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Vivax MalariaPhase 4VRANCT01178021

Estimating the Risk of Plasmodium Vivax Relapses in Afghanistan

A Phase 4 study testing Chloroquine and Chloroquine/Primaquine in people with Vivax Malaria, run by University of Oxford at 3 sites in Afghanistan.

Completed

Finished. The study has ended and is not enrolling. Results may be posted on the official record.

Official record
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Trial summary

This is an open label two-arm randomized prospective study of two treatments for P. vivax malaria. Patients meeting study inclusion criteria will be enrolled and allocated either chloroquine alone or chloroquine plus primaquine (0.25mg/kg/day for 14 days). Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Ages 6 months and older
Conditions the study is for
Vivax Malaria
What is being tested?
Chloroquine and Chloroquine/Primaquine
Could I receive a placebo?
No, everyone receives an active treatment
How many people
593 participants
Where
3 sitesAfghanistan
Study dates
Aug 2009to Feb 2014
Phase
Phase 4
Are there results?
None posted in the registry

Key requirements

Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.

  • Ages 6 months and older
  • All sexes
  • No healthy volunteers
  • Child, Adult, Older adult

Who may be able to join

  • Adults and children >6 months
  • Negative pregnancy test in women at risk of pregnancy
  • Microscopic diagnosis of Plasmodium vivax mono-infection (>200/µl asexual forms)
  • Axillary temperature ≥37.5°C or oral/rectal temperature ≥38°C or history of fever within the last 24 hours
  • Ability to swallow oral medication
  • Participant (or parent/guardian if <18 years old) is willing and able to give written informed consent
  • Ability (in the investigator's opinion) and willingness of patient or parent/guardian to comply with all study requirements

Who cannot join

  • Severe malaria (see WHO definition)
  • Patients with microscopic diagnosis of co-infection with Plasmodium falciparum
  • Haemoglobin concentration <8g/dl
  • Presence of any condition which in the judgement of the investigator would place the subject at undue risk or interfere with the results of the study e.g. other acute febrile conditions or chronic disease
  • Pregnancy or lactation
  • History or phenotypic test compatible with severe G6PD deficiency
  • History of hypersensitivity to any of the drugs being tested

Trial locations and contacts

3 sites in 1 country.

Afghanistan3 sites
  • Provincial Malaria Control Centers (MRC)

    Jalalabad

  • Provincial Malaria Control Centers (MRC)

    Kunduz

  • Provincial Malaria Control Centers (MRC)

    Maymana, Faryab Province

Other trials in Afghanistan

About this study

This is an open label two-arm randomized prospective study of two treatments for P. vivax malaria. Patients meeting study inclusion criteria will be enrolled and allocated either chloroquine alone or chloroquine plus primaquine (0.25mg/kg/day for 14 days). Patients will be followed-up for 1 year, with clinical and laboratory examinations at each visit. Patients with recurrent P. vivax infection will be treated with the same medication as initially randomized unless contraindicated. Recurrences in the two arms will be compared to estimate the risk of and mean duration to relapse, classify the relapse pattern as early or late relapse and to estimate the efficacy and safety of the study drugs.

Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) analysis will be used as far as possible help to distinguish between relapse and re-infection. Samples for chloroquine pharmacokinetic analysis will be collected on day 7 from each study subject as well as on the day of recurrence if within 8 weeks of chloroquine

Read the detailed description

Globally more than 100 countries are endemic of malaria and about 60% of world population are at risk of getting the infection while around 10% are harboring malaria parasite in their blood stream. Of the four species of plasmodium that infect humans, Plasmodium vivax is responsible for 50% of all malaria cases outside Africa, and is endemic in the Middle East, Asia and Western Pacific, with a lower prevalence in Central and South America a common cause of malaria in many tropical and subtropical regions. Conventional control methods are rather inefficient for preventing transmission of this species of malaria. This is partly due to the persistence of the infectious reservoir, which take the form of latent hypnozoites in the liver, producing recurrent relapses and opportunities for new transmission for several years after initial infection.

Primaquine (PQ) is the only available drug regimen which can eliminate the persisting liver stages (hypnozoites) of P. vivax,but its use for 14 days is ineffective to prevent relapses at 15 mg daily dose (0.25mg/kg) in Southeast Asia and in Brazil, and at a higher dose of 22.5 mg daily in the Southwest Pacific. Due to high relapse rates, a primaquine regimen of 30 mg daily (0.5 mg/kg) for 14 d is now widely recommended for glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) normal patients.

