NCT03386578

Evaluating the Pharmacokinetics, Feasibility, Acceptability, and Safety of Oral Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis for HIV Prevention During Pregnancy and Postpartum

Pharmacokinetics, Feasibility, Acceptability, and Safety of Oral Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis for Primary HIV Prevention During Pregnancy and Postpartum in Adolescents and Young Women and Their Infants

• Status: Completed
• Phase: Phase 2
• Study type: Interventional
• Enrollment: 780 (actual)
• Sponsor: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) · NIH
• Sex: Female
• Age: 16 Years – 24 Years
• Healthy volunteers: Accepted

Summary

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the pharmacokinetics, feasibility, acceptability, and safety of a fixed-dose combination of emtricitabine and tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (FTC/TDF) as oral daily pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) to prevent HIV during pregnancy and postpartum in adolescents and young women and their infants.

Detailed description

This study evaluated the pharmacokinetics, feasibility, acceptability, and safety of FTC/TDF as oral daily PrEP to prevent HIV during pregnancy and postpartum in adolescents and young women and their infants. The study was conducted in two consecutive components: 1) Pharmacokinetics (PK) Component and 2) PrEP Comparison Component. In the PK Component, women enrolled in one of two groups. Group 1 included pregnant women at 14 to 24 weeks' gestation and Group 2 included postpartum women who delivered 6 to 12 weeks prior to enrollment. Both groups received a fixed-dose combination of FTC/TDF administered once daily by direct observation from Day 0 through Week 12. Mothers in the PK Component had weekly study visits through Week 12. Infants in Group 1, whose mothers enrolled during pregnancy, had study visits at birth and six weeks of life; infants in Group 2, who were enrolled with their mothers 6-12 weeks after birth, had study visits at Week 6 and Week 12. Study visits for mothers and infants in the PK Component included evaluation of drug levels and monitoring for adverse effects. In the PrEP Comparison Component, pregnant women enrolled in one of two cohorts. Mothers in Cohort 1 chose to initiate PrEP at study entry, and mothers in Cohort 2 declined PrEP at entry. Participants in both Cohorts received a standard of care package of HIV prevention services, a study-specific behavioral risk reduction intervention, and periodic one-way short message service (SMS) messages to promote maternal and child health from Day 0 through Week 26. Cohort 1 opted to also receive daily oral FTC/TDF as PrEP and enhanced adherence support, including weekly two-way SMS messaging and feedback of drug levels with tailored adherence counseling. Participants who changed their mind about using PrEP during study participation were able to subsequently stop PrEP (Cohort 1) or initiate PrEP (Cohort 2/Step 2). Mothers in the PrEP Comparison Component had regular study visits through delivery and Week 26 (postpartum). Infants in the PrEP Comparison Component had four study visits from birth through week 26 of life. For mothers, study visits included physical examinations, blood and urine collection, vaginal and (optional) rectal swab collection, vaginal secretions collection, ultrasounds, and dual-energy x-ray absorptiometry (DXA) scans. For infants, study visits included physical examinations, rectal swab and blood collection, and DXA scans. In the PrEP Comparison Component analysis, maternal and infant participants were classified based on their PrEP exposure. The PrEP-exposed group included participants from Cohort 1 (throughout the entire study follow-up) and from Cohort 2/Step 2 (from Step 2 entry to the end of follow-up). The PrEP-unexposed group comprised participants from Cohort 2/Step 1 who did not enroll in Cohort 2/Step 2 (throughout the entire study follow-up) or who enrolled in Cohort 2/Step 2 (from study entry until enrolling in Cohort 2/Step 2).

Conditions

• HIV Infections

Interventions

Type	Name	Description
DRUG	Emtricitabine/Tenofovir Disoproxil Fumarate (FTC/TDF)	200 mg/300 mg of FTC/TDF administered orally as a fixed-dose combination tablet once daily
BEHAVIORAL	Behavioral HIV risk reduction package	Included cohort-appropriate SMS messages.
BEHAVIORAL	Enhanced adherence support	Included two-way SMS messaging and tailored counseling with drug level feedback.

Timeline

• Start date: 2018-07-03
• Primary completion: 2023-10-25
• Completion: 2024-02-24
• First posted: 2017-12-29
• Last updated: 2025-02-19
• Results posted: 2025-02-19

Locations

7 sites across 4 countries: Malawi, South Africa, Uganda, Zimbabwe

Regulatory

• FDA-regulated drug study