The Feasibility and Acceptability of a Post-tuberculosis Lung Disease Diagnostic Algorithm in Uganda.
NCT ID: NCT07067528
Last Updated: 2025-07-16
Study Results
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Basic Information
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NOT_YET_RECRUITING
NA
80 participants
INTERVENTIONAL
2026-09-01
2029-08-31
Brief Summary
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The main trial questions are:
* Does the diagnostic algorithm increase identification and referral of patients with suspected PTLD compared to standard care?
* Is the algorithm feasible to implement and acceptable to health providers and patients in real-world primary health care settings?
The research team will compare four health centre level III (HCIII) facilities ( two using the diagnostic algorithm and two using standard care) to see if the algorithm helps with early diagnosis and referral of PTLD. Health centre level III in Uganda are the primary health facilities and have provision for tuberculosis treatment.
Participants will be screened for PTLD at the time they complete tuberculosis treatment at their local health facility.
At intervention sites, participants will undergo assessment using a structured PTLD diagnostic algorithm developed in earlier stages of this research. The algorithm will be based on a symptom questionnaire and clinical criteria. At control sites, participants will be evaluated using standard practices (consensus clinical definition only).
Participants clinically suspected to have PTLD. will be referred to Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital.
Primary care health facilities will:
* Be randomly assigned to use either the diagnostic algorithm or standard care.
* Receive a baseline training on PTLD and ongoing support through monthly video conference
* Submit triplicate referral forms to track referrals.
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Detailed Description
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Innovation Innovation A pilot cluster randomized clinical trial in post-TB morbidity is a step closer to improving post-TB care. Importantly, the selected health facilities will focus on post-TB diagnosis and care which has not been part of routine care. Despite the recommendation by the first PTLD symposium, this study aim presents an opportunity to solve this health challenge using locally generated data that can be applied to other low-income settings eliminating a one-size-fits-all approach.
Approach The main idea is that adding a clinical diagnostic algorithm to TB clinicians' workflow will support timely PTLD diagnosis and referrals for advanced care.
Design: This will be a prospective two-arm cluster randomized clinical trial (RCT) using the diagnostic algorithm designed in Aim 1 as the intervention. The primary outcome will be the duration of appropriate referral from level three health centers (HC3s) to a post-TB clinic at Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital (MRRH). The aim is to test the feasibility of implementing a clinical diagnostic algorithm for PTLD aiding clinicians at primary healthcare facilities (HC3s) in making accurate diagnoses of PTLD and facilitating timely referrals for effective treatment.
Study Setting: This study will be conducted at HC3s within Mbarara district Study Participants: The study will involve HC3s selected from the health facilities used for the qualitative interviews in Aim 2. TB clinicians at each health facility will screen individuals who have completed TB treatment for potential PTLD.
Participants: TB clinicians will screen people who completed TB treatment for PTLD.
Procedures: Study Procedures: Four HC3s will be recruited from a catchment area within 10 km radius of MRRH. Facility in-charges identified in Aim 2 will be contacted and requested to participate in the clinical trial. Upon their agreement, the in-charges will sign an informed consent form, following which the facilities will be randomly allocated to either the intervention or control group in a 1:1 ratio. A comprehensive training manual focusing on PTLD aligned with consensus guidelines will be developed for all clinicians at the selected HC3s. This training in form of continuing medical education (CME) will emphasize the significance of PTLD screening in TB survivors presenting with respiratory symptoms after completing TB treatment. The intervention will be the diagnostic algorithm that the investigators developed in Aim 1 as a visual aid whereas the control group will rely their clinical judgment and knowledge gained from the CME. Nurses or clinicians attending to TB patients at each HC3 will be requested to screen for PTLD in all TB survivors declared cured. This includes individuals returning to the TB department of each health facility with symptoms after TB cure. Those with a high suspicion for PTLD based on the diagnostic algorithm (intervention) or clinical judgment (control) will be referred to Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital for further diagnostics and care. A one-page triplicate referral form will be used to track referrals and ensure successful referral completion. The study team will conduct zoom conferences every fortnight with each of the four HC3 teams and to identify registration or referral gaps. No monetary incentives will be provided, but monthly internet and airtime will be provided to the contact health workers involved in the trial. Transport reimbursement and a snack will be provided to patients referred to MRRH. The study will be conducted following the guidelines of good practice in pilot interventional studies. Data Collection: Baseline and endpoint questionnaires will be completed by TB clinicians or any other designated personnel (such as a nurse) in collaboration with our research team. In addition to the routine programmatic TB outcomes documentation, data on patients screened for PTLD will be captured using a standardized data collection tool captured in REDCap. This will include participants demographics and TB treatment history including their prior eCBSS numbers. Facility demographic characteristics will be recorded. The data collection tools will be streamlined to ensure efficient data capture minimizing the potential for questionnaire fatigue. To prevent participants from being recorded at different HC3s due to their close proximity, the investigators will prioritize the recording of eCBSS numbers.
Outcomes: The primary outcome is the time from first visit with PTLD symptoms at HC3 to arrival at MRRH. With no current PTLD screening program, a 50% screening rate will indicate implementation success.
