title: Trachoma decline and widespread use of antimicrobial drugs.
abstract: Trachoma is disappearing in many parts of the world, even in the absence of specific control programs. Following mass antimicrobial drug treatments for trachoma in western Nepal, the prevalence of trachoma declined far more rapidly than could be attributed to the control program alone. Pharmacy surveys in the same region found that children received more antichlamydial drugs from sources outside the trachoma program than they did from the program itself. We demonstrate that high background antimicrobial drug use may be responsible for much of the observed decline in trachoma and discuss its potential role in eliminating this infectious disease.
authors.affiliation: University of California, San Francisco, California, USA.
authors.forename: Jaya D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Chidambaram
authors.forename: Mariko
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bird
authors.forename: Vivian
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Schiedler
authors.forename: Alicia M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Fry
authors.forename: Travis
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Porco
authors.forename: Ramesh C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Bhatta
authors.forename: Hem
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Jha
authors.forename: J S P
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Chaudary
authors.forename: Bruce
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Gaynor
authors.forename: Elizabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Yi
authors.forename: John P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Whitcher
authors.forename: Susie
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Osaki-Holm
authors.forename: Thomas M
authors.initials: TM
authors.lastname: Lietman
mesh_terms: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D004363:Drug Utilization; D006801:Humans; D009390:Nepal / Q000453:epidemiology; D015995:Prevalence; D014141:Trachoma / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology*
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents