Comparisons of Treatment Responses of Early Syphilis to Benzathine Penicillin G With or Without Doxycycline

August 3, 2026 updated by: National Taiwan University Hospital

Comparisons of Treatment Responses of Early Syphilis to 2.4 Milliunits (MU) Single-dose Benzathine Penicillin G With or Without Doxycycline in People Living With HIV

This randomized controlled superiority study will be conducted during 2023-2025. The eligible participants are adult people living with HIV (PLWH) who are newly diagnosed with early syphilis. Participants will be randomized in a 1:1 ratio to receive single-dose benzathine penicillin G (BPG) (2.4 MU intramuscularly once) plus doxycycline (100 mg orally twice daily for 7 days) or single-dose BPG. The primary outcome is serologic response, defined as a decline of rapid plasma reagin (RPR) titer by 4-fold or greater, at week 24 and week 48; and the secondary outcomes include microbiologic response of syphilis and bacterial sexually transmitted infections (STIs) assessed by nucleic-acid amplification test (NAAT) at week 4.

Study Overview

Status

Status

Indicates the current recruitment status or the expanded access status.
Recruiting

Conditions

Conditions

The disease, disorder, syndrome, illness, or injury that is being studied. On ClinicalTrials.gov, conditions may also include other health-related issues, such as lifespan, quality of life, and health risks.

Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.

Study Type

Study Type

Describes the nature of a clinical study. Study types include interventional studies (also called clinical trials), observational studies (including patient registries), and expanded access.
Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

Enrollment

The number of participants in a clinical study. The "anticipated" enrollment is the target number of participants that the researchers need for the study.
688

Phase

Phase

The stage of a clinical trial studying a drug or biological product, based on definitions developed by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The phase is based on the study's objective, the number of participants, and other characteristics. There are five phases: Early Phase 1 (formerly listed as Phase 0), Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3, and Phase 4. Not Applicable is used to describe trials without FDA-defined phases, including trials of devices or behavioral interventions.
  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Contact

The name and contact information for the person who can answer enrollment questions for a clinical study. Each location where the study is being conducted may also have a specific contact, who may be better able to answer those questions.

Study Locations

  • Taiwan
      • Kaohsiung City, Taiwan
        • Recruiting
        • Kaohsiung Veterans General Hospital
        • Contact:
      • Kaohsiung City, Taiwan
        • Recruiting
        • Kaohsiung Medical University Chung-Ho Memorial Hospital
        • Contact:
      • Tainan, Taiwan
        • Recruiting
        • National Cheng-Kung University Hospital
        • Contact:
      • Tainan, Taiwan
        • Recruiting
        • Chi Mei Medical Hospital
        • Contact:
    • Taiwan
      • Hsinchu, Taiwan, Taiwan, 110
        • Recruiting
        • National Taiwan University Hospital Hsin-Chu Branch
        • Contact:
      • Taipei, Taiwan, Taiwan, 110
        • Recruiting
        • Far Eastern Memorial Hospital
        • Contact:
        • Contact:
          • Kuan-Yin Lin
      • Taipei, Taiwan, Taiwan, 110
        • Recruiting
        • National Taiwan University Hospital
        • Contact:
      • Taipei, Taiwan, Taiwan, 110
        • Recruiting
        • Taipei Vetetrans General Hospital
        • Contact:
      • Taoyuan, Taiwan, Taiwan, 110
        • Recruiting
        • TaoYuan General Hospital
        • Contact:

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

The key requirements that people who want to participate in a clinical study must meet or the characteristics they must have. Eligibility criteria consist of both inclusion criteria (which are required for a person to participate in the study) and exclusion criteria (which prevent a person from participating). Types of eligibility criteria include whether a study accepts healthy volunteers, has age or age group requirements, or is limited by sex.

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • People living with HIV (PLWH) aged ≥18 years with early syphilis
  • Confirmed by a positive RPR titer with a reactive TPPA assay

Exclusion Criteria:

  • PWH with RPR titers of <4
  • Subject has latent syphilis of unknown duration, late latent syphilis, or evidence of neurosyphilis, including ocular involvement.
  • Exposure to antibiotics with activity against T. pallidum within the preceding 4 weeks (penicillin, 3rd cephalosporin, doxycycline, macrolides)
  • A known or suspected infection requiring additional treatment with an antimicrobial active against T. pallidum at baseline (penicillin, 3rd cephalosporin, doxycycline, macrolides)
  • A history of intolerance to penicillin or doxycycline
  • PLWH have already participated in this study
  • Pregnancy

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm

Participant Group / Arm

A group or subgroup of participants in a clinical trial that receives a specific intervention/treatment, or no intervention, according to the trial's protocol.
Intervention / Treatment

