Imaging Lymphatic Function in Normal Subjects and in Persons With Lymphatic Disorders

March 6, 2026 updated by: Eva Sevick, The University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston

Phase I/II Combinational Investigational New Drug Application: Imaging Lymphatic Function in Normal Subjects and in Persons With Lymphatic Disorders

The purpose of this study is to demonstrate the feasibility of near-infrared fluorescence imaging in subjects with acquired or hereditary lymphedema, in subjects with lipidema and other lymphovascular disorders and in normal health subjects; in order to attempt to correlate imaging phenotype(s) with genotype(s).

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Enrolling by invitation

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Detailed Description

Currently, there is no method to assess lymphatic function in persons with acquired (developed following surgery or trauma) lymphedema, hereditary lymphedema or other lympho-vascular disorders. The causes of these disorders, and the means to distinguish between them, is not available from existing diagnostics. A method to monitor lymphatic function could assist in the development of new therapies, the prediction of a patient's susceptibility to develop these disorders, and the evaluation of patient's conditions or responses to therapy and treatment. In this Phase I/II trial, we inject Indocyanine Green (ICG) off-label as a lymph contrast agent and use a custom designed fluorescence imager to conduct near-infrared fluorescence imaging to dynamically follow lymphatic trafficking in subjects. Blood is also collected for DNA analysis. The resulting images are analyzed, and the phenotypes observed in both normal and diseased subjects are used to correlate to mutations of specific genes reported to be associated with lymphatic development.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Observational

Enrollment (Estimated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
283

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • United States
    • Texas
      • Houston, Texas, United States, 77030
        • Lymphedema Clinic at Memorial Hermann Hospital in the Texas Medical Center
      • Houston, Texas, United States, 77030
        • UT Physicians Pediatric Surgery Clinic
      • The Woodlands, Texas, United States, 77384
        • Wound Care Clinic at CHI St. Luke's The Woodland's Hospital

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

3 months and older (Child, Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Sampling Method

Non-Probability Sample

Study Population

1) Persons with lymphatic dysfunction (e.g. lymphedema, lipedema, dercums, etc.), 2) Persons with vascular malformation that suggest a lymphatic component, 3) Family members of persons, whom participated in this study, with a lymphatic dysfunction or vascular malformation that suggests a lymphatic component and 3) Healthy, normal individuals as controls

Description

Inclusion Criteria for Participation in NIRFLI with ICG (Group 1):

  1. Negative urine pregnancy test within 36 hours prior to study drug administration, if female of childbearing potential.
  2. Females must complete the Female Enrollment Form. Those subjects of childbearing potential must agree to use one of the medically accepted methods of contraception listed on the form for a period of one month following the study. Female subjects of non-childbearing potential, defined as physiologically incapable of becoming pregnant, must meet the criteria listed on the Female Enrollment form, but are not restricted to the use of contraception following study participation.
  3. Subjects must be able to lie on their backs for periods of 10 minutes at at time for up to a total of 60 minutes.
  4. Children must be able to remain reasonably still for the time required for imaging.
  5. Subjects with lymphatic dysfunction must be diagnosed with lymphedema, lipedema, or vascular malformation/anomaly that suggests a lymphatic component.

Exclusion Criteria for Participation in NIRFLI with ICG (Group 1):

  1. Persons with mobililty issues that could make participating too difficult
  2. Women who are pregnant or breast-feeding
  3. Persons who are allergic to iodine
  4. Persons who weigh in excess of 400 lbs
  5. If the subject is a female of child-bearing potential, she must agree to use a contraceptive for one month after study participation.
  6. Persons who do not meet inclusion criteria.

Inclusion Criteria for Participation in Genetic Analysis Only (Group 2):

  1. The subject has a family member with lymphatic dysfunction.
  2. The subject is willing to have blood drawn or saliva collected for DNA analysis

Exclusion Criteria for Participation in Genetic Analysis Only (Group 2):

1) The subject has experienced a medical problem from a prior blood draw

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

Cohorts and Interventions

Group / Cohort

Group / Cohort

A group or subgroup of participants in an observational study that is assessed for biomedical or health outcomes.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
1: NIRFLI with ICG
1) Persons affected with lymphatic or lympho-vascular disorders, 2) Family members (affected or unaffected) of persons affected with lymphatic or lympho-vascular disorders and 3) Health, normal persons (Controls) that participate at one of the clinical sites in both the lymphatic function imaging with indocyanine green and the Near-infrared Fluorescence Lymphatic Imaging (NIRFLI) system, as well, as the genetic analysis portion of the study.
Drug: NIRFLI with ICG
We conduct Near-infrared Fluorescence Lymphatic Imaging following the off-label use of Indocyanine Green as a lymph contrast agent and the use of a custom designed fluorescence imager to dynamically follow lymphatic trafficking in subjects. We seek to use the resulting phenotypes acquired in normal and diseased patients to correlate to mutations of specific genes reported to be associated with lymphatic development.
Other Names:
  • ICG
  • IC-Green
  • Cardio-Green
  • Near-infrared Fluorescence Lymphatic Imaging (NIRFLI)
2: Genetic Analysis Only
Family members of an affected subject from Group 1. Subjects in Group 2 can be either affected or unaffected and will provide a blood or saliva sample for the genetic analysis portion of the study, but will not undergo lymphatic function imaging with ICG and the NIRFLI system. Group 2 individuals are not required to travel to one of the clinical sites in order to participate in the study.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Time Frame
Near-infrared fluorescence lymphatic imaging (NIRFLI) provides informaton on lymphatic function or dysfunction to diagnose disorders
Time Frame: Images are collected for up to 3 hours after injection with indocyanine green
Images are collected for up to 3 hours after injection with indocyanine green

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
The University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
National Cancer Institute (NCI)
National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
Lymphatic Malformation Institute
Lipedema Foundation

Investigators

Investigators

A researcher involved in a clinical study. Related terms include site principal investigator, site sub-investigator, study chair, study director, and study principal investigator.
  • Principal Investigator: Eva M Sevick, PhD, The University of Texas Health Science Center, Houston

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
January 1, 2009

Primary Completion (Estimated)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
December 1, 2030

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
December 1, 2030

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
January 30, 2009

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
January 30, 2009

First Posted (Estimated)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
February 2, 2009

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
March 10, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
March 6, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
March 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • HSC-IMM-08-0415
  • R01HL092923 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)
  • R01CA128919 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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