UV Water Treatment for Gastroenteritis in Children (WET Trial)

N/A

Recruiting

Led By Heather M Murphy, PhD

Research Sponsored by Temple University

Eligibility Criteria Checklist

Specific guidelines that determine who can or cannot participate in a clinical trial

Must have

Be younger than 18 years old

Must not have

Child participant has a chronic gastrointestinal condition

Child takes daily oral steroids

Timeline

Screening 3 weeks

Treatment Varies

Follow Up 12 months

Summary

This trial will test if household treatment of private well water by ultraviolet light (UV) vs. sham (inactive UV device) decreases the incidence of GI in children under 5.

Who is the study for?

This trial is for children under 5 years old who drink untreated well water and live in specific counties of Pennsylvania. They must be full-time residents at a home served by a private well, and their parent or guardian needs to have texting capabilities on their phone. Children who only drink bottled water, are immunocompromised, have chronic GI conditions, or take daily oral steroids cannot participate.

What is being tested?

The study aims to see if treating private well water with ultraviolet light (UV) can reduce gastrointestinal illnesses in young children compared to using an inactive UV device. It's the first randomized controlled trial focused on illness from drinking untreated well water.

What are the potential side effects?

Since this trial involves the use of UV devices rather than medication, traditional side effects associated with drugs are not expected. However, there may be unforeseen risks related to participating in any clinical study.

Eligibility Criteria

Exclusion Criteria

You may be eligible for the trial if you check “No” for criteria below:

Select...

My child has a long-term stomach or intestine condition.

Select...

My child is on daily oral steroids.

Select...

My child has a weakened immune system.

Timeline

Screening ~ 3 weeks3 visits

Treatment ~ Varies

Follow Up ~ 12 months

Screening ~ 3 weeks

Treatment ~ Varies

Follow Up ~12 months

This trial's timeline: 3 weeks for screening, Varies for treatment, and 12 months for reporting.

Treatment Details

Study Objectives

Study objectives can provide a clearer picture of what you can expect from a treatment.

Primary study objectives

Incident gastrointestinal illness

Secondary study objectives

Acute respiratory infection

Trial Design

2Treatment groups

Active Control

Placebo Group

Group I: Active UV DeviceActive Control1 Intervention

A household water treatment device with a lamp emitting germicidal UV. The device will be operated at 50 millijoule per square centimeter to treat \>99.9% of all bacteria, protozoa, and most viruses in water supplies.

Group II: Inactive UV DevicePlacebo Group1 Intervention

A household water treatment device with a lamp not emitting germicidal UV but still emitting light (appears identical to the active UV device).

0 / 3Eligibility criteria met