Trachoma Amelioration in Northern Amhara (TANA) (TANA)

September 5, 2015 updated by: Thomas M. Lietman, University of California, San Francisco

Eliminating Trachoma With Repeat Mass Drug Treatment

The WHO has initiated a program to eliminate trachoma, blinding eye infection caused by Chlamydia trachomatis, in large part by mass distributions of oral azithromycin. The proposed study will determine the frequency and treatment target of community-wide mass antibiotic treatment. We will also study the impact of mass antibiotic distribution on antibiotic-resistance in pneumococcus.

Study Overview

Detailed Description

The proposed study is a group-randomized trial to determine the frequency and treatment target of community-wide mass antibiotic treatment to eliminate trachoma. We will also study the impact of community-wide antibiotic distribution on antibiotic-resistance in pneumococcus. Communities in Goncha Siso Enese district of East Gojam Zone, Ethiopia will be randomly assigned to different treatment schemes and monitored to study the following research questions:

Specific Aim 1. To determine whether biannual mass treatments is more likely to eliminate ocular chlamydia from hyper-endemic communities than annual mass treatments.

Specific Aim 2. To determine whether children form a core group for the transmission of trachoma.

Specific Aim 3. To determine whether latrine construction prevents the return of infection into a community after mass treatment.

Specific Aim 4. To determine the effect of mass azithromycin treatments on antibiotic resistance in pneumococcus and the reduction in mortality.

Specific Aim 5. To determine whether annual mass treatments are more likely to eliminate ocular chlamydia from hyper-endemic communities than biennial mass treatments.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

33000

Phase

  • Phase 4

Contacts and Locations

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

Study Locations

      • Addis Ababa, Ethiopia
        • Carter Center, Ethiopia

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

Ages Eligible for Study

1 year and older (Child, Adult, Older Adult)

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Genders Eligible for Study

All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• All residents residing in the state-teams which are randomly selected for this study.

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Pregnant women
  • Children under 6 months of age
  • All those who are allergic to macrolides or azalides
  • Refusal of village chief (for village inclusion), or refusal of parent or guardian (for individual inclusion)

Individuals in these three exclusion criteria will not be given the study antibiotic azithromycin, but offered the current WHO-recommended alternative treatment to azithromycin for active trachoma, which is 1% tetracycline eye ointment, to be used twice a day, topically to both eyes, for six weeks. Note that the exclusion criteria refer to the exclusion to the treatment drug, but not to the monitoring, treatment of trachoma, and examinations.

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: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Other: A
Annual mass treatment
For baseline and follow-up surveys prior to azithromycin distribution, a stratified random sample from two age groups will be chosen: 1) 60 study participants younger than 10 years old and 2) 60 study participants aged 10 years and above. Clinical examination will be performed and conjunctival swabs will be taken from all the study participants. For study arm C and D, nasopharyngeal swabs will be collected from 10 randomly selected children among the 60 participants under 10 who were recruited for conjunctival swabbing. Then a single dose of azithromycin will be distributed according to study design: in tablet form for adults; a weight-adjusted tablet dose for children ages 8-10; and pediatric suspension for children ages 1 - 7.
Other: B
Biannual mass treatment
For baseline and follow-up surveys prior to azithromycin distribution, a stratified random sample from two age groups will be chosen: 1) 60 study participants younger than 10 years old and 2) 60 study participants aged 10 years and above. Clinical examination will be performed and conjunctival swabs will be taken from all the study participants. For study arm C and D, nasopharyngeal swabs will be collected from 10 randomly selected children among the 60 participants under 10 who were recruited for conjunctival swabbing. Then a single dose of azithromycin will be distributed according to study design: in tablet form for adults; a weight-adjusted tablet dose for children ages 8-10; and pediatric suspension for children ages 1 - 7.
Experimental: C
Mass administration of antibiotic; treatment of children (1-10 years of age) only
For baseline and follow-up surveys prior to azithromycin distribution, a stratified random sample from two age groups will be chosen: 1) 60 study participants younger than 10 years old and 2) 60 study participants aged 10 years and above. Clinical examination will be performed and conjunctival swabs will be taken from all the study participants. For study arm C and D, nasopharyngeal swabs will be collected from 10 randomly selected children among the 60 participants under 10 who were recruited for conjunctival swabbing. Then a single dose of azithromycin will be distributed according to study design: in tablet form for adults; a weight-adjusted tablet dose for children ages 8-10; and pediatric suspension for children ages 1 - 7.
No Intervention: D
Delayed initiation of mass administration of antibiotic
Other: F
One-time mass administration only
For baseline and follow-up surveys prior to azithromycin distribution, a stratified random sample from two age groups will be chosen: 1) 60 study participants younger than 10 years old and 2) 60 study participants aged 10 years and above. Clinical examination will be performed and conjunctival swabs will be taken from all the study participants. For study arm C and D, nasopharyngeal swabs will be collected from 10 randomly selected children among the 60 participants under 10 who were recruited for conjunctival swabbing. Then a single dose of azithromycin will be distributed according to study design: in tablet form for adults; a weight-adjusted tablet dose for children ages 8-10; and pediatric suspension for children ages 1 - 7.
Experimental: G
One-time mass administration of antibiotics, plus intensive latrine construction
For baseline and follow-up surveys prior to azithromycin distribution, a stratified random sample from two age groups will be chosen: 1) 60 study participants younger than 10 years old and 2) 60 study participants aged 10 years and above. Clinical examination will be performed and conjunctival swabs will be taken from all the study participants. For study arm C and D, nasopharyngeal swabs will be collected from 10 randomly selected children among the 60 participants under 10 who were recruited for conjunctival swabbing. Then a single dose of azithromycin will be distributed according to study design: in tablet form for adults; a weight-adjusted tablet dose for children ages 8-10; and pediatric suspension for children ages 1 - 7.

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Time Frame
The average prevalence of ocular chlamydia infection in communities in an arm as determined by pooled NAAT (Nucleic Acid Amplification Test)(at 42 months for Aim 1, at 12 months for Aim 2, post-treatment relative to pre-treatment for Aim 3)
Time Frame: 42 months
42 months

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Time Frame
Clinical active trachoma in community, as determined by the WHO simplified grading system
Time Frame: 42 months
42 months
Childhood (>= 1 year of age) mortality, analyzed as 1-5, 6-10 years of age, and total
Time Frame: 42 months
42 months
Macrolide resistance in pneumococcus (% resistance over time, clustered by randomization unit)
Time Frame: 42 months
42 months
Average prevalence of ocular chlamydia infection in annually and biennially treated communities as determined by pooled NAAT (Nucleic Acid Amplification Test)
Time Frame: 48 months
48 months
Diversity measure in the conjunctival and nasopharyngeal microbiomes of children (age 0-9)
Time Frame: 0, 6, 12, 18, 24, 30, 36, 42, and 48 months
0, 6, 12, 18, 24, 30, 36, 42, and 48 months

Collaborators and Investigators

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

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Tom Lietman, MD, Proctor Foundation, UCSF
  • Study Director: Kieran S O'Brien, MPH, Proctor Foundation, UCSF
  • Study Director: Paul Emerson, PhD, Emory University

Publications and helpful links

The person responsible for entering information about the study voluntarily provides these publications. These may be about anything related to the study.

General Publications

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

June 1, 2006

Primary Completion (Actual)

November 1, 2009

Study Completion (Actual)

May 1, 2014

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

May 5, 2006

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

May 5, 2006

First Posted (Estimate)

May 9, 2006

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Estimate)

September 9, 2015

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

September 5, 2015

Last Verified

September 1, 2015

More Information

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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