We are conducting a research study to examine how males and females regulate blood flow differently during exercise. You will be asked to participate in 3 laboratory visits. On day one, you will complete a maximal exercise test on a stationary bike to fatigue. One day 2, you will complete a breathing exercise at three different submaximal exercise intensities and four different handgrip exercise protocols at different submaximal intensities. For each exercise intensity, you will perform exercise for 2-3 minutes. On day 3 you will complete the same exercises and intensities as day 2, but you will take two oral doses of HCl propranolol: 6 hours before the visit and immediate before the visit. Esophageal balloon: a tube will be inserted through your nose and be placed in the esophagus. The tube will be a balloon that will be inflated. Diaphragm blood flow will be measured using microbubbles infused into your vein while we take images of your diaphragm with an ultrasound probe.

The gut microbiota is the collection of all microbes (bacteria, viruses, fungus etc) living in the intestines and can influence many aspects of health and disease. Exercise can change the profile of the gut microbiota, and studies show that athletes have superior gut microbiota profiles compared to non-athletes. Currently, it is not known how these gut microbiota profiles vary across different sports. The purpose of this study is to compare the gut microbiota profiles of current, competitive athletes from a a variety of different sports to determine if athlete training regimens (i.e training intensity, load, volume, type, etc.) result in gut microbiota profiles that are unique and specific to each sport.

Iron deficiency is the most common and widespread nutritional disorder in the world. Iron deficiency is especially prevalent in the athlete, affecting upwards of 50% in female endurance athletes. Sub-optimal iron stores can lead to anemia which causes fatigue, weakness, shortness of breath, dizziness, and pale skin. It can have several consequences to an individual's health, and in the case of female athletes, sport performance. The prevention and treatment of sub-optimal iron levels depend on the underlying cause and severity of the deficiency. While a balanced diet adequate in iron-rich foods is essential, diet alone is often insufficient to correct the problem. In such cases, iron supplements are recommended for individuals with sub-optimal iron status or those who are at high risk of developing it. This study will test low and high dose iron supplementation.

We are currently experiencing a global pneumonia pandemic lacking any recent precedent, caused by SARS-CoV-2 (COVID-19). To date, it has infected over 2,000,000 persons worldwide. Drastic measures have been taken by governments and public health officials in an attempt to decrease the spread of this infection. These measures have included restrictions on border crossing, airline travel, work, and gathering of people for any reason. The impact of both the infection and the response may be affecting individuals in many different ways. No studies to our knowledge have been conducted to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on various spheres of an individual’s life.

This study will research a new medication to treat Primary Aldosteronism. This medication works to decrease the production of aldosterone. This study will last for approximately 1 year. Participants will receive a placebo or the study medication for the first 8 weeks of the study. Then, everyone will receive the study medication up to week 44. Finally, participants will receive placebo or study medication for the final 8 weeks of the study. The study will look at whether blood pressure control gets better. It will also assess changes in electrolytes, such as potassium and sodium and will measure if other lab tests change. Adults living with primary aldosteronism will be included. They should expect to be on stable blood pressure medication. Some of these medications may need adjusting by the study doctor at the beginning of this study. There are a total of 14 study visits, occuring every 2 weeks until week 16, and every 4-10 weeks afterwards until week 54. Participants will be followed very closely by the study team to manage the symptoms of primary aldosteronism and any changes to health as a result of participating in this study.

The Lupus Research Alliance is launching the Lupus Landmark Study, a groundbreaking health research study that will improve personalized treatments for people living with lupus. This will be the largest study of its kind in lupus research, and will include 3,500 adults diagnosed with lupus. The study aims to transform lupus research and drug development through the creation of a research platform. The platform will be a source of important clinical data, patient reported data, and biological samples that will catalyze global collaboration, innovation, and precision medicine approaches in lupus.

