Chief Investigator
Professor Sailesh Kotecha
Cardiff University
About AZTEC
A national neonatal research collaboration
AZTEC was created to answer an important clinical question in very preterm babies and to build a scientific platform linking clinical outcomes, microbiology, inflammation and longer-term follow-up.
The AZTEC story
From rationale to published evidence
2019Trial opensRecruitment begins across UK neonatal units.
2020–21COVID disruptionTrial delivery continues through national pauses and pressures.
2022799 babies recruitedRecruitment completes above target.
2024Main RCT publishedPrimary clinical findings reported.
2025–26Programme expandsFollow-up, HTA and AMR outputs continue.
Leadership & collaboration
Who delivered AZTEC?
The trial was led by Professor Sailesh Kotecha from the Department of Child Health in the School of Medicine, and coordinated by the Centre for Trials Research, both based at Cardiff University. The other co-applicants included Professor Janet Berrington from Newcastle, Marie Hubbard from Leicester Royal Infirmary, Professor Mark Turner from Liverpool University, Professor Nigel Klein from UCL, and Professor Julian Marchesi from Imperial College London.
Trial coordination
Centre for Trials Research
Cardiff University
National network
28 neonatal intensive care units and approximately 77 step-down units contributed to recruitment, treatment and follow-up.
Funding & governance
NIHR-funded and independently regulated
AZTEC was funded by the NIHR Health Technology Assessment Programme (HTA Project 16/111/106), registered as ISRCTN11650227 and conducted under the relevant UK research ethics, HRA and MHRA approvals.
A wider programme
AZTEC → BALLOON → RHiNO
Together these programmes address respiratory health across the life course: neonatal intervention, protection after discharge, and later childhood lung health after preterm birth.