Secondary outcomes:
* Proportion of TB survivors screened for PTLD
* Number of successful referrals to MRRH
* PTLD confirmation rate via imaging/spirometry
Feasibility of a full RCT will be based on:
1. ≥50% facility acceptance rate
2. Completeness of REDCap and algorithm questionnaire data
3. Clinician feedback at study end Data Analysis: Baseline characteristics will be summarized separately for both the intervention and control groups. Feasibility and process evaluation data such as practice recruitment rate and adherence to the intervention will be summarized and presented as percentages. Differences in (1) the primary care interval and (2) screening rate between the two treatment groups will be compared. An exploratory analysis using multivariate regression will be performed to identify factors associated with the ability to implement the intervention
Sample Size: Since this is a feasibility study, study is not powered to test an efficacy hypothesis. However, this study has maximum acceptable confidence interval for an anticipated intra-cluster correlation coefficient of 0.05, at a set cluster size of 20 which is typical for pilot cluster trials, with a coefficient of variation 0.1 and anticipated proportion of 0.5 (50%) for our primary outcome. Therefore FOUR (4) clusters are needed to estimate this proportion (50%) with a lower 0.9 confidence (10% margin of error) limit of 0.27 and upper confidence interval limit 0.73 Key Deliverables: The feasibility of a diagnostic algorithm will be presented in a larger cluster randomized clinical trial to scale up for timely PTLD diagnosis.
Key Deliverable: Demonstrate feasibility of a full-scale cluster RCT to improve PTLD diagnosis.
Challenges and Alternatives: There is a possibility of questionnaire fatigue given the existing programmatic TB questionnaires. However, strategies will be implemented to minimize missing data: Given the average patient load at HC3s TB units (an average 15 patients in a month), our study procedures and short electronic questionnaires are not expected to pose a significant workload. Secondly, monthly airtime and internet will be provided to both groups and an additional incentive such as a mobile phone loan for completing REDCap questionnaires. If the clinical algorithm demonstrated poor diagnostic accuracy, behavioral change will be assessed based on the impact of PTLD-focused CME using the consensus definition as the primary intervention compared to current practice.
Conditions
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Study Design
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RANDOMIZED
PARALLEL
DIAGNOSTIC
NONE
Study Groups
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The diagnostic algorithm arm
Primary health care facilities (level three health centers in Uganda) randomized to this arm will implement a diagnostic algorithm developed based on clinical and demographic characteristics earlier in this study to screen tuberculosis (TB) survivors for post-tuberculosis lung disease (PTLD). TB clinicians will use a structured questionnaire and visual aid during routine care to identify PTLD. Patients with suspected PTLD will be referred to Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital, a tertiary center with a functional post-TB care clinic for further evaluation and care
A novel PTLD clinical diagnostic algorithm
A clinical diagnostic algorithm designed to help TB clinicians identify patients at risk of post-tuberculosis lung disease (PTLD) at the end of TB treatment. The algorithm is implemented as a visual aid and structured questionnaire integrated into routine care. Clinicians use it to screen TB survivors and refer suspected PTLD cases to a post-TB clinic for confirmatory evaluation and management.
Standard of care arm
Primary health care facilities (level three health centres in Uganda) randomized to this arm will continue routine clinical care after receiving basic training through continuous medical education about post-tuberculosis (TB) lung disease (PTLD) but will not use the diagnostic algorithm. TB clinicians will rely on the guideline-based clinical judgment to identify and refer suspected PTLD cases to Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital.
No interventions assigned to this group
Interventions
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A novel PTLD clinical diagnostic algorithm
A clinical diagnostic algorithm designed to help TB clinicians identify patients at risk of post-tuberculosis lung disease (PTLD) at the end of TB treatment. The algorithm is implemented as a visual aid and structured questionnaire integrated into routine care. Clinicians use it to screen TB survivors and refer suspected PTLD cases to a post-TB clinic for confirmatory evaluation and management.
Eligibility Criteria
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Inclusion Criteria
* Located within a 10 km radius of Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital (MRRH).
* Has an operational TB clinic with at least one designated TB clinician or nurse.
* Facility in-charge (or designated representative) provides written informed consent for participation.
* Willing to implement the PTLD screening procedures and participate in biweekly follow-up communications.
* Agrees to assign a contact staff member to coordinate trial-related activities.
Patients screened at participating facilities must meet all of the following:
* Aged ≥18 years.
* Completed microbiologically confirmed treatment for pulmonary tuberculosis (TB).
* Presenting with persistent or new respiratory symptoms following TB treatment completion.
* Able and willing to provide written informed consent
Exclusion Criteria
* It declines to participate or cannot commit to consistent follow-up activities.
* It lacks the minimum staff or infrastructure to carry out screening and referral procedures.
* It was previously included in a similar PTLD-related intervention trial.
A patient will be excluded if:
* They did complete treatment for pulmonary TB or lack documentation of cure.
* They have a previously confirmed diagnosis of an unrelated chronic respiratory condition (e.g., pulmonary malignancy, cystic fibrosis).
* They were already referred or diagnosed with PTLD prior to this screening.
18 Years
ALL
No
Sponsors
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Fogarty International Center of the National Institute of Health
NIH
Mbarara University of Science and Technology
OTHER
Responsible Party
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Locations
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Mbarara University of Science and Technology/Mbarara Regional Referral Hospital
Mbarara, , Uganda
Countries
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Central Contacts
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Facility Contacts
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References
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Provided Documents
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Document Type: Informed Consent Form
Related Links
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WHO. Global Tuberculosis report
Other Identifiers
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MUST-2025-489
Identifier Type: -
Identifier Source: org_study_id
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