Azithromycin Treatment Response as a Probe to Attribute Bacterial Aetiologies of Diarrhoea using Molecular Diagnostics: A Reanalysis of the AntiBiotics for Children with severe Diarrhoea (ABCD) Trial
Authors: Cornick Jennifer , Elwood Sarah , Platts-Mills James , Pavlinac Patricia , Manji Karim , Sudfeld Chris , Duggan Christopher P. , Dube Queen , Bar-Zeev Naor , Kotloff Karen , Sow Samba O , Sazawal Sunil , Singa Benson O , Walson Judd L , Qamar Farah , Ahmed Tahmeed , Costa Ayesha De , Rogawski McQuade Elizabeth T 
Published: September 2024

Background

Multi-pathogen molecular diagnostics enable assignment of diarrhoea aetiology, but defining thresholds of pathogen quantity to accurately attribute aetiology is challenging in high-burden settings where coinfections are common. The Antibiotics for Children with severe Diarrhoea (ABCD) trial provides an opportunity to leverage the azithromycin treatment response to inform which diarrhoea episodes are bacterial.

Methods

We analysed data from ABCD, which randomized children with watery diarrhoea to azithromycin or placebo. We quantified heterogeneity in the azithromycin treatment response by the quantity of enteric pathogens detected by qPCR as a tool for understanding aetiology.

Results

The heterogeneity in azithromycin treatment response was most prominent forShigella. The risk ratio for diarrhoea on day 3 post enrolment for azithromycin compared to placebo was 13% (95% CI:3, 23) lower per log10 increase inShigellaquantity. The protective effect of azithromycin on diarrhoea at day 3 also became stronger as pathogen quantities increased forVibrio cholerae, ST-ETEC, and tEPEC. No association between pathogen quantity and azithromycin response was observed forCampylobacter, LT-ETEC or EAEC. The associations were consistent for the outcome of 90-day hospitalisation or death.

Conclusions

The relationships between response to azithromycin treatment and bacterial pathogen quantities observed forShigella,Vibrio cholerae, ST-ETEC and tEPEC confirm prior evidence that these pathogens are the likely cause of diarrhoea when detected at high quantities. The lack of a similar response pattern forCampylobacter, LT-ETEC or EAEC is consistent with the limited association between pathogen quantity and diarrhoea symptoms previously observed in large studies of diarrhoea aetiology.

Key message(3 succinct bullet points, each a single sentence)

We investigated whether heterogeneity in treatment response observed in the ABCD trial, where children with diarrhoea were randomised to receive azithromycin or placebo, could be used to inform aetiological attribution of diarrhoea to bacterial enteric pathogens.

The protective effect of azithromycin on diarrhoea at day 3 and hospitalisation or death at day 90 became stronger as pathogen quantities increased forShigella, Vibrio cholerae, ST-ETEC and tEPECbut not forCampylobacter, LT-ETEC or EAEC.

The relationships betweenShigella, Vibrio cholerae, ST-ETEC and tEPEC quantity and response to antibiotic treatment confirm prior evidence that these pathogens are the likely cause of diarrhoea when detected at high quantities and could be used to inform which diarrhoea cases should be treated with antibiotics.