The CHEST-Study Version 1.0
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Characterising biofilms in endotracheal tubes to direct a new strategy for preventing ventilator-associated pneumonia in critically ill adults
IRAS ID
287045
Contact name
Laura Sherrard
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Queen’s University Belfast
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
N/A, N/A
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 5 months, 30 days
Research summary
Title: Characterising biofilms in endotracheal tubes to direct a new strategy for preventing ventilator-associated pneumonia in critically ill adults\n\nPeople who are very unwell in intensive care often require equipment called endotracheal tubes (ETTs) to be placed in their airways to help them breathe. Microbes can stick to the surface of these ETTs and form communities called biofilms that are very hard to treat. This can later lead to a type of chest infection developing, known as ‘ventilator-associated pneumonia’ (VAP). The best way to stop these microbes forming biofilms on the ETTs is currently unknown.\n\nIn this project we want to improve our knowledge about how to prevent VAP. We propose to do this by:\n(1) investigating the amount and types of microbes in these biofilms, \n(2) establishing how they respond to antibiotic treatments and \n(3) using this information to design new ways to prevent microbes from forming biofilms on ETTs\n\nThis is important because, firstly, prevention of VAP is an urgent need for patients, their relatives and healthcare providers. VAP is extremely concerning because it can increase the recovery time for patients, has financial implications for our local economy and can unfortunately be fatal. Secondly, our knowledge of the microbes that form biofilms on ETTs and how they respond to treatments is limited, which is a key barrier to finding new ways to prevent them from causing infection. \n\nBy understanding the formation of microbial biofilms on the ETT surface, we can then plan how best to modify the surface of ETTs to prevent biofilms and, therefore, prevent VAP and reduce antibiotic use, contributing to combatting antibiotic resistance.\n\nWe will recruit 100 participants who required an ETT to help them breathe while they were in intensive care at the Royal Victoria Hospital, Northern Ireland. The study is funded by Northern Ireland Chest, Heart and Stroke.\n
REC name
Social Care REC
REC reference
20/IEC08/0025
Date of REC Opinion
19 Oct 2020
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion