The Combined Effects Of Albendazole And Mectizan In The Treatment Of Lymphatic Filariasis: A Case Study Of Four Rural Communities In Obubra L. G. A.; Cross River State Nigeria.:- Ngele, Kalu K

ABSTRACT

g) over single doses ofmectizan and albendazole (400 mg/kg and 3mg rural communities, in Obubra L.G.A, Cross River State, Nigeria. Eight hundred stream. These positive cases were randomized into 3 groups and were treated as follows; albendazole alone, ivermectin (mectizan) alone, and combination of albendazole and mectizan. Treated individuals were monitored for 7 days to record any adverse reaction and the effect of treatment on microfilaraemia was followed up for one year. Treatment efficacy was eventually analysed for only eight hundred and one microfilaria positive individuals who had > or = lOOmf/ml of blood and who were present for re-examination up to 12 months (one year) after treatment. All the 3 groups showed significantly (P 0.5) reduced microfilarial load at the follow up examinations. Treatment with combination of albendazole and mectizan was significantly (P 5.0) more effective in clearing microfilaria from night blood (90.4%) within one-year than any of the other regimens, (mectizan alone, 70.7% and albendazole alone, 59.5%). The entire 3 regimens were well tolerated and clinically safe, although few cases of mild reactions were observed in all the treatment groups. The study shows that lymphatic filariasis is prevalent in the studied communities and the combination use in the control programmes against lymphatic filariasis is recommendable of albendazole and mectizan is a safe and more effective single dose regimen for suppression of microfilaraemia of lymphatic flariasis in human blood stream. Its I kg respectively) in the treatment of lymphatic filariasis was assessed. The study was carried out within one-year interval (August 2003 and July, 2004) in four and Eighty ofthe Two thousand individuals examined from the four communities who were microfilaria positive form the subjects for this study of the effect of different treatment regimens on the lymphatic microfilariae in the human blood ABSTRACT