The RifT study team in Uganda will perform diagnostic lumbar punctures on 800 adults presenting with meningitis. Spinal fluid samples will undergo an enhanced TB diagnostic panel and adults with TB meningitis will be eligible to enter into a randomised clinical trial evaluating the pharmacokinetics and safety of high dose oral and intravenous rifampicin.
We are a group of dedicated clinical meningitis researchers based in Uganda. Dr Fiona Cresswell and Dr David Meya are the principal investigators of the RifT study.
The RifT study team in Uganda will perform diagnostic lumbar punctures on 800 adults presenting with meningitis. Spinal fluid samples will undergo an enhanced TB diagnostic panel and adults with TB meningitis will be eligible to enter into a randomised clinical trial evaluating the pharmacokinetics and safety of high dose oral and intravenous rifampicin.
Fiona Cresswell is a Clinical PhD Fellow in Global Health and principal investigator.
PhD supervisors are Professor Alison Elliott (LSHTM) and Dr David Boulware (University of Minnesota) who both have a wealth of experience of tuberculosis and meningitis trials in Africa.
Dr David Meya is co-principal investigator and Associate Professor at Makerere University. David leads the dedicated meningitis research team based at the Infectious Diseases Institute in Kampala, Uganda.
The study team comprises experienced medical officers, physicians, a neurologist, nurses, counsellor, laboratory technicians and study assistants who care for participants at Mulago Hospital, Mbarara Hospital and the Infectious Diseases Institute clinic.