Resumo

BELIZARIO, V.Y. et al. A comparison of the efficacy of single doses of albendazole, ivermectin, and diethylcarbamazine alone or in combinations against Ascaris and Trichuris spp.. Bull World Health Organ [online]. 2003, vol.81, n.1, pp. 35-42. ISSN 0042-9686.  http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S0042-96862003000100008.

OBJECTIVE: To determine the efficacy of single doses of albendazole, ivermectin and diethylcarbamazine, and of the combinations albendazole + ivermectin and albendazole + diethylcarbamazine against common intestinal helminthiases caused by Ascaris and Trichuris spp. METHODS: In a randomized, placebo-controlled trial, infected children were randomly assigned to treatment with albendazole + placebo, ivermectin + placebo, diethylcarbamazine + placebo, albendazole + ivermectin, or albendazole + diethylcarbamazine. The Kato-Katz method was used for qualitative and quantitative parasitological diagnosis. The c² test was used to determine the significance of cure rates, repeated measures analysis of variance for the comparison of mean log egg counts, the Newman-Keuls procedure for multiple comparison tests, and logistic regression for the comparison of infection rates at days 180 and 360 after treatment. FINDINGS: Albendazole, ivermectin and the drug combinations gave significantly higher cure and egg reduction rates for ascariasis than diethylcarbamazine. For trichuriasis, albendazole + ivermectin gave significantly higher cure and egg reduction rates than the other treatments: the infection rates were lower 180 and 360 days after treatment. CONCLUSION: Because of the superiority of albendazole + ivermectin against both lymphatic filariasis and trichuriasis, this combination appears to be a suitable tool for the integrated or combined control of both public health problems.

Palavras-chave : Albendazole [administration and dosage]; Ivermectin [administration and dosage]; Diethylcarbamazine [administration and dosage]; Ascaris [drug effects]; Trichuris [drug effects]; Drug combinations; Placebos; Treatment outcome; Child; Randomized controlled trials; Comparative study; Philippines.