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Status unknownNCT04161339HOLDUpdated Nov 13, 2019

Anti-Inflammatory Drug and Endothelial Function

A Phase 4 interventional study of Hydroxychloroquine and Placebo oral tablet in Cardiovascular Diseases, Endothelial Dysfunction and Sleep Apnea, sponsored by Instituto de Cardiologia do Rio Grande do Sul. Status unknown at 1 site in Brazil. Open to participants aged 60 Years to 80 Years. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2019-11-13.

Sponsored by Instituto de Cardiologia do Rio Grande do Sul · Phase 4, Interventional, and Treatment

The sponsor has not verified this record recently (last verified Oct 2019), so the status shown — last known as Recruiting — may be out of date.

From the registry’s dates

  • Registered 3 months after the study started (first participant enrolled Jul 2019, registered Oct 2019).
Phase
Phase 4
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
50
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
60 Years to 80 Years
Sex
All
01

Study summary

In this randomized double-blinded clinical trial, 400mg of hydroxychloroquine will be given daily to people over the age of 65 years with moderate-severe obstructive sleep apnea for 8 weeks. The aim of this study is to test whether hydroxychloroquine can improve endothelial function.

Read the detailed description

Sleep apnea and coronary artery disease are prevalent and relevant diseases due to their morbidity and mortality. The mechanism by which sleep apnea leads to coronary artery disease remains unclear. It is known that intermittent hypoxia, the main characteristic of sleep apnea, leads to inflammation and consequently may lead to endothelial dysfunction. Endothelial dysfunction precedes the development of atherosclerotic disease and the occurrence of cardiovascular events. Agents that potentially act to improve endothelial function may assist in the prevention of cardiovascular events. Patients using immunomodulators due to rheumatic diseases have a lower prevalence of cardiovascular diseases. However, the cardioprotective effect of these drugs in patients without autoimmune diseases is not known. Hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) is an immunomodulator used in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis and systemic lupus erythematosus. In addition to its anti-inflammatory properties, HCQ reduces cholesterol and glycemia levels and has antithrombotic effects. The drug is inexpensive and widely available. The adverse effects of HCQ are rare and occur more frequently when using high doses.

02

Conditions studied

  • Cardiovascular Diseases
  • Endothelial Dysfunction
  • Sleep Apnea
  • Atherosclerosis
  • Coronary Artery Disease
03

In context

Cardiovascular Diseases

4,904 studies on the registry are indexed under Cardiovascular Diseases; 919 are open to participants now.

This study's planned enrollment of 50 is below the median of 100 across 2,738 interventional studies indexed under Cardiovascular Diseases.

Browse Cardiovascular Diseases studies →

Lead sponsor

Instituto de Cardiologia do Rio Grande do Sul is the lead sponsor of 74 studies on the registry; 10 are open to participants now.

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

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Who can participate

Ages eligible
60 Years to 80 Years
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
No

Inclusion criteria

  • Apnea-Hypopnea index of 15 events/hour or higher

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Contraindication for hydroxychloroquine (retinopathy, chronic liver disease, chronic renal disease)
  • Rheumatologic disease
05

Study design

Phase
Phase 4
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Parallel assignment
Masking
Quadruple (Participant, Care provider, Investigator, Outcomes assessor)
Enrollment
50 participants (estimated)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    Hydroxychloroquine

    400mg/daily of hydroxychloroquine for 8 weeks

    Drug: Hydroxychloroquine

  • Placebo comparator
    Placebo

    Drug: Placebo oral tablet

Interventions

  • DrugHydroxychloroquine

    400mg/daily of hydroxychloroquine for 8 weeks

  • DrugPlacebo oral tablet

    Amido pills/daily for 8 weeks

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What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Change in endothelial function measured by peripheral artery tonometry in the reactive-hyperemia index (RHI) scale

    The reactive-hyperemia index (RHI) scale ranges from -0.4 to 1.6. Below -0.51 being endothelial dysfunction, a higher score indicates a better endothelial function

    Time frame: before and after eight weeks of treatment with hydroxychloroquine

  2. Change in endothelial function measured by flow-mediated dilation (%FMD-response)

    The FMD-response will be calculated as the variation in post-hyperaemia brachial artery diameter from baseline, measured in relative (percentage) change. A mean improvement in flow mediated dilatation of at least 2% would usually be required to detect a treatment benefit.

