The Use of Glyceryl Trinitrate Patches in Arteriovenous Fistulas
Research type
Research Study
Full title
The Use of Glyceryl Trinitrate Patches in Arteriovenous Fistulas
IRAS ID
68150
Contact name
Nicholas Inston
Eudract number
2012-003756-36
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
Research summary
Patients with end stage renal failure on haemodialysis must have a mechanism for achieving access to their vascular system for dialysis. Arteriovenous fistulas (surgically created connections between the artery and vein) are critical for the majority of patients. Not all the fistulas that are created work, a proportion fail early on and need to be revised or an alternative fistula created. Some centres use gylceryl trinitrate (GTN) patches applied after the operation to try to increase the number of fistulas that mature to a useable stage. It is thought that this works by increasing the size of the blood vessels and promoting blood flow through them. However, the evidence for this is theoretical rather than evidence based. We propose to conduct a randomised, blinded study to answer the question of whether the application of a GTN patch does indeed increase the calibre of the vessels and whether this leads to better patency of the fistulas or affects the expression of biological markers of maturation.
REC name
West Midlands - Coventry & Warwickshire Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
12/WM/0381
Date of REC Opinion
4 Dec 2012
REC opinion
Favourable Opinion