Clinical Trial Information The Virginia Heart & Vascular Institute offers patients the opportunity to participate in clinical trials that may result in medical breakthroughs – a way for patients with heart disease to help themselves and help others. What is a clinical trial?
It’s a research study conducted by VHVI physicians and their collaborators to determine the safety and effectiveness of new drugs, new medical devices and new techniques. We typically enroll patients to compare the new medicine or device with what is currently being prescribed as the standard of care. Some of our clinical trials are small, involving less than a dozen patients. Others are part of a multi-center study involving thousands of patients. What kinds of things are tested in clinical trials?
The National Institutes of Health (NIH) classifies clinical trials into five types and VHVI has several of these currently in the enrollment or investigation phase: - Prevention trials – investigating ways to prevent people from getting a disease or having it return
- Screening trials – finding the most effective ways to detect disease
- Diagnostic trials – searching for better ways to diagnose a disease
- Treatment trials – testing new treatments, such as new medicines, new surgical techniques and new radiation therapies
- Quality of life trials – seeking ways to improve the quality of life for people who have diseases
What clinical trials are open to VHVI patients?
Currently, VHVI patients are participating in more than a dozen trials that could have a profound impact on cardiovascular care in the future. We hope to attract more women to our clinical trials because heart disease is the leading cause of death among American women. Current statistics show that 38% of women and 25% of men will die within one year of a first-recognized heart attack. What VHVI physicians are conducting clinical trials? - Frans Vossenberg, MD, FACC
- Robert Vranian, MD, FACC
- John M. Armitage, MD, FACS
- Harish R. Chandra, MD, MPH, FACC
- Thomas Martyak, MD, FACC
For more information about participating in a VHVI clinical trial, please contact: Contact Information
540.741.4657 More on Cardiac Research at VHVI More on Understanding Clinical Trials- U.S. National Institute's of Health Search All Clinical Trials including VHVI- U.S. National Institute's of Health |