Mefloquine in the treatment of falciparum malaria during pregnancy in Eastern Sudan.
OBJECTIVE
To test the efficacy and toxicity of mefloquine therapy both on expectant mothers and the outcome of their pregnancies.


METHODS
We performed a prospective non-comparative clinical trial in New Halfa Teaching Hospital, Eastern Sudan, during the period October 1998 to June 2001. Pregnant Sudanese women were given mefloquine 25 mg/kg for treatment of falciparum malaria following chloroquine failure. The women were followed every 2 weeks in the antenatal clinic until delivery. The babies were followed until the age of one year.


RESULTS
Forty pregnant women were enrolled in the second and third trimesters. Itching which occurred in 17.5% and nausea which occurred in 35% were the cardinal side effects of the patients. Recrudescence or re-infection occurred on day 14 in one patient (2.5%). One patient that received mefloquine at 34 weeks gestational age delivered low birth weight (2.1 kg) at 39 weeks gestational age. One child died at the age of 7 months due to unexplained febrile illness. There was no abortion, no stillbirth and no congenital abnormality in the newborn children and no maternal death.


CONCLUSIONS
This relatively small study reported that mefloquine could be used safely for the treatment of malaria in the second and third trimester of pregnancy and a larger study is recommended.
Adam
Ishag
I
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, New Halfa Teaching Hospital, New Halfa, Sudan. ishagadam@hotmail.com
Ali
Daw A
DA
Alwaseila
Altaeib
A
Kheir
Mousa M
MM
Elbashir
Mustafa I
MI
D000328:Adult; D004305:Dose-Response Relationship, Drug; D004334:Drug Administration Schedule; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D016778:Malaria, Falciparum / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy*; D015767:Mefloquine / Q000008:administration & dosage*; D011247:Pregnancy; D015597:Pregnancy Complications, Parasitic / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy*; D011256:Pregnancy Outcome; D011262:Pregnancy Trimester, Second; D011263:Pregnancy Trimester, Third; D011446:Prospective Studies; D018570:Risk Assessment; D013397:Sudan; D016896:Treatment Outcome
D015767:Mefloquine