    Time frame: before and after eight weeks of treatment with hydroxychloroquine

Secondary outcomes

  1. Change in fasting glucose blood levels (mg/dL)

    Time frame: before and after eight weeks of treatment with hydroxychloroquine

  2. Change in glycosylated hemoglobin blood levels (%)

    Time frame: before and after eight weeks of treatment with hydroxychloroquine

  3. Change in Lipidic profile

    Determined by total cholesterol, HDL-cholesterol and triglycerides blood levels (mg/dL)

    Time frame: before and after eight weeks of treatment with hydroxychloroquine

  4. Change in C-reactive protein (CRP) blood levels (mg/L)

    The risk of developing cardiovascular disease is quantified as follows: low: CRP level under 1.0 mg/L average: between 1.0 and 3.0 mg/L high: above 3.0 mg/L

    Time frame: before and after eight weeks of treatment with hydroxychloroquine

  5. Change in neutrophils lymphocytes ratio (NLR)

    calculated by dividing the number of neutrophils by number of lymphocytes. The mean range of healthy adult subjects is between 0.78 and 3.53.

    Time frame: before and after eight weeks of treatment with hydroxychloroquine

  6. Change in Autonomic Nervous System

    The data will be collected through the system of acquisition of pressure waves in a continuous and non-invasive way by the Finometer® system, through a cuffing installed in the middle finger, taking this signal to an analog-to-digital signal converter. The pulse pressure signal will be acquired at 1000 Hz, continuously and non-invasively, supine (10 minutes) in a quiet environment, with controlled temperature (± 23 ° C) and illumination. The collected data will be saved in the software BeatsScope® and LabChart®, from which will be extracted the systograms for analysis.

    Time frame: before and after eight weeks of treatment with hydroxychloroquine

  7. Change in apnea/hypopnea index

    Apnea/Hypopnea index is provided by home respiratory polygraphy, ranging from 0-highest events/hour, zero-5 eventos/hour being normal and above 5 events/hour being abnormal

    Time frame: before and after eight weeks of treatment with hydroxychloroquine

07

Study locations

1 of 1 sites recruiting
  • Hospital de Clinicas de Porto Alegre
    Porto Alegre, Rio Grande Do Sul 90035-007, Brazil
    • Andrea Rambo · Contact · +55 51 33598943
    • Eloisa Medeiros · Contact · +55 51 33597604
    Recruiting
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References and documents

Publications

  • Tedesco Silva LM, Cortes A, Rossi B, Boll L, Waclawovsky G, Eibel B, Cadaval Goncalves S, Irigoyen MC, Martinez D. Effects of Hydroxychloroquine on endOthelial function in eLDerly with sleep apnea (HOLD): study protocol for a randomized clinical trial. Trials. 2021 Sep 17;22(1):638. doi: 10.1186/s13063-021-05610-0. Erratum In: Trials. 2021 Oct 18;22(1):709. doi: 10.1186/s13063-021-05683-x. PubMed 34535165 ↗

Individual participant data

Plan to share: No

09

Updates

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Nov 13, 2019, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
10

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT04161339
Lead sponsor
Instituto de Cardiologia do Rio Grande do Sul
Collaborators
Hospital de Clinicas de Porto Alegre
Responsible party
Sponsor
First posted
Nov 13, 2019
Start date
Jul 1, 2019
Primary completion
Jun 30, 2020 (estimated)
Completion
Jun 30, 2020 (estimated)
Last update
Nov 13, 2019

Study contacts

Maria Claudia Irigoyen
Contact
hipirigoyen@gmail.com
55 11 985589166
Leticia Maria Silva
Contact
tedescosilva.leticia@gmail.com
55 51 993220727
Denis Martinez
principal investigator · Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul

Oversight

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

Not currently enrolling

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

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