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CompletedNCT04528797Updated Aug 27, 2020

Thyroid and Adrenocortical Hormone Replacement in Organ Donors

An interventional study of Levothyroxine and Methylprednisolone in Brain Death, sponsored by Medical University of South Carolina. Completed. Open to participants aged 18 Years and older. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2020-08-27.

Sponsored by Medical University of South Carolina · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment

Phase
Not applicable
Study type
Interventional
Enrollment
199
Allocation
Randomized
Ages
18 Years and older
Sex
All
01

Study summary

Brain death inevitably leads to hemodynamic instability and prolonged hypotension that compromises viability of potentially transplantable organs. In addition to depletion of peripheral norepinephrine stores, concomitant depletion of thyroid hormone and cortisol levels are believed to contribute to this instability. Catecholamine vasopressors are widely used to support hemodynamics in potential organ donors, however their use has also been shown to compromise allograft function.

Trials studying the effects of thyroid hormone and corticosteroid treatment on brain dead organ donors have had mixed results with respect to improving donor hemodynamics. Further, few studies have attempted to discriminate the relative contribution of thyroid hormone vs. corticosteroids.

The specific aims of this study include:

  1. To quantify hemodynamic changes during the management of cadaveric organ donors routinely receiving thyroid hormone therapy alone vs. corticosteroid therapy alone vs. the combination, compared to those who do not receive any hormonal therapy (controls)
  2. To document number and types of organs procured in donors treated with thyroid hormone therapy alone vs. corticosteroid therapy alone vs. the combination, compared to those not treated with hormonal therapy (controls)
  3. To quantify graft and patient outcomes in recipients of organs exposed to thyroid hormone therapy alone vs. corticosteroid therapy alone vs. the combination, compared to recipients of organs not exposed to hormonal therapy (controls).
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Conditions studied

  • Brain Death

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03

Who can participate

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

Inclusion criteria

Cadaveric organ donors ≥ age 18 having valid consent (by advance directive or by familial consent) to donate organs.

Recipients of these cadaveric organs

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

Cadavers failing to meet inclusion criteria

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Study design

Phase
Not applicable
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomized
Intervention model
Parallel assignment
Masking
None (open label)
Enrollment
199 participants (actual)

Study arms

  • Experimental
    Levothyroxine

    Levothyroxine 20 mcg IV bolus initiated at the beginning of active donor management followed by continuous infusion of 50 to 200 mcg/hr titrated to minimize vasopressor requirements until organ procurement.

    Drug: Levothyroxine

  • Experimental
    Methylprednisolone

    Methylprednsiolone 30 mg/kg (up to 2 g) IV initiated at the beginning of active donor management followed by repeat dosing of 15 mg/kg (up to 1 g) 12 hours later.

    Drug: Methylprednisolone

  • Experimental
    Combination

    Methylprednsiolone 30 mg/kg (up to 2 g) IV initiated at the beginning of active donor management followed by repeat dosing of 15 mg/kg (up to 1 g) 12 hours later plus levothyroxine 20 mcg IV bolus initiated at the beginning of active donor management followed by continuous infusion of 50 to 200 mcg/hr titrated to minimize vasopressor requirements until organ procurement.

    Drug: Levothyroxine · Drug: Methylprednisolone

  • No intervention
    Control

    No levothyroxine or methylprednisolone administered.

Interventions

  • DrugLevothyroxine
  • DrugMethylprednisolone
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What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Change in Vasoactive Inotrope Score (VIS) score from beginning of active donor management until procurement.

    The VIS score includes all commonly used vasopressor and inotrope agents, weighted by potency and summed

    Time frame: From baseline (t0) = beginning of active donor management to procurement (tOR) = time of organ procurement, up to 50 hours

Secondary outcomes

  1. Proportion of organs procured vs. consented, stratified by treatment group

    Time frame: assessed at time of procurement, up to 50 hours following consent for donation

  2. Recipient Morbidity

    Selected graft recipient morbidity measures in all organs transplanted stratified by treatment group

    Time frame: 90 days post transplant

  3. Recipient Mortality

    Recipient death by 90 days post transplant

    Time frame: 90 days post traansplant

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Study locations

No study locations are listed for this record.

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References and documents

Publications

  • Van Bakel AB, Hino SA, Welker D, Morella K, Gregoski MJ, Craig ML, Crumbley AJ, Sade RM. Hemodynamic Effects of High-dose Levothyroxine and Methylprednisolone in Brain-dead Potential Organ Donors. Transplantation. 2022 Aug 1;106(8):1677-1689. doi: 10.1097/TP.0000000000004072. Epub 2022 Jul 22. PubMed 35389961 ↗

Individual participant data

Plan to share: No — There is currently no plan in place to share IPD for this study

08

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT04528797
Lead sponsor
Medical University of South Carolina
Collaborators
We Are Sharing Hope SC
Responsible party
Adrian Van Bakel (Professor of Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina) — Principal investigator
First posted
Aug 27, 2020
Start date
Sep 2, 2010
Primary completion
Aug 9, 2012
Completion
Sep 30, 2013
Last update
Aug 27, 2020

Oversight

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

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