Short communication: Impact of long‐term (14 years) bi‐annual ivermectin treatment on Wuchereria bancrofti microfilaraemia

• Published in: Tropical medicine & international health Vol. 10; no. 10; pp. 1002 - 1004
• Main Authors: Kyelem, D., Medlock, J., Sanou, S., Bonkoungou, M., Boatin, B., Molyneux, D. H.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford, UK Blackwell Science Ltd 01.10.2005; Blackwell Science
• Subjects: Animals; Biological and medical sciences; Burkina Faso - epidemiology; Diseases caused by nematodes; Elephantiasis, Filarial - complications; Elephantiasis, Filarial - epidemiology; Elephantiasis, Filarial - prevention & control; Endemic Diseases - prevention & control; Filariases; Filaricides - therapeutic use; Helminthic diseases; Humans; Infectious diseases; ivermectin; Ivermectin - therapeutic use; Lymphatic filariases; Mansonella - isolation & purification; Mansonella perstans; Mansonelliasis - epidemiology; Medical sciences; Microfilariae; onchocerciasis; Onchocerciasis - complications; Onchocerciasis - epidemiology; Onchocerciasis - prevention & control; Onchocercosis; Parasitic diseases; Population Surveillance - methods; Prevalence; Rural Health; Time Factors; Wuchereria bancrofti; Burkina Faso; Africa; Skin disease; Anthelmintic; Prevalence; Wuchereria bancrofti; Epidemiology; Onchocerciasis; Macrocycle; Tropical medicine; Parasitemia; Nematoda; Human; Microfilaria; Lactone; Parasitosis; Helminthiasis; Long term; Infection; Eye disease; Mansonella perstans; Treatment; Mass campaign; Nematode disease; Helmintha; Parasiticide; Nemathelminthia; Filariosis; Invertebrata; Ivermectin
• ISSN: 1360-2276; 1365-3156
• DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-3156.2005.01489.x

Summary Ivermectin has been and continues to be extensively used to control onchocerciasis in areas of hyper and mesoendemicity within the African Programme of Onchocerciasis Control. As programmes to eliminate lymphatic filariasis (LF) caused by Wuchereria bancrofti expand, areas of coendemicity with onchocerciasis will be incorporated into LF programmes. This study reports that in villages which were hyperendemic for onchocerciasis after some 14 years of treatment with ivermectin, no W. bancrofti could be detected in a population of 1210 individuals whilst in adjacent villages a prevalence of around 3% was found. Despite the long period of ivermectin treatment Mansonella perstans did not appear to respond to ivermectin in this setting.