ClinicalTrials.gg
CompletedNCT03323762Updated Jan 6, 2021

Effect of RIC on BP and Inflammatory Response in Women With Pre-eclampsia

An interventional study of Remote Ischaemic Conditioning (RIC) in Pre-Eclampsia; Mild and Gestational Hypertension, sponsored by University of Aarhus. Completed at 3 sites in Denmark. Open to female participants aged 18 Years to 45 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2021-01-06.

Sponsored by University of Aarhus · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment

Help build ClinicalTrials.gg — short surveys, remote interviews or testing, in your language. Take part →

Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
10
Allocation
Not applicable
Ages
18 Years to 45 Years
Sex
Female
01

Where this study stands

Counted across the records on this site · 2026-11-14

Among 20 studies in Pre-Eclampsia with a site in Denmark — 6 open to participants now, 7 under way, 1 of them phase 3. Pre-Eclampsia · Denmark.

Started
2017
the only one that year
No phase
4 of 20
1 open now
Registered
9th of 20
by date
Lead sponsor
4 of 20
University of Aarhus

Among the 20 studies in Pre-Eclampsia with a site in Denmark, this one is the only one that started in 2017, is one of 4 with no phase, and was the 9th registered.

Pre-Eclampsia

917 studies on the registry are indexed under Pre-Eclampsia; 244 are open to participants now.

Browse Pre-Eclampsia studies →

Open to participants now

6 of the 20 studies in Pre-Eclampsia with a site in Denmark are open now. Recruiting first, the newest first:

1 more — sign in →

All 6 open studies →

A study can be open while its sites in Denmark have not opened yet or have stopped. Only those recruiting at a site in Denmark →

Who these studies take

Of the 162 Pre-Eclampsia studies recruiting now, 81 (50%) set no upper age limit and 80 (49%) stop at 75 or younger; 18 take children under 18; 60 take healthy volunteers.

This study: 18 Years to 45 Years · female · no healthy volunteers.

The full table on the hub →

This tab as a report to print or save as PDF → With an account.

Was this useful?
Watch this landscapeDownload CSVNarrow it in search →With an account: a weekly mail of what changed among 20 studies in Pre-Eclampsia with a site in Denmark, or all of them as a file.
02

Study summary

The aim of this pilot cohort study is to investigate whether treatment with remote ischemic conditioning (RIC) has a beneficial effect on blood pressure as well as the immune system in pregnant women with newly diagnosed hypertension (> 140/58 mm Hg) or pre-eclampsia before gestational week 37+3.

Read the detailed description

Pre-eclampsia, which affects about 2 to 7% of pregnancies, is a major cause of maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality.

The onset of clinical symptoms (hypertension, proteinuria or end- organ dysfunction), are often seen in the last trimester of a pregnancy.

The disease can have major consequences for both the child and the mother. Yet there are only very limited treatment options, where induced labour is the only healing treatment. Today, the treatment consists in limiting blood pressure increase with medical treatment, whereby the pregnancy most often can result in term delivery.

Remote Ischaemic Conditioning (RIC) achieved by an automatic inflation of a blood pressure cuff to induce four 5-minute cycles of limb ischaemia and reperfusion, is a treatment that has been found to decrease the inflammatory response and lower blood pressure in states of myocardial infarction, chronic heart failure, and stroke.

The treatment is virtually a cost-free non-pharmacological and non-invasive therapeutic strategy performed by the patient herself in her home.

However, whether RIC actually can improve clinical outcomes in relation to lowering blood pressure and the inflammatory response in pregnant women with newly diagnosed hypertension is yet to be investigated.

Aim and endpoint:

The aim of this pilot cohort study is to investigate whether treatment with remote ischemic conditioning (RIC) has a beneficial effect on blood pressure as well as the immune system in pregnant women with newly diagnosed hypertension (> 140/58mm Hg) or pre-eclampsia before gestational week 37+3.

Primary end-point • Median arterial blood pressure after 6 days of treatment

Secondary end-point

  • Changes in the inflammatory response

Design and method:

In a pilot cohort study at Aarhus University Hospital, Regional Hospital Randers and Region Hospital Herning 20 pregnant women with signs of gestational hypertension or pre-eclampsia (systolic blood pressure above 140 and / or diastolic blood pressure over 85; +/- proteinuria, +/- clinical signs or subjective symptoms and signs) are to be enrolled.

The study flowchart:

Newly hospital referred women with signs of gestational hypertension or pre-eclampsia will be asked to participate. Informed consent will be obtained and blood pressure, blood samples, and weight will be measured.

  • Day 1: resting day at home - blood pressure measuring
  • Day 2-7: Morning: Blood pressure measuring and RIC treatment. Evening: blood pressure measuring
  • Day 7: In hospital: Blood samples and weight will be measured.

Pros and cons:

In relation to the inflation of the blood pressure cuff temporary moderate pains in the treated arm might occur. Otherwise, the RIC is without side effects. Two extra blood samples of app. 50 ml each will be drawn, with a small risk of local infection exist.

