Abstract
BackgroundIn 2006, the Mauritanian Ministry of Health adopted a new therapeutic strategy based on the systematic use of artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT), artesunate-amodiaquine and artemether-lumefantrine, for the first- and second-line treatment of uncomplicated malaria, respectively, regardless of Plasmodium spp. In the Saharan zone of the country, recent studies have shown that Plasmodium vivax largely predominates over Plasmodium falciparum. Anti-malarial drug response of P. vivax has not been evaluated in Mauritania. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the clinical efficacy and tolerance of chloroquine to treat P. vivax malaria in Mauritanian patients.MethodsPlasmodium vivax-infected patients aged > 6 months old were enrolled in Nouakchott and Atar in September–October 2013. Chloroquine was administered at the standard dose of 25 mg base/kg body weight over three days. Patients were followed until day 28, according to the standard 2009 World Health Organization protocol.ResultsA total of 128 patients (67 in Nouakchott and 61 in Atar) were enrolled in the study. Seven patients (5.5%) were either excluded or lost to follow-up. Based on the per protocol analysis, chloroquine efficacy (adequate clinical and parasitological response) was 100%. Treatment was well-tolerated. One patient was excluded on day 1 due to urticaria and treated with artesunate-amodiaquine.ConclusionsAlthough the current national treatment guideline recommends artesunate-amodiaquine for the first-line treatment of uncomplicated malaria, including P. vivax malaria, chloroquine may still have an important role to play in anti-malarial chemotherapy in Mauritania. Further epidemiological studies are required to map the distribution of P. vivax and P. falciparum in the country.
Highlights
In 2006, the Mauritanian Ministry of Health adopted a new therapeutic strategy based on the systematic use of artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT), artesunate-amodiaquine and artemether-lumefantrine, for the first- and second-line treatment of uncomplicated malaria, respectively, regardless of Plasmodium spp
That showed a high prevalence of laboratoryconfirmed P. vivax malaria in the northern districts of Nouakchott [2,3], Teyarett health centre was selected for the present study
Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and genotyping Parasite DNA was extracted from filter papers using the Chelex method [16]
Summary
In 2006, the Mauritanian Ministry of Health adopted a new therapeutic strategy based on the systematic use of artemisinin-based combination therapy (ACT), artesunate-amodiaquine and artemether-lumefantrine, for the first- and second-line treatment of uncomplicated malaria, respectively, regardless of Plasmodium spp. In the Saharan zone of the country, recent studies have shown that Plasmodium vivax largely predominates over Plasmodium falciparum. Anti-malarial drug response of P. vivax has not been evaluated in Mauritania. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the clinical efficacy and tolerance of chloroquine to treat P. vivax malaria in Mauritanian patients. Most Plasmodium falciparum infections occur in the sahelian south of Mauritania. The epidemiology of P. vivax malaria is not well known in the neighbouring countries, such as Mali and Senegal. P. vivax had been registered in the past in Cape Verde islands, only P. falciparum has been diagnosed during the last 20 years [6]. Elsewhere in Africa, P. vivax occurs in São Tomé and Príncipe, in some East African countries, and in Madagascar [7,8,9]
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