Projects
CoEHAR multiple approaches in the fight against smoking are the foundation of its statute. From clinical research to educational projects, we perform a holistic strategy to support our goals.
Standard methods for the evaluation of the scientific studies on Harm Reduction
The “REPLICA” project is an international study that intends to replicate the most relevant research available on in-vitro studies on cytotoxicity, oxidative stress, genotoxicity, mutagenicity process.
Through the project, CoEHAR aims to replicate and confirm the most relevant published research in inflammation induced by exposure to the aerosol of electronic cigarettes and THP.
Hence, to provide independent validation of the results obtained by the tobacco companies about the potential health effects of electronic cigarettes and THP.
CoEHAR coordinates the project with other six academic laboratories in Indonesia, Oman, Russia, Serbia, the United States, Greece, along with dozens of researchers around the world.
Investigate the long-term health effects that occur in e-cigarette users compared to never smokers
Veritas Cohort is an international six-year-study involving more than 800 participants from twenty countries divided between vapers and non-smokers.
The goal is to determine what are, in the long run, the effects and changes that occur in specific indicators of the health of vapers.
Veritas Cohort project aims to compare the changes occurring over time in health indicators between regular vapers who use electronic cigarettes, and individuals who have never smoked and never used e-cig.
In previous studies, due to the small number of individuals and the limited temporal length of the investigation, no noticeable changes in health were recognized.
Veritas Cohort project intends to fill this gap in international research.
The project that helps diabetic smokers to quit smoking
Little is known about the impact of combustion-free nicotine delivery sistem on diabetic patients who smoke.
DIASMOKE (Assessing the impact of combustion free-nicotine delivery technologies in Diabetic Smokers) is an international, multicenter, open label randomized controlled study designed to determine wheter diabetic smokers switching to combustion-free nicotine delivery systems (C-F NDS) experience measurable improvement in cardiovascular risk parameters as a consequence of avoiding exposure to cigarette smoke toxicants.
This study aims to test the hypothesis that avoiding exposure to cigarette smoke toxicants may translate to measurable improvement in cardiovascular risk factors and functional parameters when type 2 diabetes mellitus patients who smoke switch to alternative products compared with diabetic patients who continue to smoke conventional tobacco products.
International Summer School for Project Management
In a changing world, competitiveness means the ability to manage projects to achieve results.
Today project managers must face increasing challenges in every step of the process: work planning, budgeting process, deadline management, dealing with multidisciplinary teams, assess the strengths and weaknesses of the staff.
Taking into account all these needs, the CoEHAR organizes the Yearly International Summer School on project management applied to Tobacco Harm Reduction to train professionals on research project management, with a specific focus on THR. The program consists of 30 hours of frontal lessons divided into two different modules. The first part, of 20 hours, provides the basic knowledge of the different phases of a project, management best practices, and how to coordinate a workgroup. The second part, of 10 hours, will focus on case studies and practical activities aimed at a final presentation by the students, which will be evaluated by a Commission.
A training project for researchers for systematic reviews applied to Tobacco Harm Reduction
In Silico Science is training researchers on innovative methods for systematic reviews applied to the research on tobacco harm reduction, with particular reference to cardiovascular effects, respiratory effects and weight management.
This project will produce systematic reviews that critically assess the quality of studies and produce living reviews and reports in plain language on high quality studies.
These systematic reviews will provide policy makers, healthcare professionals and consumers with reliable and up-to-date data from high-standards studies to shape their decisions on policies and practices to reduce the harm caused by smoking.
The first study on the effects of reduced-risk products on teeth and oral health
SMILE is an international, open label randomized controlled study designed to assess whether cigarette smokers switching to combustion- free nicotine delivery systems (C-F NDS) undergo measurable improvements in oral health parameters and teeth appearance as a consequence of avoiding exposure to cigarette smoke.
Clinical studies have shown that regular smokers show a greater number of risks than non-smokers. A 2-year multi-center clinical trial is planned.
The subjects who will participate in the study will be: tobacco smokers, smokers who switch to C-F NDS, never smokers.
The first international community of journalists specialized in Harm Reduction
Catania Conversation (CC) is a multi-pronged initiative to fill gaps in communication on Tobacco Harm Reduction.
The project is a tool to fill the information gap and build a community of journalists, scholars, and writers.
The main objective is to ensure that accurate and verifiable information reaches out the generalistic media.
Therefore, the only way to counterbalance disinformation is to disseminate reliable information at every stage.
The first monitoring system for food and smoking habits
The project aims to develop a digital system able to trace the dietary habits of a subject in the process of quitting smoking.
The system will collect data thanks to recognition algorithms that detect and extract information from images containing food.
The software will help understanding dietary habits, the type and quantity of food consumed, the daily amount of time spent eating, the number and time of meals, during a smoking cessation program.
The development of a food recognition system, based on visual identification, will identify correlations between eating habits and smoking cessation.
The project goal is to provide information and patterns on the patient’s dietary habits to help specialists understand the process involved in quit smoking.
