PET Scans in Normal Volunteers and Patients With Fabry Disease

(18)Fluorodeoxyglucose Positron Emission Tomography in Patients With Fabry Disease

This study will determine the rate of sugar metabolism in the brain of patients with Fabry disease, a genetic disease of abnormal lipid metabolism. Compared with healthy people, patients with Fabry disease have increased blood flow to the brain, which may result from abnormal brain metabolic activity. This study will use positron emission tomography (PET) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to compare brain sugar metabolism in eight untreated patients, eight patients who are receiving enzyme replacement therapy, and eight healthy volunteers.

Patients with treated and untreated Fabry disease and normal volunteers may be eligible for this study. Participants will undergo the following two procedures:

  1. PET scan < The patient lies in the PET scanning machine. First, the chest is scanned for a few minutes to determine how much radiation the tissues of the chest absorb. A radioactive sugar called fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) is then injected through a catheter (thin plastic tube placed in a vein) and the heart is scanned for about 45 minutes to measure the amount of FDG in the blood inside the heart. The head is then scanned for about 20 minutes to measure FDG in the brain. This measurement tells how much sugar the brain uses for energy. The procedure requires insertion of two or three catheters. A special facemask may be molded to the patient's head to help hold the head still during the scanning.
  2. MRI scan < The patient lies on a table surrounded by the scanner (a metal cylinder) for about 60 minutes. A strong magnetic field and radio waves are used to show images of structural and chemical changes in tissues.

This study may provide information that will help explain abnormalities in Fabry disease and the effect of treatment on the brain.

Study Overview

Status

Completed

Conditions

Detailed Description

We have found that patients with Fabry disease have an increased resting global cerebral blood flow compared with healthy subjects. This augmentation may result from an abnormal metabolic activity in the brain of the patients. The goal of this protocol is to study the cerebral metabolic rate of glucose (rCMRGlu) in eight untreated patients with Fabry disease, eight Fabry patients who are receiving enzyme replacement therapy and compare it with the rCMRGlu eight in healthy volunteers. In order to minimize the need for arterial lines we shall image the left ventricle of the heart to obtain the (18)FDG time-activity curve needed to measure rCMRGlu. The method will be validated in the healthy volunteers.

Study Type

Observational

Enrollment

24

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

    • Maryland
      • Bethesda, Maryland, United States, 20892
        • National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)

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

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Child
  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Genders Eligible for Study

Male

Description

Hemizygote male Fabry patients 18-50 years-of-age.

Must be able to tolerate the procedures.

Must be able to give written informed consent.

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?

Collaborators and Investigators

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

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.

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

April 1, 2000

Study Completion

March 1, 2001

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

April 13, 2000

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

December 9, 2002

First Posted (Estimate)

December 10, 2002

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimate)

March 4, 2008

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

March 3, 2008

Last Verified

March 1, 2000

More Information

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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