There are about 31 clinical studies being (or have been) conducted in Papua New Guinea. The country of the clinical trial is determined by the location of where the clinical research is being studied. Most studies are often held in multiple locations & countries.
This trial tests the hypothesis that intermittent preventive treatment in pregnancy (IPTp) with sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine (SP) plus dihydroartemisinin-piperaquine (DP) significantly reduces the risk of malaria infection (primary outcome) and adverse birth outcomes (key secondary outcome) in an endemic area of Papua New Guinea (PNG), compared to IPTp with SP alone (the current standard of care). To test this hypothesis a double-blinded, placebo-controlled, phase-III, superiority trial will individually randomize 1,172 HIV-uninfected pregnant women enrolled from 12-26 gestational weeks in equal proportions to one of two IPTp arms: 1) SP given every for weeks, or 2) SP+DP given every 4 weeks. DP placebos will be used to ensure adequate blinding is achieved in the study and follow-up will end 28 days after giving birth.
In a search for accessible treatment options, plant medicines used by different communities in Papua New Guinea have been tested to identify the sap of the tree, Ficus septica, as a promising antibacterial agent in vitro. This is an open label clinical trial using an interventional approach, to compare the effect of the antiseptic plant sap and standard topical antiseptic, on the rate of wound development prevention and bacterial growth. If shown to be effective, this readily available plant medicine can provide a zero-cost treatment option in remote areas of PNG.
This is an observational study to determine the reactogenicity and immunogenicity of pneumococcal conjugate vaccine in non-pregnant women of reproductive age in Papua New Guinea.
While tremendous progress towards elimination of lymphatic filariasis (LF) has been made in the 20 years since the 1997 Fiftieth World Health Assembly, it is unlikely the goal of eliminating LF as a public health problem by 2020 will be achieved. As of 2016, it was estimated that 856 million people are still living in areas with ongoing transmission of LF and require mass drug administration (MDA) [1]. Of the 52 countries that remain endemic and require MDA, 22 (42%) have not started MDA in all endemic implementation units (IUs) [1]. In addition, several countries have found that, despite completing the required number of treatment rounds, the response to the present MDA regimen has been suboptimal in some IUs, requiring additional rounds of MDA.
Triage is an important component of emergency care (EC). It aims to sort patients based on the urgency of their condition such that the highest acuity patients are prioritised for assessment and treatment. Grounded in the ethical principles of equity and justice, triage is necessary whenever there is a mismatch between demand for EC and the availability of resources. Globally, a large number of triage scales are in use. These differ in the data required to categorise patients as well as the number of tiers. Developed settings tend to utilise five-tier systems. Little is known about the prevalence of triage in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs), including in the Pacific region. There is also limited evidence about the utility, validity and reliability of triage scales in these contexts. While a landmark study in a paediatric Emergency Department (ED) in Malawi demonstrated that training staff in emergency skills, introducing triage and improving flow substantially reduced case fatality rates, the mortality reduction attributable to triage is unknown. A small number of triage scales have been developed for resource-limited (RL) environments. The most widely studied is the four-tier South African Triage Scale (SATS), which has demonstrated reasonable reliability and validity. In the Pacific region, SATS has provided a foundation for the three-tier Solomon Islands Triage Scale (SITS), which has recently been piloted in Honiara. The World Health Organization (WHO) has also recently released a three-tier triage scale. Neither of these instruments has been validated. Although the potential value of triage systems in resource-limited EDs is increasingly recognised, the current evidence base is limited. The impact on process indicators (eg, time to assessment) and clinical outcomes (eg, mortality) for time-critical conditions is largely unknown. This study aims to address this knowledge gap.
This is a cluster randomised trial evaluating the safety of co-administering Azithromycin alongside the new IDA (Ivermectin, Diethylcarbamazine, Albendazole) combination treatment for LF. Treatment will be provided as a single dose Mass Drug Administration (MDA) to the whole community. Communities will be randomised to receive either treatment with IDA and Azithromycin on the same day or separately. Active monitoring for adverse events will be conducted and the frequency of adverse events compared between individuals receiving combined MDA or separate MDA.
This is a Pharmacokinetic and Pharmacodynamic study evaluating the safety of co-administering Azithromycin alongside the new IDA (Ivermectin, Diethylcarbamazine, Albendazole) combination treatment for LF. Individuals will be randomised to receive Azithromycin alone, IDA or combination therapy. Clinical and biochemical monitoring for safety will be undertaken. Drug levels will be measured in each of the three arms to assess whether combination therapy significantly alters drug levels.
The overall objective of this study is to develop a reliable method to obtain habitual iodine intakes from spot urinary iodine concentration (UIC) and to assess the prevalence of inadequate iodine intake in school-age children and women of reproductive age. We will evaluate different methods to estimate iodine intake from UIC and estimate the prevalence of inadequate and excess iodine intake in UIC studies conducted in populations with low, adequate and high iodine intakes using the the established estimated average requirement (EAR)/Tolerable Upper Intake Level (UL) cut-point method.
The current principle of yaws eradication (the Morges strategy) is based on single round mass drug administration (MDA) of azithromycin (AZI) called total community treatment (TCT) followed by targeted treatment of active cases every 6 months to detect and treat cases and contacts called total targeted treatment (TTT). Studies done in Papua New Guinea (PNG) show that 1 round of MDA will probably not suffice to stop transmission of infection. It may be preferable to conduct 3 rounds of MDA prior to the switch to TTT because of high coverage requirements to achieve elimination, particularly of latent cases. The investigators plan to determine whether 3 rounds of MDA are more effective for reaching yaws elimination. This research is needed to guide national programmatic implementation and needs to be done as soon as possible to scale up the program in the country. The aim of this proposal is to ascertain the number of rounds of MDA with AZI to be included in an improved strategy towards yaws eradication. The study will be implemented in 38 wards of New Ireland Province (NIP). The investigators will compare two different distribution strategies of MDA: (A) strategy with 3 biannual rounds of MDA and (B) a single mass treatment round of MDA followed by targeted treatment of cases and contacts. The investigators will also monitor the risk of appearance of antimicrobial resistance in Treponema pertenue.
This study will assess the impact of 2-drug (DA) or 3-drug (IDA) regimens on lymphatic filariasis infection parameters in communities. Parameters measured will include: circulating filarial antigenemia (CFA) assessed with the Filariasis Test Strip (FTS), antifilarial antibodies tested with plasma and microfilaremia (assessed by night blood smears and microscopy).