Comparison of the Kato-Katz thick smear and McMaster egg counting techniques for monitoring drug efficacy against soil-transmitted helminths in schoolchildren on Pemba Island, Tanzania

• Published in: Transactions of the Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene Vol. 106; no. 3; pp. 199 - 201
• Main Authors: Albonico, M., Ame, S.M., Vercruysse, J., Levecke, B.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Elsevier Ltd 01.03.2012; Royal Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene; Oxford University Press
• Subjects: Albendazole; Albendazole - administration & dosage; Albendazole - therapeutic use; Animals; Anthelmintics - administration & dosage; Anthelmintics - therapeutic use; Antibiotics. Antiinfectious agents. Antiparasitic agents; Antiparasitic agents; Biological and medical sciences; Child; Child, Preschool; Drug efficacy; Faecal egg count; Feces - parasitology; Female; General aspects; Helminthiasis - diagnosis; Helminthiasis - drug therapy; Helminthiasis - transmission; Helminths - drug effects; Helminths - growth & development; Humans; Kato-Katz thick smear technique; Male; McMaster egg counting technique; Medical sciences; Parasite Egg Count - instrumentation; Parasite Egg Count - methods; Pharmacology. Drug treatments; Prevalence; Sensitivity and Specificity; Soil - parasitology; Soil-transmitted helminths; Tanzania - epidemiology; Africa; Tanzania; Faecal egg count; Drug efficacy; Kato-Katz thick smear technique; McMaster egg counting technique; Albendazole; Soil-transmitted helminths; Human; Anthelmintic; Treatment efficiency; School age; Surveillance; Smear; Helmintha; Parasiticide; Tropical medicine; Feces; Technique; Invertebrata; Child; Comparative study
• ISSN: 0035-9203; 1878-3503
• DOI: 10.1016/j.trstmh.2011.11.006

The Kato-Katz thick smear technique is widely used to assess prevalence and intensity in soil-transmitted helminth (STH) control programmes, but its usefulness in monitoring anthelminthic drug efficacy needs to be validated and compared with other methods. A promising alternative is the McMaster egg counting technique. In the present study, the efficacy of single-dose albendazole against STH infections in 430 schoolchildren on Pemba Island was assessed using both the Kato-Katz and McMaster techniques. The study revealed comparable drug efficacy results for both methods and confirmed the potency of the McMaster technique as an alternative method for monitoring large-scale deworming programmes.