Background: Cambodia has targeted malaria elimination within its territory by 2025 and is developing a model elimination package of strategies and interventions designed to achieve this goal. Methods: Cambodia adopted a simplified 1-3-7 surveillance model in the Sampov Loun operational health district in western Cambodia beginning in July 2015. The 1-3-7 approach targets reporting of confirmed cases within one day, investigation of specific cases within three days, and targeted control measures to prevent further transmission within seven days. In Sampov Loun, response measures included reactive case detection (testing of co-travelers, household contacts and family members, and surrounding households with suspected malaria cases), and provision of health education, and insecticide-treated nets. Day 28 follow up microscopy was conducted for all confirmed P. falciparum and P. falciparum-mixed-species malaria cases to assess treatment efficacy.

SUMMARY Setting Bangladesh – National Institute of Diseases of the Chest and Hospital, Bangladesh Institute of Research and Rehabilitation in Diabetes, Endocrine and Metabolic Disorders and Chittagong Chest Disease Hospital. Objective To present operational data and discuss the challenges of implementing FAST (Find cases Actively, Separate safely and Treat effectively) as a TB transmission control strategy. Design FAST was implemented sequentially at three hospitals. Results Using Xpert MTB/RIF, 733/6028 (12.2%, 95%CI [11.4,13.0]) patients were diagnosed with unsuspected TB. Patients admitted with other lung diseases with a prior TB history had more than twice the odds of being diagnosed with unsuspected TB as those without a TB history (OR 2.6, 95%CI 2.2–3.0, p<0.001). Unsuspected MDR-TB was diagnosed in 89/1415 (6.3%, 95%CI [5.1,7.7]) patients. Patients with unsuspected TB had nearly five times the odds of being diagnosed with MDR-TB than those admitted with a known TB diagnosis (OR 4.9, 95%CI 3.1–7.6, p<0.001). Implementation challenges include staff shortages, diagnostic failure, supply-chain issues and reliance on external funding. Conclusion FAST implementation revealed a high frequency of unsuspected TB in hospitalized patients in Bangladesh. Patients with a prior TB history have increased risk. Ensuring financial resources, stakeholder engagement and laboratory capacity are important for sustainability and scalability.

BackgroundIn 2012, the World Health Organization recommended the addition of single low-dose primaquine (SLDPQ, 0.25 mg base/kg body weight) to artemisinin combination therapies to block the transmission of Plasmodium falciparum without testing for glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency. The targeted group was non-pregnant patients aged ≥ 1 year (later changed to ≥ 6 months) with acute uncomplicated falciparum malaria, primarily in countries with artemisinin-resistant P. falciparum (ARPf). No dosing regimen was suggested, leaving malaria control programmes and clinicians in limbo. Therefore, we designed a user-friendly, age-based SLDPQ regimen for Cambodia, the country most affected by ARPf.MethodsBy reviewing primaquine’s pharmacology, we defined a therapeutic dose range of 0.15–0.38 mg base/kg (9–22.5 mg in a 60-kg adult) for a therapeutic index of 2.5. Primaquine doses (1–20 mg) were tested using a modelled, anthropometric database of 28,138 Cambodian individuals (22,772 healthy, 4119 with malaria and 1247 with other infections); age distributions were: 0.5–4 years (20.0 %, n = 5640), 5–12 years (9.1 %, n = 2559), 13–17 years (9.1 %, n = 2550), and ≥ 18 years (61.8 %, n = 17,389). Optimal age-dosing groups were selected according to calculated mg base/kg doses and proportions of individuals receiving a therapeutic dose.ResultsFour age-dosing bands were defined: (1) 0.5–4 years, (2) 5–9 years, (3) 10–14 years, and (4) ≥15 years to receive 2.5, 5, 7.5, and 15 mg of primaquine base, resulting in therapeutic doses in 97.4 % (5494/5640), 90.5 % (1511/1669), 97.7 % (1473/1508), and 95.7 % (18,489/19,321) of individuals, respectively. Corresponding median (1st–99th centiles) mg base/kg doses of primaquine were (1) 0.23 (0.15–0.38), (2) 0.29 (0.18–0.45), (3) 0.27 (0.15–0.39), and (4) 0.29 (0.20–0.42).ConclusionsThis age-based SLDPQ regimen could contribute substantially to malaria elimination and requires urgent evaluation in Cambodia and other countries with similar anthropometric characteristics. It guides primaquine manufacturers on suitable tablet strengths and doses for paediatric-friendly formulations. Development of similar age-based dosing recommendations for Africa is needed.Electronic supplementary materialThe online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12916-016-0701-8) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

BackgroundThe presence of artemisinin-resistant malaria parasites was confirmed in western Cambodia in 2009. In 2013, mutations in the propeller domain of the kelch protein K13 was found to be associated with artemisinin resistance. A cross-sectional study was conducted to determine the prevalence of Day-3 parasitaemia, estimate the frequency of k13 molecular marker and assess their relationship in the context of operational research.MethodsBlood smears and filter paper blood spots were collected from febrile patients in Kravanh District, Pursat Province. The blood smears were examined by microscopy, and blood spots by a k13 mutation assay.ResultsData from 92 patients were analysed. Only one was positive for Day-3 parasitaemia. Results of the k13 assay were interpretable for 76 of the 92 samples. The findings were: wild type: 9 (12%), C580Y: 64 (84%), Y493H: 3 (4%). Therefore, despite the high prevalence of k13 mutants (67/76: 88%), only 1 of the 92 patients remained blood smear positive for Plasmodium falciparum on Day-3.ConclusionsThese preliminary findings suggest good potency of artemisinin despite the dominance of k13 mutation in Kravanh, but the result is not necessarily representative of the western part of Cambodia. Further investigation should be made to determine if k13 marker remains useful as a tool for tracking artemisinin resistance and predicting the trend of the efficacy of artemisinin combination therapy once the mutant alleles have been well established in the population.

In 3 regions of Myanmar, village malaria workers (VMWs) and mobile teams tested a higher number of people than strategically placed fixed screening points at border crossings, but VMWs and screening points yielded higher malaria positive rates. We recommend using a combination of these approaches in the Greater Mekong Subregion for such populations depending on the strategic approach of the program.