From evidence to impact: Post-exposure prophylaxis with single-dose rifampicin. Read thread 👇 for key points from the #EvidencetoImpact story in celebration of #WorldEBHCDay! 
#Leprosy is a neglected tropical disease present in more than 120 countries, with a greater burden in India and Brazil. Currently, there are over 200,000 cases registered worldwide.
In 2014, the team’s proposal for a systematic review on single-dose rifampicin (SDR) as a post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) strategy for leprosy contacts received financial support from the Brazilian Ministry of Health.
The systematic review aimed to synthesise the best available evidence on the effectiveness of rifampicin chemoprophylaxis in preventing contacts of patients with leprosy from contracting the disease.
The systematic review also aimed to synthesise the best available evidence on the experiences and acceptability of the preventive rifampicin therapy as reported by contacts and healthcare professionals who are in the practice of treating leprosy.
The published review reported a 56.5% reduction in the incidence of leprosy for contacts with the use of rifampicin in the first 2 years after contact with the disease. The combination of rifampicin & the Bacillus Calmette-Guérin (BCG) vaccine showed a protective effect of 80%.
The review also indicated that chemoprophylaxis was a socially acceptable strategy as contacts and health professionals had a positive experience with the intervention.
The evidence from the systematic review, contributed to the @WHO Global Leprosy guidelines of 2018. SDR combined with the BCG vaccine as a PEP is the strategy recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) since 2018.
The systematic review led to another research project to add to the qualitative findings, and to delve deeper into other questions about the applicability of using SDR in health services. Read more in the impact story at worldebhcday.org/stories/story?…
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