The short-term impact of albendazole treatment on Oesophagostomum bifurcum and hookworm infections in northern Ghana.
In November-December 2002, stool samples from a random sample of the human population (N = 190) in the Garu area of northern Ghana were checked for intestinal helminths, using a single Kato smear and duplicate coprocultures for each subject. All 190 subjects were subsequently treated with a single, 400-mg dose of albendazole and 146 of them were successfully re-examined 21-28 days post-treatment. Prior to treatment, 75.5% of the Kato smears were found to contain 'hookworm-like' eggs (with a geometric mean egg count among the positives of 578 eggs/g faeces), and the third-stage larvae of Oesophagostomum bifurcum and hookworm were found in the cultures of stools from 34.2% and 77.4% of the subjects, respectively. Among the subjects who had positive Kato smears before treatment, albendazole treatment led to a cure 'rate' of 79.0% and an egg-reduction 'rate' of 73.5%. The results from the coprocultures indicated cure 'rates' of 98.0% for O. bifurcum but only 51.3% for hookworm. Only one subject was still positive for O. bifurcum after treatment. Among those still positive for hookworm after treatment, the larva-reduction 'rate' was 79.8%. The egg-/larva-reduction 'rates' among those with heavy infections prior to treatment were >90%, whether the data analysed came from the Kato smears or the coprocultures. It may be concluded that a single dose of albendazole is very likely to cure an O. bifurcum infection and to reduce greatly the intensity (but not the prevalence) of any hookworm infections.
Ziem
J B
JB
Department of Parasitology, Leiden University Medical Centre, P.O. Box 9600, 2300 RC Leiden, The Netherlands.
Kettenis
I M J
IM
Bayita
A
A
Brienen
E A T
EA
Dittoh
S
S
Horton
J
J
Olsen
A
A
Magnussen
P
P
Polderman
A M
AM
D015766:Albendazole / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D000818:Animals; D000871:Anthelmintics / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D019353:Endemic Diseases; D005869:Ghana / Q000453:epidemiology; D006725:Hookworm Infections / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D009814:Oesophagostomiasis / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology; D009815:Oesophagostomum / Q000302:isolation & purification; D013997:Time Factors; D016896:Treatment Outcome
D000871:Anthelmintics; D015766:Albendazole