Face washing promotion for preventing active trachoma

Abstract

Trachoma remains a major cause of avoidable blindness among underprivileged populations in many developing countries. It is estimated that about 146 million people have active trachoma and nearly six million people are blind due to complications associated with repeat infections. The objective of this review was to assess the effects of face washing on the prevalence of active trachoma in endemic communities. We searched CENTRAL (which contains the Cochrane Eyes and Vision Group Trials Register) (The Cochrane Library 2011, Issue 8), MEDLINE (January 1950 to September 2011), EMBASE (January 1980 to September 2011), Latin American and Caribbean Health Sciences Literature Database (LILACS) (January 1982 to September 2011), the metaRegister of Controlled Trials (mRCT) (www.controlled-trials.com) and ClinicalTrials.gov (www.clinicaltrials.gov). There were no date or language restrictions in the electronic searches for trials. The electronic databases were last searched on 2 September 2011. We checked the reference list of the included trials to identify further relevant trials. We used the Science Citation Index to search for references that cite the studies that are included in the review. We also contacted investigators and experts in the field to identify additional trials. We included randomized or quasi-randomized controlled trials, comparing face washing with no treatment or face washing combined with antibiotics against antibiotics alone. Participants in the trials were people normally resident in endemic trachoma communities. Two review authors independently extracted data and assessed trial quality. Study authors were contacted for additional information. Two clinically heterogeneous trials are included, therefore a meta-analysis was considered inappropriate. This review included two trials with data from a total of 2560 participants. Face washing combined with topical tetracycline was compared to topical tetracycline alone in three pairs of villages in one trial. The trial found a statistically significant effect for face washing combined with topical tetracycline in reducing 'severe' active trachoma compared to topical tetracycline alone. No statistically significant difference was observed between the intervention and control villages in reducing ('non-severe') active trachoma. The prevalence of clean faces was higher in the intervention villages than the control villages and this was statistically significant. Another trial compared eye washing to no treatment or to topical tetracycline alone or to a combination of eye washing and tetracycline drops in children with follicular trachoma. The trial found no statistically significant benefit of eye washing alone or in combination with tetracycline eye drops in reducing follicular trachoma amongst children with follicular trachoma. There is some evidence that face washing combined with topical tetracycline can be effective in reducing severe trachoma and in increasing the prevalence of clean faces. Current evidence does not however support a beneficial effect of face washing alone or in combination with topical tetracycline in reducing active trachoma.