NCT01669941

Efficacy of Intermittent Screening and Treatment or Intermittent Preventive Treatment (IPT) With Dihydroartemisinin-Piperaquine, Versus IPT With Sulfadoxine-Pyrimethamine for the Control of Malaria in Pregnancy in Kenya

Intermittent Screening and Treatment (IST) or Intermittent Preventive Treatment (IPT) With Dihydroartemisinin-Piperaquine, Versus IPT With Sulfadoxine-Pyrimethamine for the Control of Malaria in Pregnancy in Kenya: a Randomized Controlled Trial

• Status: Completed
• Phase: Phase 4
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 1,546 (actual)
• Sponsor: Kenya Medical Research Institute · Academic / Other
• Sex: Female
• Age: —
• Healthy volunteers: Not accepted

Summary

Malaria in pregnancy (MiP) due to Plasmodium falciparum infection is a major cause of maternal morbidity and poor birth outcomes. Intermittent preventive treatment in pregnancy (IPTp) with Sulfadoxine pyrimethamine (SP), the administration of SP at predefined intervals in the second and third trimesters of pregnancy irrespective of the presence of malaria parasitemia, is currently recommended for HIV-negative women in all areas with stable moderate to high transmission of malaria. Due to increasing resistance to SP, it is no longer used as a treatment for symptomatic malaria, and the efficacy of IPTp-SP seems to be decreased. This study aims to look at a new drug, Dihydroartemisinin-Piperaquine (DP) for IPTp, as well as to explore the strategy of intermittent screening and treatment in pregnancy (ISTp) with DP. This strategy uses increased screening at time of focused antenatal care (FANC) with treatment of women who screen positive. The hypothesis is that the efficacy of both IPTp-DP and ISTp-DP will be associated with a reduction in malaria infection at delivery among HIV(-) women when compared to IPTp-SP, in an area with decreasing malaria transmission and high levels of SP resistance in Kenya.

Detailed description

Malaria in pregnancy (MiP) due to Plasmodium falciparum infection is a major cause of maternal morbidity and poor birth outcomes. Pregnant women are at increased risk of more frequent and severe malaria infections than are non-pregnant women. Intermittent preventive treatment in pregnancy (IPTp), the administration of treatment doses of an antimalarial at predefined intervals in the second and third trimesters of pregnancy irrespective of the presence of malaria parasitemia, is currently recommended for HIV-negative women in all areas with stable moderate to high transmission of malaria. The strategy is thought to work by providing intermittent clearance or suppression of parasites in the placenta, and preventing new infections from occurring through the prophylactic effect of the recommended drug for IPTp, sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine (SP). SP is the only drug currently used for IPTp. Due to increasing resistance to SP, it is no longer used as a treatment for symptomatic malaria, however, IPTp with SP remains effective even in areas where SP resistance in children under five (determined by in vivo efficacy studies) is up to 26%. SP therefore continues to be used for IPTp in many countries where it is no longer used for treatment of symptomatic malaria. However, more recent data from northern Tanzania and Malawi indicate that at higher rates of resistance, IPTp-SP may no longer be effective, and could potentially be harmful. In view of this data, a search for alternatives to IPTp-SP is warranted. One strategy would be to choose a different drug for IPTp. Of the available combinations, Dihydroartemisinin-Piperaquine (DP) remains one of the most attractive options because of the long half-life of piperaquine (PQ) and the demonstrated efficacy and safety in pregnancy. Another strategy to consider is intermittent screening and treatment in pregnancy (ISTp), whereby there is increased screening at time of focused antenatal care (FANC) with treatment of women who screen positive. The same properties (long half-life, tolerability, safety, once daily dosing) which make DP a good choice for IPTp also make it one of the best available options for ISTp. This study aims to compare the efficacy of IPTp-SP against that of IPTp-DP and ISTp-DP to determine if these alternate strategies are associated with a reduction in malaria infection at delivery among HIV(-) women in an area with decreasing malaria transmission and high levels of SP resistance in Kenya.

Conditions

• Pregnancy
• Malaria

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
DRUG	IPTp-SP	3 tablets of sulfadoxine (500 mg) and pyrimethamine (25 mg) given at each ANC visit
DRUG	IPTp-DP	At each ANC visit: treatment with Dihydroartemisinin-piperaquine for three days, with the daily number of tablets depending on the weight of the woman; two tablets for women weighing 24- 35.9kg, three tablets for women weighing 36 to 74.9 kg, and four tablets for women weighing 75kg or more. The first dose will be observed; the woman will be given the additional 2 doses to take at home and there may be a home visit to confirm that the tablets were taken.
DRUG	ISTp-DP	At each ANC visit, women will be screened for malaria using a combined HRP-2/ pLDH (P. falciparum/ pan-malaria) rapid diagnostic test, and if positive, treated with dihydroartemisinin-piperaquine. Each tablet will contain 40 mg dihydroartemisinin and 320 mg piperaquine. Treatment will be given for three days, with the daily number of tablets depending on the weight of the woman; two tablets for women weighing 24- 35.9kg, three tablets for women weighing 36 to 74.9 kg, and four tablets for women weighing 75kg or more. The first dose will be observed; the woman will be given the additional 2 doses to take at home

Timeline

• Start date: 2012-08-01
• Primary completion: 2014-10-01
• Completion: 2015-12-01
• First posted: 2012-08-21
• Last updated: 2017-03-06

Locations

4 sites across 1 country: Kenya