ABSTRACT
In 1996, clinical investigators at Pfizer Inc. (hereafter Pfizer) learnt of an outbreak of epidemic meningitis in northern Nigeria, an area within the meningitis belt of Africa. That epidemic recorded 250,000 cases and 25,000 deaths.2 Within six weeks of the epidemic's onset, Pfizer
was able to complete preparations, and obtained the necessary approval to begin a randomized trial of their antibiotic, Trovan, near the geographical epicenter of the epidemic. Pfizer researchers worked side by side with voluntary agencies and Nigerian health officials, even sharing some of the same healthcare facilities. Pfizer brought its own medical supplies and drugs, with the goal of obtaining valuable empirical and clinical data on Trovan, with the stated aim of pioneering a breakthrough treatment for the Third World.3 The
Pfizer team completed the trial in three weeks and returned to the United States (US) while the epidemic continued.4