Intervention / Treatment

A process or action that is the focus of a clinical study. Interventions include drugs, medical devices, procedures, vaccines, and other products that are either investigational or already available. Interventions can also include noninvasive approaches, such as education or modifying diet and exercise.
Active Comparator: single-dose BPG plus doxycycline
single-dose benzathine penicillin G (2.4 MU intramuscularly once) plus doxycycline (100 mg orally twice daily for 7 days)
Drug: Benzathine Penicillin G
Benzathine Penicillin G (2.4 MU intramuscularly once)
Drug: Doxycycline Capsule
doxycycline (100 mg orally twice daily for 7 days)
Placebo Comparator: single-dose BPG
single-dose benzathine penicillin G (2.4 MU intramuscularly once)
Drug: Benzathine Penicillin G
Benzathine Penicillin G (2.4 MU intramuscularly once)

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Primary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, the planned outcome measure that is the most important for evaluating the effect of an intervention/treatment. Most clinical studies have one primary outcome measure, but some have more than one.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Serologic response
Time Frame: Weeks 24 and week 48
Either a 4-fold or greater decline in RPR titer compared to baseline or being RPR-nonreactive
Weeks 24 and week 48

Secondary Outcome Measures

Secondary Outcome Measures

In a clinical study's protocol, a planned outcome measure that is not as important as the primary outcome measure for evaluating the effect of an intervention but is still of interest. Most clinical studies have more than one secondary outcome measure.
Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Microbiologic response of syphilis
Time Frame: Week 4
T. pallidum PCR Ct value >38
Week 4
Microbiologic response of bacterial STIs
Time Frame: Week 4
negative STI PCR results
Week 4
Safety of study treatment
Time Frame: Week 4
Week 4
Adherence evaluation of tablet intake
Time Frame: Week 4
Week 4

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

Sponsor

The organization or person who initiates the study and who has authority and control over the study.
National Taiwan University Hospital

Collaborators

Collaborators

An organization other than the sponsor that provides support for a clinical study. This support may include activities related to funding, design, implementation, data analysis, or reporting.
Kaohsiung Medical University Chung-Ho Memorial Hospital
Taipei Veterans General Hospital, Taiwan
National Cheng-Kung University Hospital
Far Eastern Memorial Hospital
Kaohsiung Veterans General Hospital.
Chi Mei Medical Hospital
National Taiwan University Hospital Hsin-Chu Branch
Taoyuan General Hospital

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

Study Start

The actual date on which the first participant was enrolled in a clinical study. The "anticipated" study start date is the date that the researchers think will be the study start date.
January 1, 2024

Primary Completion (Estimated)

Primary Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention to collect final data for the primary outcome measure. Whether the clinical study ended according to the protocol or was terminated does not affect this date. For clinical studies with more than one primary outcome measure with different completion dates, this term refers to the date on which data collection is completed for all the primary outcome measures. The "anticipated" primary completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the primary completion date for the study.
December 31, 2027

Study Completion (Estimated)

Study Completion

The date on which the last participant in a clinical study was examined or received an intervention/treatment to collect final data for the primary outcome measures, secondary outcome measures, and adverse events (that is, the last participant's last visit). The "anticipated" study completion date is the date that the researchers think will be the study completion date.
December 31, 2028

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

First Submitted

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submitted a study record to ClinicalTrials.gov. There is typically a delay of a few days between the first submitted date and the record's availability on ClinicalTrials.gov (the first posted date).
October 1, 2023

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The date on which the study sponsor or investigator first submits a study record that is consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. The sponsor or investigator may need to revise and submit a study record one or more times before NLM's QC review criteria are met. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
October 1, 2023

First Posted (Actual)

First Posted

The date on which the study record was first available on ClinicalTrials.gov after National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review has concluded. There is typically a delay of a few days between the date the study sponsor or investigator submitted the study record and the first posted date.
October 5, 2023

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

Last Update Posted

The most recent date on which changes to a study record were made available on ClinicalTrials.gov. There may be a delay between when the changes were submitted to ClinicalTrials.gov by the study's sponsor or investigator (the last update submitted date) and the last update posted date.
August 6, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator submitted changes to a study record that are consistent with National Library of Medicine (NLM) quality control (QC) review criteria. It is the responsibility of the sponsor or investigator to ensure that the study record is consistent with the NLM QC review criteria.
August 3, 2026

Last Verified

Last Verified

The most recent date on which the study sponsor or investigator confirmed the information about a clinical study on ClinicalTrials.gov as accurate and current. If a study with a recruitment status of recruiting; not yet recruiting; or active, not recruiting has not been confirmed within the past 2 years, the study's recruitment status is shown as unknown.
October 1, 2025

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

Other Study ID Numbers

Identifiers or ID numbers other than the NCT number that are assigned to a clinical study by the study's sponsor, funders, or others. These numbers may include unique identifiers from other trial registries and National Institutes of Health grant numbers.
  • 202305061MINA

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

NO

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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