Clinical trials

This research project aims to evaluate the prevalence of comorbid OSA and its impact on disease progression among hospitalized schizophrenia patients using non-wearable devices.

This study will develop and test a daily conversation platform that uses a large language model, a type of artificial intelligence, to support cognitive health in older adults at high risk of dementia. The platform will guide participants through voice-based conversations about topics that interest them. The conversations are designed to engage memory, attention, language, planning and problem-solving, and the ability to understand social situations. The platform will also analyze conversation data and create a report describing the participant's cognitive performance. The study has two stages. In the first stage, 15 participants will test the platform through two 20-minute conversation sessions. This group will include healthy younger adults, older adults with normal cognitive function, and older adults with cognitive difficulties. Participants will provide feedback on how easy and acceptable the platform is to use. In the second stage, 60 older adults at high risk of dementia will be randomly assigned to one of three groups. The groups will receive either conversation-based cognitive activities using the platform, interest-based news reading activities, or weekly health education while waiting to receive the intervention. The study activities will continue for 12 weeks. Researchers will compare changes in cognitive function, emotional well-being, loneliness, social connection, and user experience before and after the study. The main goals are to learn whether the platform is practical and acceptable for home use and whether it may help support cognitive and psychosocial health.

This study is a prospective randomized controlled trial that aims to enroll 158 patients diagnosed with chronic hypertrophic rhinitis who are candidates for inferior turbinate surgery. Participants will be randomly assigned to either the "standard group" or the "PDA group." The standard group will receive conventional shared decision-making (SDM) explanations using verbal and visual aids, while the PDA group will additionally receive a printed patient decision aid (PDA) to assist in evaluating the pros and cons of each surgical option. The study will assess patients' decision certainty and decision regret using the SURE scale and the Decision Regret Scale (DRS), respectively, administered before surgery and one month postoperatively. Surgical satisfaction and outcomes will also be evaluated using pre- and postoperative symptom questionnaires. All data will be collected and analyzed by blinded outcome assessors to ensure objectivity. This study involves no invasive procedures and is classified as a low-risk behavioral study. The primary aim is to optimize clinical decision-making processes for patients with chronic hypertrophic rhinitis considering surgical intervention in the otolaryngology setting.

Individuals with upper limb functional impairments, such as those resulting from stroke, spinal cord injury, musculoskeletal disorders, or degenerative joint disease, often experience difficulties operating smartphones. Standard devices typically require bilateral, precise fine motor control, which can limit independence, participation, and access to digital communication for this population. Although assistive products such as phone stands, straps, or styluses are available, they are often designed as "one-size-fits-all," lack individualization, and may not be well integrated into daily life. Three-dimensional (3D) printing offers advantages of customization, modularity, low cost, and rapid production, and may support better matching between users and assistive devices. However, in clinical practice, the use of 3D-printed assistive technology is constrained by the lack of an integrated resource platform and standardized fitting procedures. This exploratory intervention study aims to develop a 3D assistive device selection interface and a standardized fitting process for smartphone-related devices targeting adults with upper limb dysfunction. Approximately 30 outpatients will be recruited from a regional teaching hospital in northern Taiwan and will receive a 1-week intervention using a 3D-printed mobile phone holder or related assistive device, with occupational therapist support. Pre- and post-intervention assessments will examine smartphone task performance and satisfaction with the assistive technology. Feasibility, usability, and preliminary effectiveness will be evaluated to inform the development of a sustainable clinical service model.

This pilot study investigates the effects of a music-based dance intervention on executive function and physical performance in middle-aged and older adults with cognitive impairment. Dance, as a form of dual-task training, integrates music, rhythmic movement, and cognitive-motor coordination. When combined with group interaction and partner-guided physical cues, it has the potential to enhance both cognitive and motor functions simultaneously. The intervention features a simple, structured dance sequence designed to stimulate rhythm, attention, and coordination through music-based movement. This study aims to evaluate the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of this approach in improving executive function and lower limb physical performance among individuals with cognitive impairment.

Calcific tendinitis of the shoulder, is a self-limiting disease characterized by the deposition of calcium phosphate crystals in the rotator cuff tendons. Patients will develop complications such as decreased range of motion of the shoulder joint, and thus reducing their quality of life. The most common site of occurrence is 1.5-2 cm away from the supraspinatus tendon insertion site on the greater tuberosity. The primary treatment for calcific tendinitis is conservative, such as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory analgesics for pain relieving, extracorporeal shock wave therapy, subacromial steroid injections, ultrasound-guided barbotage technique for aspirating and washing out calcific deposits. Ultrasound is being used in calcified tendinitis for evaluating its size, location, quality, and also using the color Doppler ultrasonography to evaluate its reactive inflammatory changes. However, the use of color Doppler ultrasonography in diagnosing and treating a shoulder pain with calcification is not being concluded yet. Therefore, the aim of this study is to evaluate the efficacy of color Doppler ultrasonography in calcified tendinitis.

