurs during or shortly after pregnancy. To participate in this study, you must be at least 18 years old, diagnosed with peripartum cardiomyopathy, and within 5 months of your delivery date. This study takes place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Do you have cardiomyopathy that has led to moderate or severe mitral regurgitation? This study is exploring the best surgical technique to repair mitral regurgitation by comparing two procedures called undersizing mitral annuloplasty (UMA) and papillary muscle approximation (PMA). A UMA is a common procedure that involves implanting a prosthetic ring onto the mitral valve to stop the valve from leaking. A PMA is a newer technique in which a suture draws together the two muscles that connect the mitral valve to the heart muscle prior to performing UMA. To participate in this study, you must be 18 years old or older and have never had a mitral valve repair procedure. This study takes place in Atlanta, Georgia.

Does your child have Down Syndrome? Did they have a complete atrioventricular septal defect (CAVSD) repair within the first year of their life? Researchers in this study are investigating how the
brain develops in children with Down Syndrome who have congenital heart disease. To participate, your child must be between 5 and 12 years old and have Down Syndrome. The study will enroll children who have congenital heart disease as well as children who do not have congenital heart disease. The study is taking place in locations in Delaware, Georgia, Indiana, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, Utah, Washington, D.C., and Toronto, Canada

Do you or one of your children have a congenital heart defect? This study will find both common genetic causes of congenital heart disease and ways that genes influence results of medical treatment. To participate in this study, you or your child must have congenital heart disease. This study is located in Los Angeles, Palo Alto, and San Francisco, California; New Haven, Connecticut; Boston, Massachusetts; New York and Rochester, New York; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; and Salt Lake City, Utah.

Is your child undergoing heart surgery for congenital heart disease? This study aims to help researchers better understand the developing heart and what controls the strength of its beats by comparing it to adult hearts. Researchers will study small pieces of the heart that are removed as a normal part of surgery or repair for children with congenital heart disease. To participate in this study, your child must be undergoing cardiopulmonary bypass surgery and be 18 years old or younger. The study is located in Atlanta, Georgia.

Does your infant have a low platelet count? This study investigates immature platelet counts as a marker for bleeding risk in newborns with thrombocytopenia, compared with platelet counts alone. Immature platelets are the most recently produced platelets and may be a better marker of platelet production. To participate in this study, you must have a newborn who is less than 32 weeks’ gestational age, has a birth weight greater than 500 grams, and has a platelet count less than 100 × 109/L. This study takes place in multiple locations in the United States, the Netherlands, and Sweden.

Are you an adult with polycythemia vera or thrombocytosis? This study aims to find a new treatment or cure for polycythemia vera and thrombocytosis by locating genes and their changes, or mutations, that may contribute to these disorders. To participate in this study, you must have polycythemia vera with elevated hemoglobin (higher than 18 in men and 16 in women) or thrombocytosis with an elevated platelet count (higher than 450,000). This study takes place in Salt Lake City, Utah.