Mortality Reduction After Oral Azithromycin: Mortality Study (MORDORIMort)
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ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT02047981 |
Recruitment Status :
Completed
First Posted : January 29, 2014
Results First Posted : January 3, 2020
Last Update Posted : November 8, 2022
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Condition or disease | Intervention/treatment | Phase |
---|---|---|
Childhood Mortality | Drug: Azithromycin Drug: Placebo | Phase 4 |
We will assess childhood mortality over three years, comparing communities where children aged 1-60 months receive biannual oral azithromycin ("Azithromycin" arm) for two years, to communities where the children receive biannual oral placebo ("Control" arm) for two years. During the third year at the Niger site only, everyone will receive azithromycin.
This is a cluster-randomized trial; at each site, communities within a contiguous area of 300,000 to 600,000 individuals will be randomized to azithromycin or placebo using simple random sampling.
Niger contingency study: In the event that mass distributions of oral azithromycin are proven to reduce mortality in 1-60 month-old children, then we will treat all communities in Niger with mass azithromycin distributions to test whether the intervention continues to reduce childhood mortality after the initial 2 years of mass treatments.
Study Type : | Interventional (Clinical Trial) |
Actual Enrollment : | 190238 participants |
Allocation: | Randomized |
Intervention Model: | Parallel Assignment |
Masking: | Quadruple (Participant, Care Provider, Investigator, Outcomes Assessor) |
Primary Purpose: | Treatment |
Official Title: | Evaluating Impact of Azithromycin Mass Drug Administrations on All-cause Mortality and Antibiotic Resistance: Mortality Trial |
Study Start Date : | December 2014 |
Actual Primary Completion Date : | September 2018 |
Actual Study Completion Date : | September 2018 |

Arm | Intervention/treatment |
---|---|
Active Comparator: Biannual mass oral azithromycin
Comparison of childhood mortality in communities randomized to azithromycin versus communities randomized to placebo. Children aged 1 month to 60 months per community will be offered weight or height-based, directly observed, oral azithromycin suspension every 6 months for 2 years. In Niger during year 3, all communities will be offered azithroymcin. |
Drug: Azithromycin
Children aged 1 month to 60 months per community will be offered weight or height-based, directly observed, oral azithromycin suspension every 6 months for 2 years. In Niger during year 3, all communities will be offered azithroymcin.
Other Name: Zithromax |
Placebo Comparator: Biannual mass oral placebo
Comparison of childhood mortality in communities randomized to azithromycin versus communities randomized to placebo. Children aged 1 month to 60 months per community will be offered weight or height-based, directly observed, oral placebo every 6 months for 2 years In Niger during year 3, all communities will be offered azithroymcin. |
Drug: Placebo
Children aged 1 month to 60 months per community will be offered weight or height-based, directly observed, oral placebo every 6 months for 2 years. In Niger during year 3, all communities will be offered azithroymcin. |
- All-cause Mortality Rate in Children Aged 1-60 Months [ Time Frame: 24 Months ]This is a single multi-site trial, with each country as a secondary analysis. Also, an interim analysis of efficacy and futility will be conducted according to a pre-specified plan in the Statistical Analysis Plan.
- All-cause Mortality Rate in Children Aged 1-60 Months [ Time Frame: 36 months ]This was a pre-specified contingency study in Niger only in which all communities were treated with mass azithromycin during the third year of the study following the primary 24-month endpoint.
- Cause-specific Mortality Rate in Children Aged 1-60 Months, as Assessed From Verbal Autopsy (Niger Only) [ Time Frame: 24 Months ]Deaths were assessed via biannual population census. A pre-specified outcome was cause of death, assessed by verbal autopsy.
- Cost-effectiveness of Mass Azithromycin Administration, Per Averted Childhood Death [ Time Frame: 24 months ]Cost-effectiveness of Mass Azithromycin Administration, Per Averted Childhood Death during the 24 month phase
- All-cause and Cause-specific Health Clinic Visits in 1-60 Month-old Children [ Time Frame: 24 months ]We recorded clinic visits one year prior the study and during the first year of the study and collected outcomes of these visit.
- Cause-specific Mortality Rate in Children Aged 1-60 Months, as Assessed From Verbal Autopsy (Tanzania Only) [ Time Frame: 24 Months ]At 6-monthly intervals a census of the communities was conducted, and for child deaths a verbal autopsy was performed to ascertain the cause using a standardized diagnostic classification. Mortality due to pneumonia or diarrhea by age group and arm are shown in the outcome measure data table below.
- Cause-specific Mortality Rate in Children Aged 1-60 Months, as Assessed From Verbal Autopsy (Malawi Only) [ Time Frame: 24 Months ]Cause-specific mortality by intention-to-treat for the four main inferred causes of death in the study area.

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Ages Eligible for Study: | 1 Month to 60 Months (Child) |
Sexes Eligible for Study: | All |
Accepts Healthy Volunteers: | Yes |
Inclusion Criteria:
Communities
- The community location in target district.
- The community leader consents to participation in the trial
- The community's estimated population is between 200-2,000 people.
- The community is not in an urban area.
Individuals - All children aged 1-60 months (up to but not including the 5th birthday), as assessed via biannual census.
Exclusion Criteria:
Individuals
- Refusal of village chief (for village inclusion), or refusal of parent or guardian (for individual inclusion)

To learn more about this study, you or your doctor may contact the study research staff using the contact information provided by the sponsor.
Please refer to this study by its ClinicalTrials.gov identifier (NCT number): NCT02047981
United States, California | |
UCSF Proctor Foundation | |
San Francisco, California, United States, 94143 | |
United States, Maryland | |
Johns Hopkins University | |
Baltimore, Maryland, United States, 21205 | |
Malawi | |
College of Medicine at the University of Malawi, Blantyre | |
Blantyre, Malawi | |
Niger | |
The Carter Center, Niger | |
Niamey, Niger | |
Tanzania | |
Kongwa Trachoma Project | |
Kongwa, Tanzania | |
United Kingdom | |
London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine | |
London, United Kingdom |
Principal Investigator: | Tom M Lietman, MD | University of California, San Francisco | |
Study Director: | Elodie J Lebas, RN | University of California, San Francisco |
Documents provided by University of California, San Francisco:
Responsible Party: | University of California, San Francisco |
ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: | NCT02047981 |
Other Study ID Numbers: |
OPP1032340-A |
First Posted: | January 29, 2014 Key Record Dates |
Results First Posted: | January 3, 2020 |
Last Update Posted: | November 8, 2022 |
Last Verified: | October 2022 |
Individual Participant Data (IPD) Sharing Statement: | |
Plan to Share IPD: | No |
Childhood mortality Azithromycin Mass treatment Infection Verbal Autopsy |
Azithromycin Anti-Bacterial Agents Anti-Infective Agents |