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CompletedNCT03073798Updated Jul 27, 2017Results posted

The Effectiveness of Roflumilast in Improving Mucociliary Clearance in Patients With COPD and Chronic Bronchitis

A Phase 4 interventional study of Roflumilast and Placebo in COPD, Chronic Bronchitis and Emphysema, sponsored by Johns Hopkins University. Completed. Open to participants aged 40 Years and older. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2017-07-27.

Sponsored by Johns Hopkins University · Phase 4, Interventional, and Treatment

From the registry’s dates

  • Registered 3 years 11 months after the study started (first participant enrolled Mar 2013, registered Mar 2017).
Phase
Phase 4
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
12
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
40 Years and older
Sex
All
01

Study summary

Specific Aim: To determine the effectiveness of Roflumilast in improving i) whole right lung and ii) peripheral right lung mucociliary clearance (MCC) in patients with COPD and chronic bronchitis.

Hypothesis: Roflumilast increases mucociliary clearance in patients with chronic bronchitis.

Study Design: This will be a double-blinded, cross-over randomized controlled trial with 1:1 randomization of 20 individuals with chronic bronchitis. Subjects will undergo baseline MCC then will be randomized to either roflumilast or placebo x 4 weeks, then there will be a 4 week wash-out phase and a second 4 week period of roflumilast/placebo depending on initial randomization. MCC will be conducted at baseline and at the end of each 4 week medication phase.

Read the detailed description

The purpose of this study is to investigate how well Roflumilast improves mucociliary clearance in people with chronic bronchitis. Several studies show that roflumilast may modulate (change) mucociliary function. This study is designed to determine if these favorable effects lead to improved mucociliary clearance (MCC) in people with chronic bronchitis, thereby, reducing the potential for acute infections and hospitalizations. Daliresp® (roflumilast) is a drug currently marketed (approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use in humans) in the U.S. and is indicated (used) for treatment of people with severe COPD to treat the symptoms of cough and excess mucous linked to chronic bronchitis. Roflumilast is used to reduce the risk (chance) of COPD exacerbations (increase in symptoms such as cough, mucus secretions, and shortness of breath, that can be life threatening and reduces the ability to breathe) linked to chronic bronchitis (swelling of the airways in the lungs). Roflumilast is FDA approved to decrease the number of flare-ups of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) in patients with severe COPD with chronic bronchitis and a history of flare-ups. The exact way Roflumilast does this is not known. Although Roflumilast is an FDA approved drug, in this study the drug is not being used for its FDA-approved indication.

If you agree to be in this study, you will receive no new COPD treatment other than the drugs provided for the study. You will also be given a tablet to take once a day, which will be placebo for at least part of the study. A placebo is a substance that looks like the study drug but that contains no active ingredients.

The study is a double-blind study. Double-blind means that neither you nor the study doctor will know which study regimen (roflumilast or placebo) you are receiving throughout the study. However, this information can be made available if medically necessary and as determined by the participant's study. You will undergo baseline mucociliary Clearance (MCC) Measurements then will be randomized (by chance, like the flip of a coin) to receive either roflumilast or placebo for 4 weeks, then there will be a 4 week wash-out phase, and a second 4 week period of roflumilast/placebo depending on initial randomization. Mucociliary Clearance (MCC) Measurements will be conducted at the beginning and at the end of each 4 week study regimen phase. You will be in the study for about 12 weeks and there will be up to 12 visits. At baseline, and prior to each MCC Procedure, you will have health assessments which may include Physical Examination, Health and Demographic Interview, Exhaled Carbon Monoxide (eCO) Testing, Spirometry (Breathing Test), Expectorated Sputum Collection, Pregnancy Testing and Mucociliary Clearance (MCC) Measurements.

02

Conditions studied

  • COPD
  • Chronic Bronchitis
  • Emphysema

Keywords

  • Lung Disease
  • Breathing Difficulty
  • Smoking
  • Mucociliary
03

In context

Bronchitis

268 studies on the registry are indexed under Bronchitis; 26 are open to participants now.

This study's enrollment of 12 is below the median of 120 across 184 interventional studies indexed under Bronchitis.

Browse Bronchitis studies →

Lead sponsor

Johns Hopkins University is the lead sponsor of 1,783 studies on the registry; 313 are open to participants now.

