The Autonomic (or "automatic") Nervous System (ANS) regulates internal processes, including control of heart rate and blood pressure (BP). When someone stands, and gravity tries to pull blood away from the brain, the ANS works to maintain BP and brain blood flow. Neurogenic Orthostatic Hypotension (NOH) occurs when our "fight-or-flight" part ("sympathetic") of the ANS fails. BP can drop a lot when upright, reducing blood flow and oxygen delivery to the brain, and this can cause symptoms of light-headedness, nausea, and fainting. One solution to help counter the effects of NOH may be to increase sympathetic activity by breathing higher levels of carbon dioxide. In healthy volunteers, small increases in the amount of inhaled carbon dioxide has been shown to increase BP in the upright position, and this improves symptoms! The objectives of the current study are to apply carbon dioxide in patients with NOH and healthy controls to: (a) evaluate the effects of breathing carbon dioxide on BP and brain blood flow, and (b) determine if a device that increases carbon dioxide while standing will work as a new therapy

The purpose of study is to build a Canadian HTPN Registry to collect pertinent demographic and clinical data on the HTPN population in Canada and to determine the factors affecting survival, complications and TPN-dependency. These results will help establish standards of practice and develop future multi-center studies. This will greatly benefit the HTPN patient population.

The goal of this cross-sectional, observational, medical device trial is to examine the association of several sleep parameters, including specific respiratory events and an apnea-hypopnea index, with cognitive performance in older adults. The main question the study aims to answer is: Is there an association between sleep parameters with cognitive performance? Researchers will collect sleep parameters from participants using a device called the ANNE Vital Sign System and will test whether they are associated with performance on different memory and thinking tasks. Participants will: Complete a battery of cognitive tests to assess their memory and thinking performance. Wear the ANNE Vital Sign System continuously for a period of 24 hours.

Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease is the most common liver disease in Western countries, due in large part to its association with type 2 diabetes and obesity. The more advanced form of this disease is known as nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). If left untreated, NASH can evolve to cirrhosis, the late stage of fibrosis. Once cirrhosis is established, patients are at increased risk of developing gastrointestinal bleeding, liver cancer and liver failure that may require transplantation. A liver biopsy is currently needed to diagnose the severity of fatty liver disease but this is usually not indicated in asymptomatic patients. This procedure requires the insertion of a needle inside the liver to remove a small piece of tissue for examination under microscope. Liver biopsy is an invasive procedure with a small risk of major complications such as bleeding in 0.5% of cases. It is also affected by sub-optimal sampling leading to diagnostic errors Ultrasound is optimum for screening patients with or without symptoms because it is a safe and widely available technology to scan the whole liver. Members of our team have developed Advanced ultrasound techniques that provide unique information not possible with state-of-the-art techniques. Unlike liver biopsy, these techniques would be applicable even in asymptomatic patients because it is non-invasive. This research proposal proposes a novel approach for diagnosis of NASH and will be the first study to measure individual components of NASH (fat, inflammation and fibrosis) with quantitative ultrasound (QUS) scores. This study is timely because NASH is the second leading cause of liver transplantation in North America and is predicted to become the leading indication in the near future.

Every 3 minutes a new case of diabetes is diagnosed in Canada, mostly type 2 diabetes (T2D) increasing the risk for heart disease. T2D and heart disease share many common risk factors such as aging, obesity and unhealthy lifestyle. Paradoxically however, while lowering blood LDL, commonly known as "bad cholesterol", is protective against heart disease, research over the past 10 years have shown that the lower is blood LDL, the higher is the chance of developing T2D. This phenomena is happening whether blood LDL is lowered by a common drug against heart disease called Statins, or by being born with certain variations in genes, some of which are very common (\~80% of people have them). To date, it is unclear why lowering blood LDL is associated with higher risk for diabetes, and whether this can be treated naturally with certain nutrients. Investigators believe that lowering blood LDL by forcing LDL entry into the body tissue through their receptors promotes T2D. This is because investigators have shown that LDL entry into human fat tissue induces fat tissue dysfunction, which would promote T2D especially in subjects with excess weight. On the other hand, investigators have shown that omega-3 fatty acids (omega-3) can directly treat the same defects induced by LDL entry into fat tissue. Omega-3 is a unique type of fat that is found mostly in fish oil. Thus the objectives of this clinical trial to be conducted in 48 subjects with normal blood LDL are to explore if: 1. Subjects with higher LDL receptors and LDL entry into fat tissue have higher risk factors for T2D compared to subjects with lower LDL receptors and LDL entry into fat tissue 2. 6-month supplementation of omega-3 from fish oil can treat subjects with higher LDL receptors and LDL entry into fat tissue reducing their risk for T2D. This study will thus explore and attempt to treat a new risk factor for T2D using an inexpensive and widely accessible nutraceutical, which would aid in preventing T2D in humans.

