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Recruiting NCT00004317

Pyrimethamine, Sulfadiazine, and Leucovorin in Treating Patients With Congenital Toxoplasmosis

Phase IV Interventional Toxoplasmosis

For patients and families

In plain language

An automatic summary of structured registry data. It is an orientation aid, not a substitute for the official protocol or a physician assessment.

What is being studied
The protocol lists: Leucovorin calcium, Pyrimethamine, Spiramycin, Sulfadiazine.
Who it may be relevant to
Registry conditions: Toxoplasmosis. Basic parameters: No limits · All.
What needs checking
Age, condition and sex are only basic indicators. Prior treatment, laboratory values and other mandatory requirements appear in the eligibility criteria below.
Where it takes place
United States
Next step
Save the trial, show it to the treating physician, and confirm current recruitment with the study center. Costs, documents and travel →
Official title

Phase IV Randomized Study of Pyrimethamine, Sulfadiazine, and Leucovorin Calcium for Congenital Toxoplasmosis

Overview

RATIONALE: Congenital toxoplasmosis is an infection caused by the parasitic organism Toxoplasma gondii, and it may be passed from an infected mother to her unborn child. The mother may have mild symptoms or no symptoms; the fetus, however, may experience damage to the eyes, nervous system, skin, and ears. The newborn may have a low birth weight, enlarged liver and spleen, jaundice, anemia, petechiae, and eye damage. Giving the antiparasitic drugs pyrimethamine and sulfadiazine is standard treatment for congenital toxoplasmosis, but it is not yet known which regimen of pyrimethamine is most effective for the disease. PURPOSE: Randomized phase IV trial to determine which regimen of pyrimethamine is most effective when combined with sulfadiazine and leucovorin in treating patients who have congenital toxoplasmosis.

Detailed description

PROTOCOL OUTLINE: Infants are randomly assigned to 1 of 2 treatment groups. Patients are stratified by disease severity, chorioretinitis, prenatal treatment, and certainty of diagnosis at birth.

One group of infants is treated with a loading dose of oral pyrimethamine followed by a higher dose for the first two months then a lower dose for the remainder of the 12 months. Sulfadiazine and leucovorin calcium are also given orally for 12 months. The pyrimethamine loading dose is omitted if prior prenatal therapy was given.

Another group of infants is treated with a higher dose of oral pyrimethamine for the first 6 months and then the lower dose for the remainder of the 12 months. Sulfadiazine and leucovorin calcium are administered concurrently.

Infected fetuses of pregnant women are nonrandomly assigned to treatment with pyrimethamine, sulfadiazine, and leucovorin calcium after the first trimester. Spiramycin is administered before the fetal diagnosis is made.

Concurrent prednisone for active retinal inflammation or elevated cerebrospinal fluid protein is allowed.

Collaborating physicians will also refer historical controls, who have not been treated in the first year of life or who received one month or less therapy, and are older than one year. Absence of treatment in the first year of life will be due to parental preference, prior inadequate follow-up by the family physicians, or lack of detection or treatment of eye disease before the age of one year in otherwise asymptomatic children. These historical, untreated patients (who enter the study when they are older than one year) will be compared with treated children in the randomized study. These historical patients will not be randomized. Any abnormality requiring treatment (e.g., active chorioretinitis) in any child (including historical patients) will be treated.

All infants are followed at birth, then at age 1, 3.5, 5, 7.5, 10, 15, and 20.

Interventions

  • Drug Leucovorin calcium
    See arm descriptions
  • Drug Pyrimethamine
    See arm descriptions
  • Drug Spiramycin
    Spiramycin is administered before the fetal diagnosis is made.
  • Drug Sulfadiazine
    See arm descriptions

Primary outcome measures

  • Persistent motor abnormality [Time frame: At pre-specified time points]
  • Vision [Time frame: At pre-specified time points]
  • Hearing [Time frame: At pre-specified time points]
  • New chorioretinal lesion [Time frame: At pre-specified time points]
  • IQ less than 70 [Time frame: At pre-specified time points]
  • Decrease in IQ of greater than or equal to 15 points [Time frame: At pre-specified time points]

Eligibility criteria

PROTOCOL ENTRY CRITERIA:

  • Infants with congenital toxoplasmosis Toxoplasma gondii confirmed prior to age 2.5 months
  • Pregnant women with evidence of toxoplasma infection by clinical observation and amniotic fluid sampling
  • Acute infection acquired during gestation with evidence of fetal infection
  • Untreated older children entered as controls
  • Asymptomatic congenital toxoplasmosis
  • Age more than 1 year
  • No treatment within the first year of life
  • No more than 1 month of prior therapy

Criteria are shown verbatim from the registry (in English). Final eligibility is always assessed by the study center.

Healthy volunteers: No

Study design

Allocation
Randomized
Model
Parallel assignment
Masking
Single blind
Primary purpose
Treatment

Study locations

United States · 1 center
  • University of Chicago — Chicago

Publications

  • McLeod R, Boyer KM, Lee D, Mui E, Wroblewski K, Karrison T, Noble AG, Withers S, Swisher CN, Heydemann PT, Sautter M, Babiarz J, Rabiah P, Meier P, Grigg ME; Toxoplasmosis Study Group. Prematurity and severity are associated with Toxoplasma gondii alleles (NCCCTS, 1981-2009). Clin Infect Dis. 2012 Jun;54(11):1595-605. doi: 10.1093/cid/cis258. Epub 2012 Apr 11. PMID 22499837

Identifiers

NCT: NCT00004317 · 199/11837 · UCCRC-08796 · MRH-850410 · UCRCC-08796

Primary sources (government registries)

View this study on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