Of its 203 completed or terminated interventional studies of FDA-regulated products, 140 (69%) have results posted.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
40 Years and older
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

  • Physician diagnosis of COPD
  • Forced Expiratory Volume in 1 second (FEV1) / Forced Vital Capacity (FVC) ≤70%
  • FEV1 (% predicted) ≥40 % AND ≤ 70%,
  • Tobacco exposure ≥ 10 pack-years,
  • Chronic cough and sputum production
  • At least one COPD exacerbation requiring systemic glucocorticosteroids or treatment in hospital, or both, in the previous year
  • Not suffering from any concomitant disease that might interfere with study procedures or evaluations.

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • COPD exacerbation indicated by a treatment with systemic glucocorticosteroids and/or antibiotics not stopped at least 4 weeks prior to the baseline visit V0
  • Lower respiratory tract infection not resolved 4 weeks prior to the baseline visit V0
  • Diagnosis of asthma and/or other relevant lung disease (e.g. history of bronchiectasis, cystic fibrosis, bronchiolitis, lung resection, lung cancer, interstitial lung disease [e.g. fibrosis, silicosis, sarcoidosis], and active tuberculosis
  • Known alpha-1-antitrypsin deficiency
  • Known infection with HIV and/or active hepatitis
  • Pregnancy or women of childbearing potential not using or willing to continue using a medically reliable method of contraception for the entire study period
  • Suspected hypersensitivity to the study medication (roflumilast).
  • Use of mucolytics within the last 4 weeks.
05

Study design

Phase
Phase 4
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Crossover assignment
Masking
Quadruple (Participant, Care provider, Investigator, Outcomes assessor)
Enrollment
12 participants (actual)

Study arms

  • Active comparator
    Medication

    Roflumilast. 500 mcg of Roflumilast daily for 4 weeks, then there will be a 4 week wash-out phase (no medication) and a second 4 week period of placebo.

    Drug: Roflumilast · Drug: Placebo

  • Placebo comparator
    Placebo

    Placebo. 500 mcg of Placebo daily for 4 weeks, then there will be a 4 week wash-out phase (no medication) and a second 4 week period of Roflumilast

    Drug: Roflumilast · Drug: Placebo

Interventions

  • DrugRoflumilast

    500 mcg of Roflumilast which is a prescription medicine used in adults with severe COPD to decrease the number of flare-ups or the worsening of COPD symptoms

    Also known as: Daliresp

  • DrugPlacebo

    500 mcg of placebo is used

    Also known as: Sugar Pill

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Difference in Mucociliary Clearance (MCC) Between Visit 1A and Visit 2A

    Measurements of MCC (Mucociliary clearance) will be obtained using a large-field-of-view 2D gamma camera (Siemens Orbiter) following inhalation of a radioaerosol containing a gamma emitting isotope 99mtechnetium (99mTc)-sulfur-colloid. The total exposure to radiation from procedures associated with the MCC studies is similar to that of a chest x-ray and is much less than the 0.3 rem that the average person in the United States gets each year from natural sources like the sun, outer space, air, food, and soil. After inhaling (0 time point) an aerosol generated from a saline solution containing the radioisotope 99mtechnetium (99mTc)-sulfur-colloid (radioaerosol), subjects will sit with their back to a gamma camera. The gamma camera will acquire an image of where the isotopic marker initially deposits in the right lung at time 0 and how much remains in the lungs at the specified time point and will be measured in change of %/min from 0 min time point.

    Time frame: Change from 0 to 30 minutes

  2. Difference in Mucociliary Clearance (MCC) Between Visit 1A and Visit 2A

    Measurements of MCC (Mucociliary clearance) will be obtained using a large-field-of-view 2D gamma camera (Siemens Orbiter) following inhalation of a radioaerosol containing a gamma emitting isotope 99mtechnetium (99mTc)-sulfur-colloid. The total exposure to radiation from procedures associated with the MCC studies is similar to that of a chest x-ray and is much less than the 0.3 rem that the average person in the United States gets each year from natural sources like the sun, outer space, air, food, and soil. After inhaling (0 time point) an aerosol generated from a saline solution containing the radioisotope 99mtechnetium (99mTc)-sulfur-colloid (radioaerosol), subjects will sit with their back to a gamma camera. The gamma camera will acquire an image of where the isotopic marker initially deposits in the right lung at time 0 and how much remains in the lungs at the specified time point and will be measured in change of %/min from 0 min time point.

