Effects of N-acetylcysteine on Muscle Fatigue in Hemodialysis (NAC)

Effects of N-acetylcysteine on Muscle Fatigue in ESRD

The purposes of the study are to determine whether oxidative stress causes the muscle of dialysis patients to tire more quickly than muscle of people without kidney disease and to determine whether treatment with N-acetylcysteine, an antioxidant, can improve muscle endurance.

Study Overview

Detailed Description

Muscle dysfunction is a major problem for patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD). Specifically, these patients experience approximately three-fold greater muscle fatigue of the lower extremities during intermittent submaximal contractions than healthy control subjects. Thus, a treatment that could ameliorate muscle fatigue in this population has the potential to increase endurance during activities of daily living and improve quality of life. Dialysis patients have been shown to have high levels of various markers of oxidative stress, and oxidative stress has been associated with excessive muscle fatigue in other patient populations, but this link has not been established in the ESRD population.

Comparisons: The amount of muscle fatigue during intermittent submaximal quadriceps exercise between dialysis patients and controls will be compared. In addition, the degree of exercise-induced increase in markers of oxidative stress in muscle and in plasma will be compared between dialysis patients and controls and between dialysis patients who have received N-acetylcysteine for 6 days and those who have received placebo capsules.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Anticipated)

30

Phase

  • Phase 1

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

    • California
      • San Francisco, California, United States, 94121
        • San Francisco VA Medical Center

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

18 years and older (Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • age greater than 18 years
  • undergoing hemodialysis for 3 months or more or healthy control without kidney disease

Exclusion Criteria:

  • inability to give informed consent
  • diagnosis of diabetes mellitus
  • musculoskeletal contraindication to exercise
  • infection requiring intravenous antibiotics within 2 months
  • hospitalization within 2 months
  • ingestion of antioxidant supplements within one month
  • requirement for systemic anticoagulation
  • estimated GFR <60 ml/min/1.73 m2 for healthy controls

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

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Quadruple

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Placebo Comparator: placebo
bid oral dosing
Experimental: N-acetylcysteine
Active
600 mg po bid

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Time Frame
change in quadriceps muscle endurance during intermittent submaximal contractions
Time Frame: 6 days
6 days
change in exercise-induced markers of oxidative stress
Time Frame: 8 days
8 days

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Kirsten L Johansen, MD, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco VA Medical Center

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

March 1, 2007

Primary Completion (Actual)

December 1, 2009

Study Completion (Actual)

December 1, 2009

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

February 26, 2007

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

February 26, 2007

First Posted (Estimate)

February 27, 2007

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimate)

March 3, 2010

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

March 2, 2010

Last Verified

March 1, 2010

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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