The usefulness of the study The study is designed as a small pilot study. In which the set up will be tested and the effects on blood pressure and the inflammatory response in a relative small size will be explored. A larger randomised study will follow if the results show a positive trend.

Positive as well as negative and inconclusive results will be widely disseminated through national and international scientific journals and conferences.

03

Conditions studied

  • Pre-Eclampsia; Mild
  • Gestational Hypertension

Keywords

  • Pre-Eclampsia; Mild
  • Pre-Eclampsia; Moderate
  • Gestational Hypertension
  • Remote ischemic conditioning
04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
18 Years to 45 Years
Sexes eligible
Female
Accepts healthy volunteers
No

Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.

Inclusion criteria

  • Systolic blood pressure above 140 and/or
  • Diastolic blood pressure above 85
  • Proteinuria +/-
  • Clinical signs / symptoms +/-

Clinical signs and symptoms of pre-eclampsia +/-

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Eclampsia
05

Study design

Phase
Not applicable
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Not applicable
Intervention model
Single group
Masking
None (open label)
Enrollment
10 participants (actual)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    RIC

    RIC treatment arm The CellAegis auto RIC (automated blood pressure cuff) will be placed on the upper arm and inflated to 200 mmHg for 5 minutes followed by 5 minutes of deflation. The programmed cycle is repeated 4 times in total, summing up to a total treatment length of 35 minutes. The treatment will be carried out on the morning of day 2 to day 7 by the participants themselves at their home.

    Device: Remote Ischaemic Conditioning (RIC)

Interventions

  • DeviceRemote Ischaemic Conditioning (RIC)

    The CellAegis auto RIC (automated blood pressure cuff) will be placed on the upper arm and inflated to 200 mmHg for 5 minutes followed by 5 minutes of deflation. The programmed cycle is repeated 4 times in total, summing up to a total treatment length of 35 minutes

06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Median arterial blood pressure

    Median arterial blood pressure after 6 days of treatment

    Time frame: after 6 days of treatment

Secondary outcomes

  1. The inflammatory response

    Changes in the inflammatory response after 6 days of treatment

    Time frame: after 6 days of treatment

  2. Medication

    prescription of antihypertensive

    Time frame: After 6 days of treatment

07

Study locations

3 sites
  • Aarhus University hospital
    Aarhus, 8200, Denmark
  • Herning Hospital
    Herning, 7400, Denmark
  • Randers Hospital
    Randers, 8930, Denmark
08

References and documents

Individual participant data

Plan to share: No

No publications or documents are linked to this record.

09

Timeline

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
ElapsedEstimatedEstimated, not yet reachedSimilar studies: half by the dot; the band is the middle halfHalf of similar studies reached it by the dot; the band is the middle half, from a quarter to three quarters

Ran from Oct 2017 to primary completion in Aug 2020, 34 months.

Of 171 non-industry interventional studies with no phase under Pre-Eclampsia, half reached primary completion within 24 months of starting (the median), counting those still running; a quarter within 9 and three quarters within 43. This study's 34 months is above that.

Counting every sponsor, half of 176 studies reached it within 24 months; a quarter within 9 and three quarters within 43.

How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.

Registered
Oct 24, 2017
First posted
Oct 27, 2017
StartActual
Oct 24, 2017
Primary completionActual
Aug 28, 2020
CompletionActual
Aug 28, 2020
Last update
Jan 6, 2021
What these dates mean
Start.
When the first participant enrolled; while estimated, when the study expects to open to recruitment.
Primary completion.
When the last participant was examined or treated to collect data for the study's main question, its primary outcome. A study that stopped early gives the date its data collection stopped.
Completion.
When the last participant's last visit took place, for every outcome, secondary ones and side effects included: the end of the study. Often later than primary completion, sometimes the same day.
Actual and Est.
Actual means the registry says the date has happened. Est. (estimated) is a date the sponsor plans or expects. It can still move, and the sponsor is expected to change it to actual once it has passed.
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Jan 6, 2021, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
10

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT03323762
Collaborators
Randers Regional Hospital, Herning Hospital
Responsible party
Sponsor
First posted
Oct 27, 2017
Start date
Oct 24, 2017
Primary completion
Aug 28, 2020
Completion
Aug 28, 2020
Last update
Jan 6, 2021

Study contacts

Ulla Kristine Møller Liendgaard, Phd, MHSc.
principal investigator · Aarhus University Hospital

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
No
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

Not currently enrolling

This study is completed, as verified in Jan 2019. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.

Follow this study

Get an email when the registry record changes — status, dates, results — or when someone posts here.

Sign in to follow

Discussion

Questions and observations about this study, from anyone following it. Not medical advice, and not a channel to the study team — their contact details are on the registry record.

Sign in to join the discussion. Reading takes no account; posting does. You choose a display name, and a pseudonym is the default.

Nothing here yet. If you are running this trial, taking part in it, or weighing whether to, this is the place to say so.

Start the discussion