Mass chemoprophylaxis of lymphatic filariasis with a single dose of ivermectin in a Polynesian community with a high Wuchereria bancrofti infection rate

Abstract

In April 1991 supervised mass prophylaxis of lymphatic filariasis with a single dose of ivermectin, 100 micrograms/kg, was carried out in a Polynesian village with a high infection rate of Wuchereria bancrofti in humans and active transmission by the vector mosquito, Aedes polynesiensis. Of 876 inhabitants aged 3 years or more (pregnant women excluded), 864 (98.6%) were treated. Simultaneously, venous blood samples were collected from 577 (97.5%) of the 595 inhabitants aged 15 years or more, of whom 122 (21.4%) were found to be microfilaria (mf) carriers (86 males and 36 females). The geometric mean microfilariae (GMM) count was 358.7 mf/ml for the whole group, 387 mf/ml for males (range 1-8160 mf/ml) and 280 mf/ml for females (range 1-7769 mf/ml). Following treatment, 33 (3.8%) of the 864 persons treated experienced some adverse reactions (21 with grade 1 and 12 with grade 2). Of the 33 with reactions, 29 were among the 122 (23.8%) mf carriers and 4 among the 831 (0.5%) non-microfilaraemic persons. Six months later, 123 (21.1%) of 584 inhabitants sampled were microfilaraemic: the GMM count for the whole group was 106 mf/ml (1-8177), with 29 mf/ml (1-3740) in 35 female and 177 mf/ml (1-8177) in 88 male carriers. Of these 123, 15 (whose GMM count was 4.5 mf/ml; range 1-204) were amicrofilaraemic 6 months before, and 19 had a microfilaraemia level higher than that 6 months earlier, before treatment. 117 of the 122 carriers identified in April were resampled: comparison of their GMM counts before and 6 months after mass treatment indicated that treatment with a single dose of 100 micrograms/kg ivermectin resulted in a reduction of microfilaraemia by 69%.

The Role of P-glycoprotein in Preventing Developmental and Neurotoxicity

“…It is estimated that nearly 20 million people are infected and another 85 million are at risk. Large and diverse populations have been treated with ivermectin in Africa (Burnham, 1993;Chijioke and Okonkwo, 1992;Chippaux et al, 1993;De Sole et al, 1989a,b;Doumbo et al, 1992;Gardon et al, 1997;Ogunba and Gemade, 1992;Pacque et al, 1990Pacque et al, , 1991Whitworth et al, 1991), Polynesia (Cartel et al, 1992), and Latin America (Collins et al, 1992). Typical human doses range from 0.1 to 0.2 mg/kg (FAO/WHO, 1993).…”

The use of ivermectin in controlling an outbreak of scabies in a prison

“…It has negligible effects on mammals, and is safe in humans because it does not cross the blood–brain barrier 13 . This has been confirmed by its use in more than 16 million individuals each year in Africa and Latin America for the treatment of onchocerciasis, 14,15 and also for the treatment of loiasis 16 and Bancroftian filariasis 17 …”

Plasmodium knowlesi and Wuchereria bancrofti: Their Vectors and Challenges for the Future

“…However, when MDA was stopped the cases slowly started to increase due to the few that did not undergo treatment and harbored the microfilaria. Besides, since vector control was not carried out, it led to the increase (Cartel et al, 1992; Esterre et al, 2001; Sunish et al, 2002). Thus, multiple rounds of MDA in many countries did not achieve the predicted interruption in transmission since vector control has not been implemented (Bockarie et al, 2009).…”