Adjuvant Steroid Outcomes in Idiopathic Subglottic Stenosis (ASTRO)

This study will examine the ability of steroid injections into the site of stenosis following surgical dilation to delay the need for repeated surgical dilations.

Study Overview

• Status: Recruiting
• Conditions: Idiopathic Subglottic Stenosis
• Intervention / Treatment: Drug: Triamcinolone 0.1%; Drug: Placebo

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Estimated): 226
• Phase: Phase 3

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Alexander Hillel, M.D.; Phone Number: 4432876006; Email: ahillel@jh.edu

Study Locations

• United States
  • California
    • San Diego, California, United States, 92121
      • Not yet recruiting
      • University of California - San Diego
      • Contact: Daniel Cates; Email: djcates@health.ucsd.edu
      • Principal Investigator: Daniel Cates, MD
    • San Francisco, California, United States, 94115
      • Not yet recruiting
      • University of California - San Francisco
      • Principal Investigator: Clark Rosen, MD
      • Contact: Meera Kohli; Email: meera.kohli@ucsf.edu
  • Colorado
    • Aurora, Colorado, United States, 80045
      • Not yet recruiting
      • University Of Colorado
      • Contact: Yosr Doghri; Email: yosr.doghri@cuanschutz.edu
      • Principal Investigator: Matthew Clary, MD
  • Florida
    • Tampa, Florida, United States, 33612
      • Recruiting
      • University of South Florida
      • Contact: Jacquie Persaud; Email: jdpersaud@usf.edu
      • Principal Investigator: Yael Bensoussan, MD
  • Iowa
    • Iowa City, Iowa, United States, 52242
      • Not yet recruiting
      • University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics
      • Contact: Emma Thayer; Email: emma-thayer@uiowa.edu
      • Principal Investigator: Matthew Hoffman, MD, PhD
  • Maryland
    • Baltimore, Maryland, United States, 21231
      • Recruiting
      • Johns Hopkins Hospital
      • Principal Investigator: Alexander Hillel, MD
      • Contact: Sarah E Collins, M.S.; Phone Number: 434-962-3058; Email: shirsh1@jh.edu
      • Contact: Sam L Collins, Ph.D.; Phone Number: 4107020420; Email: scollin7@jhmi.edu
      • Sub-Investigator: Kevin Motz, MD
  • New York
    • Rochester, New York, United States, 14642
      • Not yet recruiting
      • University of Rochester Medical Center
      • Contact: Paul Allen; Email: paul_allen@urmc.rochester.edu
      • Principal Investigator: G. Todd Schneider, MD, MS
  • Tennessee
    • Nashville, Tennessee, United States, 37232
      • Recruiting
      • Vanderbilt University Medical Center
      • Principal Investigator: Alexander Gelbard, MD
      • Contact: Samantha Salvi Cruz; Email: samantha.salvicruz@vumc.org
  • Utah
    • Salt Lake City, Utah, United States, 84112
      • Recruiting
      • University of Utah
      • Contact: Chen Wilson; Email: u0661901@utah.edu
      • Principal Investigator: Breanne Schiffer, MD, MPH
  • Wisconsin
    • Madison, Wisconsin, United States, 53792
      • Not yet recruiting
      • University of Wisconsin - Madison
      • Contact: Maddie Baranek; Email: baranek@surgery.wisc.edu
      • Principal Investigator: David Francis, MD

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: Adult; Older Adult
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

1. Diagnosis of iSGS following the NoAAC criteria which involves ruling out known causes for airway stenosis. Participants may be newly diagnosed or carry an existing diagnosis of iSGS;
2. Age Range: 18 years to 80 years old at the time of consent;
3. Sex distribution: all eligible men and women will be included, and no one will be excluded;
4. Have a life expectancy of ≥6 months; and,
5. ECOG performance status of 0 or 1.

