Abstract
AbstractThe drawbackof limited options in the fight against helminth infections caused byroundworms, hookworms and threadworms has remained a major concern inhealthcare delivery especially in resource-poor nations. And the success ofdrug repurposing both in anthelmintic and other treatment landscape has madethe choice of this technique in anthelmintic chemotherapy research compelling. We investigated the efficacy of doxycycline and mepacrineagainst three selected geohelminths using Fecal Egg Count Reduction (FECR) as ametric. Ethical approval was obtained from Abia State University Teaching HospitalEthics Committee and a randomized controlled trial was conducted on a total ofthirty two (32) volunteers diagnosed egg positive for the investigatedhelminths and randomly allocated to (1) mepacrine (2) doxycycline                            (3) doxycycline+mepacrineequal combination and (4) albendazole treatment groups in respective doses of100 mg BID 3/7 for mepacrine and doxycycline; 100 mg each of doxycycline+mepacrine  STAT and 400 mg albendazoleSTAT as positive control. The fecal egg count reduction rates for ascaris, hookworm and strongyloide were determined using themodified Mc master method and the average FECR of 76.0±14.4;79.7±10.0;81.0±5.9and 90.0±5.8% were obtained for mepacrine, doxycycline, doxycycline+mepacrineand albendazole respectively. The study identified doxycycline and mepacrine aspotential alternative anthelmintic agents especially as combination therapy.Larger scale clinical trial is strongly recommended. 
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