Role of Endorphins in the Perception of Dyspnea in Patients With Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

Completed · Not applicable · Has a placebo group

Conditions studied: Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease

In brief

Endorphins are naturally occurring narcotic substances that are released when individuals perform exercise. The hypothesis of the study is that endorphins reduce the severity of breathlessness during exercise in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The initial five visits include familiarization and validation of a computerized system for patients to report dyspnea and leg discomfort continuously during exercise testing. At Visits 6 and 7 blood is drawn to measure serum endorphin levels pre-exercise, end exercise, and 30 minutes after exercise. Normal saline or naloxone is given intravenously 5 minutes prior to exercise in a double-blinded design. The primary outcome is the slope of oxygen consumption - dyspnea.

Key facts

Study ID

NCT00458419

Run by

Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center

People needed

17

Starts

2005-09-01

Expected to finish

2007-05-01

Last updated by the study team

2007-11-02

Who can join

Age: 50 and older, up to 90. Sex: any. Healthy volunteers: not accepted.

You may qualify if…

• Diagnosis of COPD
• Ability to exercise
• Ability to computer mouse to provide ratings
• > 10 pack-years smoking
• Baseline dyspnea index < 9

You may not qualify if…

• Clinically significant comorbidities

Where it is running

• Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center — Lebanon, New Hampshire, United States

Full record on ClinicalTrials.gov

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