Antidepressants are widely used as first-line treatments for major depressive disorder (MDD). Clinical guidelines recommend 6-24 months of "maintenance" antidepressant treatment, after patients achieve symptom remission, to prevent relapse but many people stop antidepressants too soon relapse into another depressive episode. We will test non-medication treatments, negative ion therapy and light therapy, to see they can substitute for antidepressants to prevent relapse. This is a "feasibility" study to see if participants use study treatments properly, before doing a larger, definitive trial. In this 28-week study, 100 participants with MDD who are in remission with antidepressants will be treated with light therapy or negative ion therapy (with half of devices active and half inactive) while slowly discontinuing the antidepressant, and monitored for relapse.

Postpartum (child age 0-5 years) mental health problems are common, with prevalence rates ranging from 15-20% for depression, 3-43% for anxiety, and approximately 30% for anger. Depression, anxiety, and anger often occur comorbidly. If left untreated, these disorders can be long-lasting and lead to child behaviour problems, brain changes, and risk for later mental illness. We developed an app-based treatment for parental mental illness: Building Emotional Awareness and Mental Health in Parenting (BEAM). The BEAM program includes mental health and parenting videos, peer coaching, as well as a forum and drop-in Zoom sessions where parents can connect with each other to receive and provide social support. The program is supported by peer coaches (parents with lived experience of recovery from mental illness and who may have received emotion-focused parenting support) and supervised by clinically-trained staff. Peer coaches check-in with parents weekly to support their progress. Our study will see the BEAM app's effect on parent mental health, parenting stress, child behaviour, and child brain structure and function. 240 parents with high depression, anxiety, and/or anger symptoms will be recruited, with half forming the treatment-as-usual group.

Lung cancer screening of active or former heavy smokers with yearly low-dose CT allows for earlier diagnosis and better lung cancer survival. Risk of developing lung cancer is higher among family members and close contacts of lung cancer patients, because of shared genetics, environment and life habits like smoking. The investigators want to engage lung cancer patients to refer their family members and close contacts for lung cancer screening, and evaluate if this referred population have higher risk of lung cancer than the population referred by their family doctors.

The brain is a highly active organ that requires a large blood flow to function properly. Normally, blood flow is tightly linked to the brain's energy demands. However, during surgery, anesthesia can affect this relationship in different ways. Some types of anesthesia can decrease blood flow to the brain, while others can increase it. Anesthesiologists need to be careful to maintain adequate blood flow to the brain during surgery, especially when blood pressure drops. Drugs may be used to increase blood pressure, but some of these drugs can also affect blood flow to the brain. It is still unclear how to best maintain blood flow to the brain during surgery and how different types of anesthesia and drugs affect this process. The study aims to assess the clinical utility of a new technique that uses light-based neuromonitoring to measure changes in cerebral blood flow and metabolism. The investigators will recruit 80 adult patients undergoing surgery under general anesthesia and randomize them into one of four groups to evaluate the effects of different anesthetic agents and vasopressors on brain hemodynamics and metabolism. The study will include patients over 18 years of age with no history of neurological conditions, substance abuse, or contraindications to cerebral oximetry devices or specific anesthetic agents. The patients will receive standard anesthesia care and be monitored with our light-based neuromonitoring system. This study aims to demonstrate the device's ability to detect changes in cerebral hemodynamic parameters related to anesthesia induction and systemic hypotension. This study will also evaluate the effects of anesthetic maintenance agents and vasopressors on cerebral hemodynamics and neurovascular coupling.

The rare histiocytic disorders (RHDs) are characterized by the infiltration of one or more organs by non-LCH histiocytes. They can range from localized disease that resolves spontaneously, to progressive disseminated forms that can be sometimes life-threatening. Since they are extremely rare, there is limited understanding of their causes and best treatment options. Physicians, patients and parents of children with RHDs frequently consult members of the Histiocyte Society regarding the best management of these disorders. Very often, no specific recommendation can be made due to the lack of prospective outcome data, or even large retrospective case series. The creation of an international rare histiocytic disorders registry (IRHDR) could facilitate a uniform diagnosis of the RHDs, as well as the collection and analysis of the clinical, epidemiological, treatment and survival data of patients with RHD. The registry may also lead to future therapeutic recommendations, provide a framework for future clinical trials and create excellent research opportunities.