Hospital-based safety and tolerability study to assess efficacy of oral doxycycline in the treatment of Wuchereria bancrofti infection in north-eastern Tanzania

Tanzan Health Res Bull. 2006 Sep;8(3):128-33. doi: 10.4314/thrb.v8i3.45109.

Abstract

A hospital based open-label clinical trial of 19 apparently healthy adult males with microfilaraemia was conducted to assess safety, tolerability and efficacy of doxycycline on Wuchereria bancrofti. Study individuals were assigned 8 weeks treatment with doxycycline 200 mg daily. The results of different selected tests showed that, the haematological, hepatic, renal and clinical parameters pre-and post-drug administrations were within the normal range for all treated individuals. Clinical adverse events were mild, transient, tolerable and reported in 7/19 (36.8%) of the study cohort. The mf clearance rate was 100% at 12 months post treatment for the 13 individuals who completed the follow up. These findings indicate that, although the drug was administered for a long period, there was no evidence of toxicity to the myocardium, hepatocytes, renal, bone marrow and blood cells, suggesting that an 8-week course of 200 mg/day doxycycline is a safe and tolerable regime for the treatment of Wuchereria bancrofti infections.

Publication types

  • Clinical Trial

MeSH terms

  • Administration, Oral
  • Adolescent
  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Animals
  • Doxycycline / administration & dosage*
  • Doxycycline / adverse effects
  • Doxycycline / therapeutic use
  • Drug Evaluation
  • Drug-Related Side Effects and Adverse Reactions
  • Filariasis / drug therapy*
  • Filariasis / microbiology
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Tanzania
  • Wuchereria bancrofti / drug effects*
  • Wuchereria bancrofti / pathogenicity

Substances

  • Doxycycline