Antimalarial resistance and DHFR/DHPS genotypes of Plasmodium falciparum three years after introduction of sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine and amodiaquine in rural Tanzania

Trans R Soc Trop Med Hyg. 2008 Feb;102(2):137-42. doi: 10.1016/j.trstmh.2007.10.014. Epub 2007 Dec 21.

Abstract

We assessed the efficacy of sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine (SP) and amodiaquine (AQ) and DHFR/DHPS genotypes of Plasmodium falciparum in rural Tanzania, 3 years after their introduction as first- and second-line treatments for uncomplicated malaria, respectively. Under five children with uncomplicated malaria were given standard treatments of either SP (n=66) or AQ (n=30) and treatment outcomes after 14 and 28 days were determined. Total treatment failure of 18 and 42.5% was observed for SP on days 14 and 28, respectively. For AQ, total treatment failure of 27 and 53% was found on day 14 and 28, respectively. On day 14, significantly lower SP total treatment failures were observed in 2004 compared with results from a study conducted in 1999 in the same location. No relationship was detected between clinical outcome and DHFR/DHPS genotypes, but the point mutation prevalence in parasites was higher than in 1999. Pre-treatment blood levels of SP were detected in a quarter of the study children: less than expected. We report unacceptably high levels of total treatment failures, both for first- and second-line treatments for uncomplicated malaria in Tanzania 3 years after their introduction, supporting the decision to replace them with artemisinin-based combination therapy.

Publication types

  • Randomized Controlled Trial
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Amodiaquine / therapeutic use*
  • Animals
  • Antimalarials / therapeutic use*
  • Child, Preschool
  • Dihydropteroate Synthase / genetics
  • Drug Combinations
  • Drug Resistance
  • Female
  • Follow-Up Studies
  • Genotype
  • Humans
  • Infant
  • Malaria, Falciparum / drug therapy*
  • Malaria, Falciparum / parasitology
  • Male
  • Plasmodium falciparum / drug effects*
  • Plasmodium falciparum / genetics
  • Point Mutation
  • Pyrimethamine / blood
  • Pyrimethamine / therapeutic use*
  • Rural Health
  • Sulfadoxine / blood
  • Sulfadoxine / therapeutic use*
  • Tansania
  • Tetrahydrofolate Dehydrogenase / genetics
  • Treatment Failure

Substances

  • Antimalarials
  • Drug Combinations
  • Amodiaquine
  • fanasil, pyrimethamine drug combination
  • Sulfadoxine
  • Tetrahydrofolate Dehydrogenase
  • Dihydropteroate Synthase
  • Pyrimethamine