Veterinary medicine active against worms in children

Fight worms in children with veterinary medicine

02/14/2014

In the future, an active ingredient that was previously only used in veterinary medicine could rid millions of children in developing countries of intestinal worms. According to one study, this drug is many times more effective than conventional standard therapies.

One billion people are infected
Worldwide, about one billion people are infected with hookworms and whipworms. Particularly affected are children in developing countries, who are often infected because of lack of latrines and clean water. Worm eggs of the whipworm reach over the polluted earth into the gastrointestinal tract, where they then grow up over several stages of development. As a result, there is a delayed development of the children, to lower the performance and also sometimes to dangerous anemia.

Recommended therapies show little effect
To date, the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends annual deworming treatment for children and people from risk groups such as field and mine workers to reduce the health burden of worm diseases. The recommended standard therapies with albendazole or mebendazole showed little effect against the widespread whipworm Trichuris trichiura.

Active substance from veterinary medicine
A team led by Benjamin Speich from the Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (SwissTPH) in Basel has now examined an active substance that has been used in veterinary medicine since the 1970s. „We remembered an effective veterinarian wormer preparation“, said Jennifer Keizer from the Basel Institute. The results of their study, the scientists published in the journal „New England Journal of Medicine“.

Combination of standard and veterinary medicine
The Swiss researchers treated over 450 children on the East African island of Pemba (Tanzania) either with the preparation otherwise used in veterinary medicine „Oxantel Pamoate“ or with the standard therapies. It turned out that the best effect could be achieved by a combination of oxantel and albendazole. Already after a single treatment with this drug combination, 31 percent of the children were free from whipworms. Albendazole alone treated only 2.6 percent and mebendazole 11.8 percent.

Significantly better effect
The combination also reduced the number of worm eggs in children's stools by 96 percent, but only 45 to 75 percent with the other remedies. „We were able to show that this drug works significantly better“, so store, but not against hookworms and roundworms. The side effects were comparable to those of the standard therapies and usually mild.

Improve the health of millions of children
As study leader Keizer explained, a use of Oxantel in humans among experts for worm diseases had already been discussed for some time. However, as the drug was previously only available in combination with other substances, the researchers would first have had to develop a child-friendly tablet with the help of pharmacists at the University of Basel. The scientists said that in other clinical trials, dosage and dosage regimens of the drug would be improved. Based on the Basel study, WHO could in the future extend its recommendation to this substance. It could improve the health of millions of children worldwide. (Sb)

Picture: Lupo