People receiving dialysis are at risk of heart failure and heart related death. There is an urgent need for treatments that reduce the risk of these problems in the dialysis population. Spironolactone is a pill used to prevent heart failure and related deaths in patients that do not require dialysis. It works by blocking a hormone (aldosterone) in your body that causes high blood pressure and can damage the heart. Although spironolactone is very effective in people that do not require dialysis, we do not know if spironolactone is effective in those receiving dialysis. Our research will help determine if spironolactone reduces heart failure and heart related deaths in people receiving dialysis. The purpose of this study is to determine if spironolactone reduces death or hospitalization for heart failure and is well tolerated in people who require dialysis.

Pulmonary hypertension (PH) is defined by high blood pressure in the lungs and can be caused by lung disease, heart or liver disease, genetic mutations and many other conditions. PH is a serious condition that causes breathlessness, leg swelling, fainting, heart failure, and death. Although certain types of PH can be treated with medications, most patients get worse over time and eventually need a lung transplantation or die from the disease. The main objective is to describe the clinical features, diagnostic workup, treatment strategies, risk profiles, and outcomes (such as need for hospitalization or death) of patients with PH in Alberta. A secondary objective is to develop a score that reflects the impact of other medical problems (defined as frailty) on quality of life, symptoms, exercise tolerance, and survival in patients with certain types of PH. A final objective is to identify gaps in patient care in Alberta for future quality improvement. We will establish a database of existing and newly diagnosed PH patients in Alberta. Information will be collected from the two PH clinics in Alberta located at the Peter Lougheed Centre in Calgary and at the University of Alberta Hospital in Edmonton. Information for local participants will be collected from clinic and hospital visits using questionnaires, chart reviews and doctor or nurse assessments of patients. For some specific research questions, our data will be combined with the McMaster PH program and Vancouver General Hospital PH program, an important first step towards the creation of a nation-wide PH database. Another aim of this project is to evaluate the impact of the accumulation of other medical conditions (frailty) on quality of life, symptoms and survival.

A registry is a research tool that collects information on the health of individuals with a particular disease over time. This information is then used to improve resources available and quality of care for patients. The Canadian Acromegaly Registry is a Canada-wide registry that captures information from people diagnosed with acromegaly. Information is then used in a variety of ways to improve acromegaly care. HOW IT WORKS? Direct-to-patient: Information on quality of life is collected directly from the patients themselves. In-clinic: Medical information is collected in specialty medical clinics attended by acromegaly patients. HOW IS THE INFORMATION USED? Access to collected information is strictly controlled through an approval process to protect patient privacy. Common uses of registry data include: • Notifying patients of clinical trials and other research opportunities • Developing standards of care and improving adherence across the country • Advocacy efforts of patient organizations • Research to understand the quality of life impacts on patients and families • Research to better understand acromegaly • Clinical research for new therapy development

Within the city of Calgary, and the province of Alberta, there has been a large increase in emergency department visits related to methamphetamine type drugs. Using methamphetamines can cause intoxication and the effects of this can include: increased energy, alertness, extreme happiness, enhanced sexual activity, long periods without sleep, an altered understanding of reality, and possibly anger, aggression or psychosis. In cases where people are intoxicated by methamphetamines and require immediate medical care, it is often difficult to transport these people to the emergency department, protect them from hurting themselves or others, or to provide care for these people. This may cause methamphetamine patients to receive poor care or feeling poorly about themselves or being hurt. It also may lead to care providers being hurt or feeling unhappy about their encounters with these patients. This project is designed to gather the points of view, feelings and experiences of both providers (who either transport, protect or care for people who are intoxicated by methamphetamines during emergency department visits) and from methamphetamine patients themselves. We will give providers an online survey with both questions aimed to better understand how they feel about methamphetamine care in Calgary. We will also be interviewing past-patients of these methamphetamine-related emergency department visits about their perspectives and experiences about their care in Calgary. Our findings will be reported to Alberta Health Services to help them as they begin to update their management strategies of patient intoxicated by methamphetamines in order to keep both patients and staff safer and happier. This study will possibly benefit people who use methamphetamines and providers who encounter them in the city of Calgary. With improved strategies based on findings from this study and others, the emergency department staff, other providers and patients will be safer and feel better, leading to a higher quality of life for everyone. These results may also be used to influence the way methamphetamine intoxication is managed across Canada and potentially be used to benefit health systems in other countries.