Mass antibiotic treatment and community protection in trachoma control programs.
Chidambaram, Jaya D;
Melese, Muluken;
Alemayehu, Wondu;
Yi, Elizabeth;
Prabriputaloong, Tisha;
Lee, David C;
Cevallos, Vicky;
Zhou, Zhaoxia;
Whitcher, John P;
Gaynor, Bruce D;
+1 more...Lietman, Thomas M;
(2004)
Mass antibiotic treatment and community protection in trachoma control programs.
Clinical infectious diseases, 39 (9).
e95-e97.
ISSN 1058-4838
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1086/424747
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Azithromycin is highly effective against trachoma, but the practical difficulties of community-wide distribution often leave many individuals untreated. We demonstrate, after mass azithromycin treatment of a population in Ethiopia, an indirect protective effect that occurred among untreated children who resided in villages in which most individuals had been treated. Similarities with the indirect protection within a treated community (i.e., "herd protection") that has been observed in vaccination programs are discussed.