    Time frame: Change from 0 to 60 minutes

  3. Difference in Mucociliary Clearance (MCC) Between Visit 1A and Visit 2A

    Measurements of MCC (Mucociliary clearance) will be obtained using a large-field-of-view 2D gamma camera (Siemens Orbiter) following inhalation of a radioaerosol containing a gamma emitting isotope 99mtechnetium (99mTc)-sulfur-colloid. The total exposure to radiation from procedures associated with the MCC studies is similar to that of a chest x-ray and is much less than the 0.3 rem that the average person in the United States gets each year from natural sources like the sun, outer space, air, food, and soil. After inhaling (0 time point) an aerosol generated from a saline solution containing the radioisotope 99mtechnetium (99mTc)-sulfur-colloid (radioaerosol), subjects will sit with their back to a gamma camera. The gamma camera will acquire an image of where the isotopic marker initially deposits in the right lung at time 0 and how much remains in the lungs at the specified time point and will be measured in change of %/min from 0 min time point.

    Time frame: Change from 0 to 90 minutes

  4. Difference in Mucociliary Clearance (MCC) Between Visit 1B and Visit 2B

    Measurements of MCC (Mucociliary clearance) will be obtained using a large-field-of-view 2D gamma camera (Siemens Orbiter) following inhalation of a radioaerosol containing a gamma emitting isotope 99mtechnetium (99mTc)-sulfur-colloid. The total exposure to radiation from procedures associated with the MCC studies is similar to that of a chest x-ray and is much less than the 0.3 rem that the average person in the United States gets each year from natural sources like the sun, outer space, air, food, and soil. After inhaling (0 time point) an aerosol generated from a saline solution containing the radioisotope 99mtechnetium (99mTc)-sulfur-colloid (radioaerosol), subjects will sit with their back to a gamma camera. The gamma camera will acquire an image of where the isotopic marker initially deposits in the right lung at time 0 and how much remains in the lungs at the specified time point and will be measured in change of %/min from 0 min time point.

    Time frame: Change from 0 min to 24 hours

07

Results

Posted Jul 27, 2017

Participant flow

Participant flow — Overall Study
MilestoneAll Participants
Started12
Completed10
Not completed2
Withdrew: Adverse event1
Withdrew: Withdrawal by subject1

Outcome measures

PrimaryDifference in Mucociliary Clearance (MCC) Between Visit 1A and Visit 2A

Measurements of MCC (Mucociliary clearance) will be obtained using a large-field-of-view 2D gamma camera (Siemens Orbiter) following inhalation of a radioaerosol containing a gamma emitting isotope 99mtechnetium (99mTc)-sulfur-colloid. The total exposure to radiation from procedures associated with the MCC studies is similar to that of a chest x-ray and is much less than the 0.3 rem that the average person in the United States gets each year from natural sources like the sun, outer space, air, food, and soil. After inhaling (0 time point) an aerosol generated from a saline solution containing the radioisotope 99mtechnetium (99mTc)-sulfur-colloid (radioaerosol), subjects will sit with their back to a gamma camera. The gamma camera will acquire an image of where the isotopic marker initially deposits in the right lung at time 0 and how much remains in the lungs at the specified time point and will be measured in change of %/min from 0 min time point.

Time frame:
Change from 0 to 30 minutes
Reported as:
Mean · percentage difference of MCC
Difference in Mucociliary Clearance (MCC) Between Visit 1A and Visit 2A
percentage difference of MCCAll Roflumilast MCCAll Placebo MCC
Difference in Mucociliary Clearance (MCC) Between Visit 1A and Visit 2A-1.50 ± 3.76-0.70 ± 4.71
PrimaryDifference in Mucociliary Clearance (MCC) Between Visit 1A and Visit 2A

Measurements of MCC (Mucociliary clearance) will be obtained using a large-field-of-view 2D gamma camera (Siemens Orbiter) following inhalation of a radioaerosol containing a gamma emitting isotope 99mtechnetium (99mTc)-sulfur-colloid. The total exposure to radiation from procedures associated with the MCC studies is similar to that of a chest x-ray and is much less than the 0.3 rem that the average person in the United States gets each year from natural sources like the sun, outer space, air, food, and soil. After inhaling (0 time point) an aerosol generated from a saline solution containing the radioisotope 99mtechnetium (99mTc)-sulfur-colloid (radioaerosol), subjects will sit with their back to a gamma camera. The gamma camera will acquire an image of where the isotopic marker initially deposits in the right lung at time 0 and how much remains in the lungs at the specified time point and will be measured in change of %/min from 0 min time point.

