Sanitation, Water, and Instruction in face-washing for trachoma II (SWIFT II)

Water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) interventions are thought to prevent transmission of the infectious agent of blinding trachoma, ocular chlamydia, but the evidence base is weak. This project continues a cluster-randomized trial WASH package for trachoma in order to determine whether WASH improvements prevent reinfection with ocular chlamydia following antibiotic treatments. This is an important question for trachoma programs, who must decide how to spend their limited resources.

The present study, called WUHA II, is a continuation of the WUHA I trial. WUHA I is an ongoing cluster- randomized trial in rural Ethiopia designed to determine the effectiveness of water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) for trachoma. 40 communities were randomized in a 1:1 ratio either to a comprehensive WASH package or to no intervention. By comparing the combined azithromycin-WASH communities to communities receiving mass azithromycin alone, we investigate the benefit of combining the “A”, “F”, and “E” components of the SAFE strategy as opposed to focusing on antibiotics alone.

Resources:

• UCSF: Global Research Projects - Sanitation, Water, and Instruction in face-washing for trachoma II (SWIFT II)

• ClinicalTrials.gov study registration

Study Location

Amhara, Ethiopia

Target Population

Communities

Principal Investigators

Emory University: Matthew Freeman

University of California, San Francisco: Jeremy Keenan

Collaborators

The Carter Center, Amhara Public Health Institute

Funders

NIH National Eye Institute