Actively Recruiting
MuScle WastIng and DysphaGia iN CriticAlly IlL Patients (SIGNAL)
Led by Barts & The London NHS Trust · Updated on 2025-11-18
160
Participants Needed
1
Research Sites
130 weeks
Total Duration
On this page
AI-Summary
What this Trial Is About
The goal of this study is to find out how muscle wasting in the mouth and throat affects swallowing (dysphagia) in adults who are critically ill and being treated in intensive care units. The main aims of this research study are to understand: how much and how quickly the oral and suprahyoid muscles waste in critically ill participants, and whether muscle wasting causes problems with swallowing. The investigators will compare critically ill participants with non-critically ill participants to determine if muscle wasting is linked to swallowing problems. In this study, participants will have the size and strength of their mouth and throat muscles measured at four different times during their critical care admission and hospital stay. Tests will also be performed to check how well and how safely participants can swallow. Tongue strength will be measured, and participants will answer questions about their experience with swallowing and eating using patient-reported outcome measures. This study may help identify better ways to diagnose and treat swallowing problems in people who are critically ill, to support safe eating and drinking and promote faster recovery.
CONDITIONS
Official Title
MuScle WastIng and DysphaGia iN CriticAlly IlL Patients (SIGNAL)
Who Can Participate
Eligibility Criteria
You may qualify if you...
- Adults over 18 years old
- Receiving mechanical ventilation by endotracheal tube or tracheostomy, expected for at least 72 hours
- Expected to survive admission and spend more than 7 days in intensive care unit
- Control participants must be adults over 18 years
- Control participants receiving ward-based care
- Control participants expected to survive hospital admission with acute medical or surgical illness not needing critical care
You will not qualify if you...
- Pregnancy
- Diagnosis of primary neuromuscular disease (e.g., motor neurone disease)
- Central nervous system disease (e.g., stroke, Guillain barre syndrome)
- Traumatic brain injury
- Connective tissue disease (e.g., scleroderma)
- Head and neck cancer
- Previous surgery or radiotherapy to head and neck
AI-Screening
AI-Powered Screening
Complete this quick 3-step screening to check your eligibility
Trial Site Locations
Total: 1 location
1
Royal London Hospital
London, United Kingdom, E1 1FR
Actively Recruiting
How is the study designed?
Study Type
OBSERVATIONAL
Masking
N/A
Allocation
N/A
Model
N/A
Primary Purpose
N/A
Number of Arms
0
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