Evaluation of the efficacy of pyrantel-oxantel for the treatment of soil-transmitted nematode infections.
A randomized controlled trial comparing the efficacy of pyrantel-oxantel (10 mg/kg) with mebendazole (500 mg) was performed on 1329 schoolchildren aged 6-9 years on Pemba Island in September-October 2000 to evaluate alternative single-dose drugs for regular treatment of intestinal nematode infections. Both mebendazole and pyrantel-oxantel were very effective in eliminating Ascaris lumbricoides infection, inducing cure rates of more than 96% and reducing the mean egg counts by more than 95%. Both drugs had a moderate efficacy against Trichuris trichiura infection, but pyrantel-oxantel had a higher cure rate (31.5% vs. 23.3%, P < 0.01), though the reductions in egg counts did not differ significantly and were more than 80%. Pyrantel-oxantel and mebendazole had a similar, poor efficacy in curing hookworm infections and had a moderate effect in reducing the egg counts by 67% and 68%, respectively. Pyrantel-oxantel (10 mg/kg) offers a valuable alternative to mebendazole as a single-dose treatment for the control of intestinal nematode infections in children in endemic areas of sub-Saharan Africa, due to its comparable efficacy, its low cost and its suitability for use in young children.
Albonico
Marco
M
Ivo de Carneri Foundation, Milan, Italy.
Bickle
Quentin
Q
Haji
Hamad J
HJ
Ramsan
Mahdi
M
Khatib
Khatib J
KJ
Montresor
Antonio
A
Savioli
Lorenzo
L
Taylor
Martin
M
D000969:Antinematodal Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001196:Ascariasis / Q000188:drug therapy; D002648:Child; D006725:Hookworm Infections / Q000188:drug therapy; D006801:Humans; D007411:Intestinal Diseases, Parasitic / Q000188:drug therapy*; D009349:Nematode Infections / Q000188:drug therapy*; D011715:Pyrantel / Q000031:analogs & derivatives* / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D012987:Soil / Q000469:parasitology*; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D014257:Trichuriasis / Q000188:drug therapy
D000969:Antinematodal Agents; D012987:Soil; D011715:Pyrantel; C003407:oxantel