Clinical nurses are frequently exposed to high emotional demands due to heavy workloads, time pressure, patient suffering, and the interpersonal complexity of clinical care. These stressors may contribute to compassion fatigue, burnout, reduced resilience, and decreased occupational well-being. However, timely and accessible psychological support is often limited in busy clinical environments, and many nurses may hesitate to seek help due to stigma, time constraints, or limited resources. This study is a prospective, randomized, controlled, parallel-group interventional trial designed to evaluate the feasibility and effectiveness of an on-demand, human-centered emotional support intervention delivered through a LINE-based GPT assistant. The AI assistant provides real-time supportive conversations, reflective prompts, stress-coping guidance, and resilience-enhancing strategies tailored specifically for clinical nurses, offering a private and easily accessible support resource. Eligible clinical nurses (target sample size: 100-120) are randomly assigned to either an Intervention Group, which interacts with the AI assistant, or a Control Group, which receives non-interactive static messages, over a four-week intervention period. Primary outcomes include changes in compassion fatigue, burnout, and compassion satisfaction, as measured by the Professional Quality of Life Scale (ProQOL). Secondary outcomes include changes in resilience (Brief Resilience Scale), general self-efficacy (General Self-Efficacy Scale), and perceived stress (Perceived Stress Scale-10). The results of this study are expected to provide evidence on the feasibility and potential effectiveness of AI-based emotional support as a scalable and accessible tool to promote psychological well-being among clinical nurses, thereby informing future digital mental health interventions in healthcare settings.

This is a single-center, prospective observational study aiming to validate the Kinetikos Health App for fall risk assessment in PD patients undergoing dopaminergic medication adjustments.

This study aims to verify the safety and preliminary clinical benefits of long-term gait training using AI-powered smart electric vehicles for patients with neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's disease and dementia.

This project proposes a randomized controlled human study to explore the prebiotic effects of consuming mulberry juice on atopic dermatitis in children and adolescents. The study aims to investigate the potential of mulberry fruit as a human prebiotic. This human study will recruit up to 120 participants from the Taipei Medical University Hospital (commissioned by the Ministry of Health and Welfare). Participants will be divided into experimental groups and a control group, with a 3-month intervention involving five clinical assessments and three stool collections. The goal is to compare the severity of atopic dermatitis, gut microbiota, and metabolite changes during the 6 days of mulberry juice consumption between the experimental and control groups. This project will help establish mulberry fruit as a potential human prebiotic and adjunctive treatment for alleviating atopic dermatitis in children.

Hyperbilirubinemia is defined as the presence of bilirubin in the serum of newborns at levels exceeding the normal range. It is the most common problem among healthy newborns, with an incidence of approximately 40% to 60% in full-term infants. The primary cause is the immature bilirubin metabolism in newborns, leading to the accumulation of excess bilirubin in the blood, which in turn results in a temporary yellowing of the skin and sclera, known as jaundice. Physiological jaundice in full-term newborns typically appears 24 to 72 hours after birth, peaking on days 4 to 5. Studies have shown that neonatal jaundice is a leading cause of readmission after discharge. Phototherapy is the most effective and safest treatment for neonatal hyperbilirubinemia. It takes advantage of bilirubin's sensitivity to light, converting bilirubin into water-soluble conjugated bilirubin, which is then excreted through bile and urine, thereby reducing total bilirubin levels. The most effective light during phototherapy has a wavelength of 400 nm to 520 nm and an intensity of at least 30 microW/cm²/nm, with at least 80% of the infant's body surface area exposed. This study aims to investigate whether using aluminum foil reflective covering around the phototherapy incubator can enhance the effectiveness of light treatment for jaundice in infants, thus potentially reducing the duration of phototherapy required.

The goal of this clinical trial is to learn if a standardized pharmacists-provided education module by social media can improve patients' knowledge of chemotherapy-related side effects. The main questions it aims to answer is: • Do patients who received a standardized pharmacists-provided education module by social media improve their knowledge of chemotherapy-related side effects? Researchers will compare standardized chemotherapy education +video (experimental group) versus chemotherapy handouts (control group). Participants will: * Received standardized chemotherapy education + video or chemotherapy handouts at the first and second chemotherapy section. * Fill out a questionnaire for outcomes assessment.

During the transition phase from early intervention to primary education (4.5 years to 8.11 years), children with special needs may encounter difficulties in using digital learning media. The investigators intend to apply the TRIZ analysis method to enhance children's participation in learning. Additionally, the investigators plan to design a preliminary model of learning aids and conduct a trial.

The purpose of this clinical trial is to use a digital recording device integrated with an incentive spirometer to record a patient's deep breathing lung training following abdominal surgery. Through this digital recording, it will be possible to effectively assess the daily frequency, duration, depth of deep breaths, and the volume of inhalation performed by the patient during their breathing exercises. This will transform the previously difficult-to-describe deep breathing training into a digital record, allowing healthcare professionals to quickly evaluate the patient's condition. Patients can also monitor their own respiratory function changes, leading to positive health promotion benefits, accelerating their postoperative recovery, and simultaneously reducing healthcare costs and improving medical quality.

A 3-arm randomized controlled trial of multi-modal non-pharmacological Intervention for preventing the risk of dementia in Taiwanese geriatric people