A seven days course of eflornithine for relapsing Trypanosoma brucei gambiense sleeping sickness.
Forty-seven patients with a relapse following a first treatment of Trypanosoma brucei gambiense trypanosomiasis were treated with a 7 d course of intravenous eflornithine (100 mg/kg every 6 h) and followed for 2 years. Four patients died after treatment, 2 of them possibly due to trypanosomiasis. One patient was completely lost to follow-up, 36 were followed for at least one year, and 25 have completed the 2 years' follow-up. Only one patient, a 5 years old child, subsequently relapsed. Considering this child and 2 of the fatalities as treatment failures, the rate of failure was 6.5%. A 7 d course of intravenous eflornithine is an adequate treatment for cases of Gambian trypanosomiasis relapsing after treatment with another drug.
Khonde
N
N
Université de Sherbrooke, Canada.
Pépin
J
J
Mpia
B
B
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000818:Animals; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004334:Drug Administration Schedule; D000518:Eflornithine / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012008:Recurrence; D017211:Treatment Failure; D014344:Trypanocidal Agents / Q000008:administration & dosage* / Q000627:therapeutic use; D014347:Trypanosoma brucei gambiense; D014353:Trypanosomiasis, African / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000469:parasitology
D014344:Trypanocidal Agents; D000518:Eflornithine