EMPIRE miRNA

  • Research type

    Research Study

  • Full title

    Stratification of heart disease using miRNA biomarker discovery (EMPIRE miRNA study)

  • IRAS ID

    179309

  • Contact name

    James W Dear

  • Contact email

    james.dear@ed.ac.uk

  • Duration of Study in the UK

    1 years, 6 months, 1 days

  • Research summary

    Patients suffering heart attacks require rapid diagnosis at point of contact with clinical services, in order to ensure life-saving treatment is given quickly. Our study aims to investigate if there is a change in a new type of highly sensitive markers within the blood of patients suffering injury to the heart muscle. We already have blood samples, from another clinical trial, from patients who have sustained injury to their heart during heart surgery. We now need to acquire blood samples from patients who underwent a similar surgical procedure but did not sustain heart damage. These blood samples will be used to ensure the markers identified are specific to the heart injury group and do not increase in other patients. Patients undergoing elective hip and knee replacements will be asked to have additional blood tests taken immediately prior, then 2 and 6 hours after elective surgery. These blood samples will be used to look at protein concentration changes -the current diagnostic blood test for myocardial injury- and changes in the new markers. Candidate markers, identified during this study, could then be investigated as a clinical test to rapidly diagnose injury to the muscle of the heart.

  • REC name

    London - City & East Research Ethics Committee

  • REC reference

    15/LO/0727

  • Date of REC Opinion

    21 Apr 2015

  • REC opinion

    Favourable Opinion