Active clinical trials for "Streptococcal Infections"

The purpose of this study is to identify and characterise bacteria present in the lower airways of children with suspected chronic LRTIs and for whom bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) is indicated by the clinician.

Information from this study is needed to plan an eventual trial of a GAS vaccine in India if and when one is available. A GAS vaccine is currently a priority of the Indian Council for Medical Research (ICMR), and this project has been approved by the Joint Working Group (US and Indian Delegates) of the Vaccine Action Program, a joint effort of the ICMR and NIAID to implement cooperative efforts between the two countries on mutual objectives in vaccine development. Currently, several GAS vaccines are in development, supported by NIAID, and other sources, and one candidate is in phase one clinical trial authorized by the FDA. Information on the antigenic structure of GAS isolated in India will be needed for planning vaccine composition. It is the view of the Indian Ministry of Health and Indian Council for Medical Research that eventual prevention and control of rheumatic fever and rheumatic heart disease in India, now a heavy burden on the children will require a GAS vaccine, which requires both access to primary health care and a vaccine if and when it is available. Information on incidence is needed to determine the size of a future vaccine cohort in order to obtain a statistically significant result on vaccine efficacy. Although unrelated to vaccine development, information on the incidence of GAS pharyngitis is needed in India to implement primary and secondary acute rheumatic fever (ARF) and rheumatic heart disease (RHD) prevention programs as were implemented in the USA and Europe forty years ago. A vaccine trial is not part of this study, nor is there any intervention, other than antibiotic treatment of all children volunteers who develop GAS pharyngitis or impetigo. An additional point should be made about the importance of obtaining epidemiological data on streptococcal disease in India, and on the emm types of GAS that cause infections. The population of India is over one billion people, representing nearly twenty five percent of the world's population. Information on GAS epidemiology from India is scant to say the least, and it is sorely needed. We now know that streptococcal toxic shock syndrome and fasciitis that have occurred in the U. S., Europe, Australia, and Japan, with greater frequency in recent years are caused by several genetically similar emm types of GAS. The implication of such genetic and epidemiologic data is that these genetically related strains have spread worldwide, Current information from India is far too limited to know if these virulent strains of GAS occur in India, and if they do, to what extent might they be the cause of frequent invasive disease in hospitalized patients. Equally important, we do not know if a potentially high virulent GAS strain is currently emerging in some locale(s) in India, and what possible threat it might become, if it were to be transported to other worldwide geographic regions. Although not a specific aim of this proposal, the surveillance conducted to accomplish the aims of this protocol will provide essential information on the possible emergence of an unexpected emm type with pathogenic potential. ...

This study evaluates the use of a new method of growing and detecting Group B streptococcus in pregnant women. This new method utilizes sandwiched-membrane petri technology and has the advantage of detecting GBS in less than 6 hours, with less cost, and the potential of allowing antibiotic sensitivities to be performed.

Maternal immunisation is an evolving field that deserves special attention given its potential to have a significant positive impact on the health of women and children globally, and the potential safety and risk considerations associated with research in this population. The goal of maternal immunisation is to boost maternal levels of specific antibodies to provide the newborn and young infant with sufficient immunity at birth, through trans placental transfer in-utero, to protect them through the period of increased vulnerability. Protection should be adequate to last until they are able to respond to their own active immunisations or infectious challenges. The success of the maternal neonatal tetanus immunisation program demonstrates the utility of this approach. Several other vaccines are recommended in pregnancy, including influenza and pneumococcal vaccines. Promising new vaccines for group B streptococcus (GBS) , respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and cytomegalovirus are under development. They are targeted for use in pregnant women in high-, middle-, and low-income countries. However, these vaccines are likely to be of most benefit in LMICs that have high rates of vaccine preventable diseases. The second work-package (WP2) of the PREPARE portfolio will describe the baseline maternal and neonatal outcomes using anonymised data collected using the routine Kawempe electronic medical records (EMR) system. Furthermore, comprehensive data on pregnancy, neonatal and infant outcome will also be collected in a prospective cohort of women enrolled in the first and second trimesters while attending antenatal care at Kawempe Hospital with follow-up of the mother-infant pair(s) up until at least 14 weeks postpartum to establish longer term outcomes. Standardised case definitions will be used to classify the outcomes.

An observational study to estimate the probability of pregnant women, who were GBS-negative in the first trimester of pregnancy become GBS-positive at the end of pregnancy. It is an observational. One hundred pregnant women in the first trimester of pregnancy (11 ± 2 weeks) will be invite to participate in this prospective study. If accept, a vagino-rectal swab will collected for a GBS detection analysis. When negative, participants will be follow by their gynecologist with the normal routine procedures. During 35 week of pregnancy a vagino-rectal swab will be collected and analyzed to detect GBS. Then, a final visit will be completed one month after delivery.

The purpose of this study is to demonstrate the ability of the Sofia Strep A FIA test and Sofia Analyzer to accurately detect a throat swab specimen for the presence or absence of Group A Streptococcus when compared to culture.

Group B Streptococcus (GBS), is a facultative gram positive diplococcus originally known for causing bovine mastitis and was not demonstrated to be a human pathogen until 1938. In the 1970s, GBS emerged as the leading cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality, with a frequency of 2-3 cases per 1,000 live births and case-fatality ratios as high as 50%

GSK Biologicals is working on the development of a vaccine to protect elderly people from bacterial pneumonia. Diagnostic of bacterial pneumonia is difficult, and for the future studies in that project, it would be useful to have some easy non invasive tests. New clinical read-outs are needed to detect and identify the causative pathogen. These assays will be based on specific antigen detection in the urine or specific pathogen DNA detection in the blood. Technical and clinical validation of these assays will be realised at later stage with samples coming from epidemiological and/or phase III studies. To allow the development of such tests in GSK Biologicals laboratories, urine and blood samples are needed from subjects aged 65 or above who have diagnosed pneumonia. The Protocol Posting has been updated in order to comply with the FDA Amendment Act, Sep 2007.

GSK Biologicals is working on the development of a vaccine to protect elderly people from pneumococcal infection. For the future studies in that project, it would be useful to have some easy non invasive tests to detect infection by the bacteria. Some tests on urine are already on the market but need to be improved in the laboratory. For that purpose, some urine samples from healthy subjects aged 65 years or above and who have not suffered from pneumonia nor have been administered pneumococcal vaccination in the past 3 months are needed. The Protocol Posting has been updated in order to comply with the FDA Amendment Act, Sep 2007

This study aim to test the hypothesis that human S.suis infections are associated in time and space with outbreaks of Porcine Reproductive and Respiratory Syndrome (PRRS) virus or other diseases in pigs.