Time frame:
Change from 0 to 60 minutes
Reported as:
Mean · percentage difference of MCC
Difference in Mucociliary Clearance (MCC) Between Visit 1A and Visit 2A
percentage difference of MCCAll Roflumilast MCCAll Placebo MCC
Difference in Mucociliary Clearance (MCC) Between Visit 1A and Visit 2A-2.18 ± 5.170.13 ± 5.81
PrimaryDifference in Mucociliary Clearance (MCC) Between Visit 1A and Visit 2A

Measurements of MCC (Mucociliary clearance) will be obtained using a large-field-of-view 2D gamma camera (Siemens Orbiter) following inhalation of a radioaerosol containing a gamma emitting isotope 99mtechnetium (99mTc)-sulfur-colloid. The total exposure to radiation from procedures associated with the MCC studies is similar to that of a chest x-ray and is much less than the 0.3 rem that the average person in the United States gets each year from natural sources like the sun, outer space, air, food, and soil. After inhaling (0 time point) an aerosol generated from a saline solution containing the radioisotope 99mtechnetium (99mTc)-sulfur-colloid (radioaerosol), subjects will sit with their back to a gamma camera. The gamma camera will acquire an image of where the isotopic marker initially deposits in the right lung at time 0 and how much remains in the lungs at the specified time point and will be measured in change of %/min from 0 min time point.

Time frame:
Change from 0 to 90 minutes
Reported as:
Mean · percentage difference of MCC
Difference in Mucociliary Clearance (MCC) Between Visit 1A and Visit 2A
percentage difference of MCCAll Roflumilast MCCAll Placebo MCC
Difference in Mucociliary Clearance (MCC) Between Visit 1A and Visit 2A-1.31 ± 7.770.52 ± 6.63
PrimaryDifference in Mucociliary Clearance (MCC) Between Visit 1B and Visit 2B

Measurements of MCC (Mucociliary clearance) will be obtained using a large-field-of-view 2D gamma camera (Siemens Orbiter) following inhalation of a radioaerosol containing a gamma emitting isotope 99mtechnetium (99mTc)-sulfur-colloid. The total exposure to radiation from procedures associated with the MCC studies is similar to that of a chest x-ray and is much less than the 0.3 rem that the average person in the United States gets each year from natural sources like the sun, outer space, air, food, and soil. After inhaling (0 time point) an aerosol generated from a saline solution containing the radioisotope 99mtechnetium (99mTc)-sulfur-colloid (radioaerosol), subjects will sit with their back to a gamma camera. The gamma camera will acquire an image of where the isotopic marker initially deposits in the right lung at time 0 and how much remains in the lungs at the specified time point and will be measured in change of %/min from 0 min time point.

Time frame:
Change from 0 min to 24 hours
Reported as:
Mean · percentage difference of MCC
Difference in Mucociliary Clearance (MCC) Between Visit 1B and Visit 2B
percentage difference of MCCAll Roflumilast MCCAll Placebo MCC
Difference in Mucociliary Clearance (MCC) Between Visit 1B and Visit 2B-0.13 ± 12.876.93 ± 18.50

Adverse events

Non-serious events are listed at a 0% frequency threshold.

Adverse event summary by group
GroupDeathsSeriousOther
All Participants0/12 (0%)1/12 (8.3%)0/12 (0%)
Most frequent serious events
Most frequent serious events
EventAll Participants
Pulmonary ExacerbationRespiratory, thoracic and mediastinal disorders1/12

Baseline characteristics

Age, Categorical
Age, Categorical(Participants)All Participants
<=18 years0
Between 18 and 65 years1
>=65 years11
Sex: Female, Male
Sex: Female, Male(Participants)All Participants
Female5
Male7
Race (NIH/OMB)
Race (NIH/OMB)(Participants)All Participants
American Indian or Alaska Native1
Asian0
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander0
Black or African American2
White9
More than one race0
Unknown or Not Reported0
08

Study locations

No study locations are listed for this record.

09

Updates

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Jul 27, 2017, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
10

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT03073798
Lead sponsor
Johns Hopkins University
Responsible party
Sponsor
First posted
Mar 8, 2017
Start date
Mar 18, 2013
Primary completion
May 14, 2015
Completion
May 14, 2015
Results posted
Jul 27, 2017
Last update
Jul 27, 2017

Study contacts

Nadia Hansel, MD MPH
principal investigator · Jonhs Hopkins University
Beth Laube, PhD
principal investigator · Jonhs Hopkins University

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
Yes
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

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