Study Type
Pragmatic Clinical Trial
ongoing
B-Free is a pragmatic, multicentre, cluster crossover trial to evaluate whether a policy limiting the use of intra-operative benzodiazepine cardiac anesthesia reduces post-operative delirium in the intensive care unit (ICU) when compared with a policy of ad libitum administration.
The knowledge generated by this study will provide the basis for cardiac anesthesia practice guidelines.
B-Free Slides - Download PDFStudy Design
Pragmatic, multicentre, cluster crossover trial
NO. of Countries
2
NO. of Sites
20
NO. of Participants
19000
Study Period
2019 - 2023
Sponsor
PHRI
Stuart Connolly
Senior Scientist
Stuart Connolly
Senior Scientist
Stuart Connolly is a Professor of Medicine at McMaster University and a cardiac electrophysiologist at Hamilton Health Sciences. He became a faculty member at McMaster University in 1983 and was awarded a full professorship in 1994. He was also appointed as the inaugural holder of the Salim Yusuf Chair in Cardiology at McMaster University.
He has published more than 270 scientific articles in the field, and is currently a member of the editorial boards for a number of prominent cardiology journals, including Heart, the American Heart Journal and the Journal of Pacing and Electrophysiology. His main research interests are focused on the evaluation of treatments for heart rhythm disorders. His academic career has been largely devoted to the design and execution of controlled clinical trials in this area.
He holds a Masters degree from Fordham University, New York, and an MD from McGill University in Montreal. He received his specialist training in cardiology at the University of Toronto and at Stanford University.
Jessica Spence
Scientist
Jessica Spence
Scientist
Jessica Spence is a cardiac anesthesiologist and intensivist who completed a research fellowship at PHRI and a PhD in Clinical Epidemiology under the supervision of PJ Devereaux.
She is an Assistant Professor at McMaster University and the Principal Investigator of the B-Free Cluster Crossover Trial. Her research program focuses on the perioperative outcomes of cardiac surgery.
Jessica Vincent
Program Director
Jessica Vincent
Program Director
Jessica Vincent has more than 15 years’ experience in coordinating and managing large, international clinical trials. As Associate Program Manager, she oversees interventional trials, registries, and observational research studies in the areas of perioperative medicine, cardiac surgery, and digital health.
She holds an Honours Bachelor of Science Degree from Queens University, and a Master of Clinical Epidemiology Degree from the University of Newcastle.
Emily Di Sante
Senior Research Coordinator
Emily Di Sante
Senior Research Coordinator
With over 14 years experience in health research coordination, Emily is passionate about building exceptional teams that make a positive impact on global health. She has an Honours Bachelor’s of Arts degree (University of Guelph), Master’s of Political Science degree (McMaster University) and a certificate in Project Management (University of Toronto).
Her research interests include tobacco control, public and patient involvement, long-term care, evaluation and knowledge translation. At PHRI, she supports the perioperative and surgery studies, B-Free, FARGO, FAST, PREVENT and STRATUS.
