Double-blinded Trial of Household-based Chlorination in India

Diarrhoea Clinical Trial

Official title: Household-based Chlorination of Drinking Water to Prevent Diarrhoeal Disease: a Randomized, Placebo-controlled Trial in India Using Sodium Dichloroisocyanurate (NaDCC) Tablets

Status Completed

Clinical Trial Summary

The proposed study is a 12-month double-blinded, randomized, placebo-controlled trial to determine if the impact of treating water with chlorine at the household level is effective in preventing diarrhea among young children. For more than a century, chlorine has be used to treat water in municipal systems in developed countries. Lack of infrastructure has prevented its use in lower-income settings. NaDCC is a tablet form of chlorine that has been used for more than 30 years in emergencies and has recently been approved for routine treatment of drinking water by the WHO and US Environmental Protection Agency. The placebo will consist of the food-grade ingredients in the effective tablet, without the chlorine. Study participants will be supplied with tablets (intervention or placebo) and instructed to use the same to treat their water daily. Monthly follow-up visits will assess diarrhoea morbidity and weight-for-age Z scores in <5s. Chlorine residual and bacteriological quality of water stored in the home will be measured each month. The study will also assess the impact of the intervention on absenteeism from school and work and on health care expenditure for diarrhoea.

Clinical Trial Description

n/a

Study Design

Allocation: Randomized, Endpoint Classification: Efficacy Study, Intervention Model: Parallel Assignment, Masking: Double Blind (Subject, Caregiver, Investigator, Outcomes Assessor), Primary Purpose: Prevention

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

• Diarrhoea

• NCT number: NCT01202383
• Study type: Interventional
• Source: London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
• Status: Completed
• Phase: Phase 3
• Start date: October 2010
• Completion date: December 2011