Browsing by Author "Heilig, Charles M."

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Lessons from a randomised clinical trial for multidrug-resistant tuberculosis.
(International Union against Tuberculosis and Lung Disease., 2012) Padayatchi, Nesri.; MacKenzie, William R.; Hirsch-Moverman, Yael.; Feng, P-J.; Villarino, E.; Saukkonen, J.; Heilig, Charles M.; Weiner, Marc.; El-Sadr, Wafaa M.
BACKGROUND: The treatment of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) is currently based upon expert opinion and findings from case series, rather than upon randomised clinical trials (RCTs). OBJECTIVE: To describe the challenges encountered during an RCT for the treatment of MDR-TB. METHODS: Tuberculosis Trials Consortium Study 30 was a pilot, Phase I/II, double-blind, placebo-controlled, RCT of the safety and tolerability of 16 weeks of daily, low-dose linezolid treatment for MDR-TB. RESULTS: A total of 36 patients, 56% of the target of 64 patients, consented to participate, for an average of 0.69 enrolments per week. Of the 36 patients enrolled, only 25 (69%) completed at least 90 doses of study treatment. Among the 12 (33%) patients who did not complete all 112 doses of the study treatment, the median time to study withdrawal was 15 days (range 0-92). After the study, we discovered discordance between treatment assignment and study drug for at least 9 (25%) of the 36 patients. CONCLUSIONS: Recruitment and retention in this MDR-TB clinical trial posed substantial challenges, suggesting the need for a large, multidisciplinary group of study staff to support the participants. Withdrawal tended to occur early in study treatment. The discrepancy in assigned study medication reflects the need for stronger administrative controls for study drugs.
Substitution of Moxifloxacin for Isoniazid during intensive phase treatment of Pulmonary Tuberculosis.
(American Thoracic Society., 2009) Dorman, Susan E.; Johnson, John L.; Goldberg, Stefan.; Muzanye, Grace.; Padayatchi, Nesri.; Bozeman, Lorna.; Heilig, Charles M.; Bernardo, John.; Choudhri, Shurjeel.; Grosset, Jacques H.; Guy, Elizabeth.; Guyadeen, Priya.; Leus, Maria Corazon.; Maltas, Gina.; Menzies, Dick.; Nuermberger, Eric L.; Villarino, Margarita.; Vernon, Andrew.; Chaisson, Richard E.
Rationale: Moxifloxacin has potent activity against Mycobacterium tuberculosis in vitro and in a mouse model of antituberculosis (TB) chemotherapy, but data regarding its activity in humans are limited. Objectives: Our objective was to compare the antimicrobial activity and safety of moxifloxacin versus isoniazid during the first 8 weeks of combination therapy for pulmonary TB. Methods: Adults with sputum smear–positive pulmonary TB were randomly assigned to receive either moxifloxacin 400 mg plus isoniazid placebo, or isoniazid 300 mg plus moxifloxacin placebo, administered 5 days/week for 8 weeks, in addition to rifampin, pyrazinamide, and ethambutol. All doses were directly observed. Sputum was collected for culture every 2 weeks. The primary outcome was negative sputum culture at completion of 8 weeks of treatment. Measurements and Main Results: Of 433 participants enrolled, 328 were eligible for the primary efficacy analysis. Of these, 35 (11%) were HIV positive, 248 (76%) had cavitation on baseline chest radiograph, and 213 (65%) were enrolled at African sites. Negative cultures at Week 8 were observed in 90/164 (54.9%) participants in the isoniazid arm, and 99/164 (60.4%) in the moxifloxacin arm (P=0.37). In multivariate analysis, cavitation and enrollment at an African site were associated with lower likelihood of Week-8 culture negativity. The proportion of participants who discontinued assigned treatment was 31/214 (14.5%) for the moxifloxacin group versus 22/205 (10.7%) for the isoniazid group (RR, 1.35; 95% CI, 0.81, 2.25).Conclusions: Substitution of moxifloxacin for isoniazid resulted in a small but statistically nonsignificant increase in Week-8 culture negativity.