P.vivax is the predominant species in Pakistan and eastern Afghanistan. In this area G6PD deficiency is a common trait (7% in Pakistani and 14% in Afghan Pashtoon respectively). However facilities to test for G6PD deficiency are not available and hence routine administration of primaquine is not recommended in national guidelines because of the risk of severe haemolysis in those who cannot be tested.

Several national malaria programmes in Asia have adopted a truncated 5-day course of PQ for vivax malaria to reduce the risk of haemolysis to reasonable levels and to increases compliance rates. Recently this has been documented as being ineffective at reducing relapse rates amongst Afghan refugees in Pakistan while a supervised 14 day course can significantly reduce the frequency of second and third episodes of disease. This is also confirmed by a study in India. Use of the 14 day course is only recommended where the G6PD status of the individual is known, and, currently, where compliance with the full course can be assured. However supervision of patients for 14 day post presentation is seldom feasible in the majority of settings where vivax malaria predominates. Therefore the supposition that patients in a low literacy population will not comply with a 14 day course of treatment in the absence of supervision needs to be confirmed under normal operational conditions. Compliance in taking the drug cannot be monitored by direct observation or by chemical assay of residues in the blood because such interference may, in itself, affect compliance.

Conditions
Vivax Malaria
Being tested
Chloroquine, Chloroquine/Primaquine
Keywords
malaria, vivax, relapse
Medical subject headings
Malaria, Vivax, Malaria, Recurrence

What participants receive

What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.

  • ChloroquineDrug

    Chloroquine 10 mg/kg on day 0 \& 1 and 5mg/kg on day 2

  • Chloroquine/PrimaquineDrug

    Chloroquine 10 mg/kg on day 0 \& 1 and 5mg/kg on day 2 Primaquine (if given) 0.25mg/kg/day for 14 days

Study groups in NCT01178021
Study groupRoleWhat they receive
ChloroquineActive comparatorStandard arm
Receives: Drug: Chloroquine
Chloroquine/PrimaquineExperimentalChloroquine combined with primaquine
Receives: Drug: Chloroquine/Primaquine

What is being measured

The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.

  1. Secondary vivax attack

    Completion of the 1-year (± 1 month) follow-up period without secondary vivax attack

    Measured: 1 year

Secondary outcomes (6)
  1. secondary vivax attack

    Completion of 6-months (± 1 month) follow-up without secondary vivax attack

    Measured: 6 months

  2. G6PD prevalence

    G6PD status of patients

    Measured: Time of enrollment

  3. Recurrence

    Time to first recurrence, median time between episodes of vivax infections and total number of episodes in the follow up period

    Measured: 1 year

  4. Days of illness, haematocrit

    Overall number of days of illness and haematocrit below 30%

    Measured: 1 year

  5. Chloroquine levels

    Whole blood chloroquine level at day 7 and any day of recurrence of Plasmodium vivax malaria

    Measured: Day 7

  6. Adverse events

    Adverse event profiles of chloroquine and primaquine

    Measured: 1 year

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

  1. First posted9 Aug 2010 (estimated)
  2. Study startAug 2009
  3. Primary completionFeb 2014
  4. Study completionFeb 2014

Resources

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design
Study type
Interventional
Phase
Phase 4
Primary purpose
Treatment
Allocation
Randomised
Intervention model
Parallel groups
Masking
None (open label)
Enrolment
593 participants (actual)
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT01178021
Sponsor's protocol ID
BAKMAL0903
Acronym
VRA
Status last verified
Jan 2019
First submitted
6 Aug 2010
Last updated
15 Jan 2019
Results posted
No
Data monitoring committee
No

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

A Phase 4 study testing Chloroquine and Chloroquine/Primaquine in people with Vivax Malaria, run by University of Oxford at 3 sites in Afghanistan.

The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.

Who may be eligible to take part?

The sponsor lists 7 inclusion and 7 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.

Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?

The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 15 Jan 2019. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 3 sites in Afghanistan. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.

What does this phase mean?

Phase 4 studies take place after a treatment is approved, to learn more about its long-term benefits and risks in everyday use.

Not every study follows the same path, and some studies (observational studies, device studies) have no phase.

Are results available for this study?

The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.

How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?

The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

What does the primary outcome measure?

Secondary vivax attack (time frame: 1 year). It is what the study was designed to measure, not a finding.

Where can I read the original study information?
Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?

No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.

How often is this information updated?

AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 15 Jan 2019.

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