Exclusion Criteria:

1. History of subglottic stenosis from identifiable cause (not idiopathic), including any of the below clinical criteria:

   1. Prolonged endotracheal intubation or tracheostomy (intervention greater than 7 days immediately prior to diagnosis of subglottic stenosis);
   2. External physical trauma (including but not limited to blunt, penetration, chemical, or thermal injury) that causes injury to the subglottis;
   3. Clinical diagnosis of granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA);
   4. Radiation exposure to the neck;
   5. Complications resulting from the Index Procedure, including needing an endotracheal tube or tracheostomy immediately following surgery or a perforation of the trachea;
2. Current or previous treatment with SILSI;

3. Use of systemic corticosteroids (oral, intravenous, or intramuscular glucocorticoids), regardless of indication, within 7 days before triamcinolone administration;

   1. Local administration of corticosteroids (ophthalmic, intranasal, inhaled) is not prohibited. However, the administration of intraarticular corticosteroids during the Study Drug Dosing phase is not recommended due to potential increased risk of infection.
   2. Intralesional administration, in a site other than the subglottis, of corticosteroids should be discussed with the site PI before enrollment.
   3. Use of inhaled steroids is permitted during the study if the participant was taking at the time of consent, and no new inhaled steroids can be started while enrolled in the study.
4. Intraarticular corticosteroids during the Study Drug Dosing phase due to potential increased risk of infection;
5. Use of anticoagulants other than aspirin (daily aspirin dose should not exceed 81mg);
6. Pulmonary disease including interstitial lung disease or COPD/emphysema;
7. Systemic infection requiring treatment with antibiotics, antifungal, or antiviral agents within 21 days of Enrollment;
8. Poorly controlled diabetes as defined by a HbA1C value greater or equal to 8.0 in the last 180 days;
9. Participants with active cancer or a history of cancer in the last 5 years prior to enrollment, except for squamous or basal cell carcinoma of the skin;
10. Participation in any clinical trial involving an investigational drug or device, within four weeks, or 5 half-lives of the investigational agent (whichever time point is longer) prior to enrollment or during this trial participation;
11. Active autoimmune disease requiring systemic treatment;
12. History of solid organ transplant due to use of immunosuppression;
13. Contraindication to any aspect of the index procedure;
14. Inability to tolerate in-office SILSI procedure;
15. Contraindication, hypersensitivity, or history of intolerance to oral or injectable steroids;

16. Contraindication to SMOFlipid including any of the below:

    1. Severe lipid metabolism disorders characterized by hypertriglyceridemia (greater than 500 mg/dL);
    2. Hypersensitivity to eggs, soybean, peanut protein, or any active ingredient in SMOFlipid;
    3. History of intolerance to SMOFlipid;
17. Participants with known, suspected, or plan for becoming pregnant in the next 6 months after the index procedure, or participants who are breastfeeding;
18. NYHA class II-IV heart failure within the past 6 months prior to Enrollment;
19. History of angioedema;
20. Lack of capacity to consent;
21. Alcohol or substance abuse or dependence in the past 6 months prior to Enrollment;
22. Participants who for any reason may not complete the study as judged by the PI;
23. Participants planning to move to another city or state for 6 months after the Index Procedure;
24. Not able to undergo phlebotomy as reported by the participant or determined by the study coordinator or physician.
25. The presence of a medical condition, lab test result, and/or use of a medication and/or any substance, individually or in aggregate, that in the judgement of the site investigator could impair study participation.

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

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

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Intralesional steroid injection with Triamcinolone	Drug: Triamcinolone 0.1%; Intralesional Triamcinolone injection 3x at one, two, and three months following surgical dilation
Placebo Comparator: Intralesional Placebo injection	Drug: Placebo; Intralesional Placebo injection 3x at one, two, and three months following surgical dilation

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Time Frame
Change in Peak Expiratory Flow (Liters/min)	6 Months

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
Clinical COPD Questionnaire	Score range 0-60, Lower score indicates better health	6 months
Voice Handicap Index-10	Score range 0 to 40, Lower score indicates better voice	6 Months

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Johns Hopkins University
• Collaborators: National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI)
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Alexander Hillel, MD, Johns Hopkins University

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (Actual): May 20, 2026
• Primary Completion (Estimated): January 1, 2031
• Study Completion (Estimated): January 1, 2032

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: November 11, 2025
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: November 11, 2025
• First Posted (Actual): November 14, 2025

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (Actual): August 24, 2026
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: August 21, 2026
• Last Verified: August 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: Stenosis; Steroid injection
• Additional Relevant MeSH Terms: Pathological Conditions, Anatomical; Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms; Constriction, Pathologic; Idiopathic subglottic tracheal stenosis
• Other Study ID Numbers: IRB00507375; 1UG3HL173394-01A1 (U.S. NIH Grant/Contract)

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: YES
• IPD Sharing Supporting Information Type: STUDY_PROTOCOL; ICF

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: Yes
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No
• product manufactured in and exported from the U.S.: No