SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--PATH’s Drug Development program announced today the successful completion of a phase 3(b) clinical trial in Bangladesh for the antibiotic Paromomycin Intramuscular Injection (PMIM), developed to treat visceral leishmaniasis (VL or kala-azar). The trial investigated the safety and efficacy of PMIM mono-therapy among 120 patients residing in VL-endemic areas of the country. Findings from this study will support efforts to register PMIM in Bangladesh and ultimately contribute to the national VL elimination strategy. The trial enrolled its first patient in January 2011, was carried out at two sites through government-run public health centers, and worked with researchers who are experts in the treatment of VL as well as scientists at the Centre for Communicable Diseases at icddr,b (an international public health research institution based in Dhaka). By conducting clinical trials at sites that are removed from urban centers, the study also contributed to local capacity-building for research and treatment of this deadly disease.
