Efficacy of chloroquine for the treatment of uncomplicated Plasmodium falciparum malaria in Honduras

Rosa Elena Mejia Torres, Engels Ilich Banegas, Meisy Mendoza, Cesar Diaz, Sandra Tamara Mancero Bucheli, Gustavo A. Fontecha, Md Tauqeer Alam, Ira Goldman, Venkatachalam Udhayakumar, Jose Orlinder Nicolas Zambrano

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Chloroquine (CQ) is officially used for the primary treatment of Plasmodium falciparum malaria in Honduras. In this study, the therapeutic efficacy of CQ for the treatment of uncomplicated P. falciparum malaria in the municipality of Puerto Lempira, Gracias a Dios, Honduras was evaluated using the Pan American Health Organization - World Health Organization protocol with a follow-up of 28 days. Sixty-eight patients from 6 months to 60 years of age microscopically diagnosed with uncomplicated P. falciparum malaria were included in the final analysis. All patients who were treated with CQ (25 mg/kg over 3 days) cleared parasitemia by day 3 and acquired no new P. falciparum infection within 28 days of follow-up. All the parasite samples sequenced for CQ resistance mutations (pfcrt) showed only the CQ-sensitive genotype (CVMNK). This finding shows that CQ remains highly efficacious for the treatment of uncomplicated P. falciparum malaria in Gracias a Dios, Honduras.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)850-854
Number of pages5
JournalAmerican Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene
Volume88
Issue number5
DOIs
StatePublished - May 2013
Externally publishedYes

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Infectious Diseases
  • Virology
  • Parasitology

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