02702nas a2200337   4500000000100000008004100001260001200042653001100054653002500065653001300090653002900103653003200132653001700164653002800181653002000209653002400229100001600253700001800269700001400287700001200301700001800313700001500331700001400346700001400360245010700374856006800481300000900549490000700558520178500565022001402350       2023                            d  c09/202310aRwanda10aS. mansoni infection10aEfficacy10aMass drug administration10aNeglected Tropical Diseases10aPraziquantel10apreventive chemotherapy10aschistosomiasis10aschool-age children1 aKabatende J1 aNtirenganya L1 aMugisha M1 aBarry A1 aRuberanziza E1 aBienvenu E1 aBergman U1 aAklillu E00aEfficacy of Single-Dose Praziquantel for the Treatment of  Infections among School Children in Rwanda.  uhttps://www.mdpi.com/2076-0817/12/9/1170/pdf?version=1694943649  a1-100 v123 a<p>Preventive chemotherapy with single-dose praziquantel is the WHO-recommended intervention strategy to eliminate schistosomiasis as a public health problem in endemic countries. Surveillance of drugs used in mass drug administration (MDA) programs is recommended to evaluate its effectiveness in reducing transmissions. After a decade-long implementation of a school-based MDA program in Rwanda, we conducted efficacy surveillance of single-dose praziquantel MDA against infection. Two weeks before MDA, stool examinations were performed to screen MDA-eligible school children (n = 4998) for infection using the Kato-Katz technique, and 265 (6.5%) children tested positive for the infection. All children received praziquantel and albendazole as preventive chemotherapy through the MDA campaign. Infected children were enrolled and followed for efficacy monitoring, and stool examination was repeated after three weeks post-MDA (n = 188). Before treatment, 173 (92%) had a light infection, and 15 (8%) had a moderate infection intensity. The primary and secondary outcomes were parasitological cure and egg reduction rates at three weeks post-treatment. The overall cure and egg reduction rates for infection were 97.9% (95% CI = 94.6-99.4) and 97.02%, respectively. Among the 173 children with light infection intensity, 170 (98.3%, 95% CI = 95.0-99.6) were cured, and among the 15 children who had moderate infection intensity, 14 (93.3%) were cured. No significant association between cure rate and pre-treatment infection intensity was observed. We conclude that single-dose praziquantel is efficacious against light-to-moderate infection. Preventive chemotherapy with praziquantel effectively reduces schistosome reservoirs and transmission among school-age children.</p>
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