ECRAID-Prime Reaches Milestone as NONS & Saline Study Concludes
The ECRAID-Prime consortium announces the closure of its NONS and saline nasal spray study, marking an important step forward in evaluating treatments for respiratory infections in primary care.
The ECRAID-Prime consortium announces the closure of its Nitric Oxide Nasal Spray (NONS) and Saline Nasal Spray study, marking the completion of an international effort and an important step forward in evaluating treatments for respiratory infections in primary care.
The EU-funded trial launched in October 2024 as a Phase 2B study evaluating its first two treatments, in partnership with the Canadian pharmaceutical company SaNOtize. As the first interventions being assessed in the ECRAID-Prime adaptive platform trial, the study sets a benchmark for future intervention research in primary care.
Having enrolled 811 participants across eight countries, the trial demonstrates its ability to rapidly mobilise, execute, and deliver high-quality clinical research, generating real-time evidence at scale.
This study demonstrates what can be accomplished through well-established international collaboration, says coordinating investigator Alike van der Velden. Despite the hurdles and complexities of setting up and launching the first study within a new platform trial, our teams remained supportive, focussed and committed.
She says, "It is possible to deliver something truly unique in primary care research – recruiting patients through everyday GP visits as well as via decentralised approaches across multiple countries. That is a real strength. At the same time, setting up this platform took time: developing procedures, securing approvals, and working closely as an international team."
"Ultimately, our success depends on our national coordinating teams, GPs and site staff, who are willing to collaborate with us – we ask a lot from them. And while this primary care network is a powerful asset, it also requires careful nurturing and continued engagement. That’s why we invest strongly in relationships at country and site levels, while recognising the need for more formal infrastructure to support its long-term sustainability and scalability.”
A Remarkable International Collaboration
From site initiation to last patient out, the coordination between national teams was exceptional, remarked co-coordinating investigator Chris Butler, reflecting on the study’s operational success.
He said, “From site initiation to last patient out, the coordination between national teams was exceptional. This is a testament to our combined strengths and expertise, our mature primary care research network, and the commitment of our partners. With the support and foresight of the European Commission, we’ve built a platform designed to respond swiftly to emerging infectious threats and generate evidence in near real-time – helping to inform clinical guidelines and support decision-making during future waves of infection. The NONS and Saline Nasal Spray study has closed but it leaves behind not only valuable data but also a proven framework for future trials. Our ambition is to sustain and build on this platform, avoiding the need to set up new standalone trials in the future.”
The consortium also extends its sincere gratitude to SaNOtize, whose partnership and support were instrumental in enabling the NONS/Saline study. Their collaboration ensured both the scientific rigour and operational feasibility of this first study.
United by a Shared Commitment to Research and Patient Care
The ECRAID-Prime study was conducted across several national networks, and brought together dedicated national coordinating teams, researchers, and partners, all working towards a common goal: improving patient care in the community through high-quality research.
Below, four of our National Coordinating Teams share their (and their participants’) experiences and reflections on being involved in ECRAID-Prime’s first study:
A Well-Supported Trial Experience
"The strong support from everyone at Ecraid and the freedom to explore different recruitment strategies made this a very rewarding experience for our team . . . Participants reported that the trial was well organised, supportive and easy to participate in.
Every primary care trial strengthens the field and helps pave the way for better treatments. The COVID-19 pandemic has shown us the critical need for adaptability and quick response, both of which ECRAID-Prime aims to enhance. Primary Care is unique in its potential to reach patients quickly and widely in a very short time, and we’re proud to contribute to the trial and help find new treatments that reduce the worldwide symptom burden of respiratory infections."
Alexander Nicolas Schwager
Medical Doctor
Department of General Practice, University Hospital Würzburg
Our National Coordinating Team from the University Hospital Würzburg in Germany. From left to right: Alexander Nicolas Schwager, Lisa Weichselbaum, Ildikó Gágyor, Susanne Walther, and Sudeshna Mondal.
Bringing Research to the Patients
“Just 24 hours after our site initiation visit, France included its first patient on 9 October 2024 – a major first milestone for the study. To further boost our impact, we introduced a mobile medical unit, allowing us to meet patients where they are and facilitate immediate enrolment right after their GP appointment.
The ECRAID-Prime trial has been an excellent experience in primary care research, with participants expressing high satisfaction with their involvement in our study. They especially appreciated our team’s regular follow-up calls and interactions, which made them feel genuinely supported and well-cared for throughout the process.”
Elodie Pfender
Co-head at the Clinical Investigational Center at CHU Limoges in France
Our National Coordinating Team from CHU Limoges in France, photographed next to their mobile medical unit. From left to right: Isabelle Herafa, Dorothee Ducoux, and Elodie Pfender.
On the Success of Remote Participant Recruitment
“We are very pleased and proud to have successfully implemented remote participant recruitment for ECRAID-Prime in the UK within a short timeframe. We are extremely grateful to our dedicated site staff – recruitment was challenging due to the short symptom window . . . we hope to continuously improve our decentralised pathways, making the processes and procedures more streamlined.”
Emma Harper
Trial Manager at the Primary Care Clinical Trials Unit, University of Oxford
Our National Coordinating Team from the University of Oxford in the UK. From left to right: Becca Edeson, Rukiye Karadal Erdogan, Nicky Maeder, and Emma Harper.
Building Experience in Adaptive Platform Trials in Primary Care
"We are very grateful and proud that the Belgian network was able to include patients into this unique adaptive platform trial beyond the target set. This experience paved the way for adding a new compound (LTX-109) to the trial smoothly, as most issues – ethics, contracts, and logistics – had already been addressed upfront. We truly hope that ECRAID-Prime will evolve into a sustainable primary care research infrastructure beyond its current European Commission funding period, further strengthening Europe’s outbreak preparedness and enhancing its patient-centred approach.
Samuel Coenen
Professor of Clinical Epidemiology
Department of Family Medicine & Population Health, University of Antwerp
Our National Coordinating Team from the University of Antwerp in Belgium. From left to right: Stefan Morreel, Samuel Coenen and Marijke Gyssels.
Stay tuned for our upcoming article on our experiences with decentralised trials.
More information
Learn more about ECRAID-Prime trial on https://ecraid.eu/ecraid-prime/studies.
Interested in collaborating with us? Send an email to A.W.vanderVelden@umcutrecht.nl.