Efficacy and safety of single-dose 40 mg/kg oral praziquantel in the treatment of schistosomiasis in preschool-age versus school-age children: An individual participant data meta-analysis.
Background Better knowledge of the efficacy and safety of single-dose 40 mg/kg oral praziquantel in preschool-age children is required, should preventive chemotherapy programs for schistosomiasis be expanded to include this age group. Methodology We analyzed individual participant-level data from 16...
Published in: | PLOS Neglected Tropical Diseases |
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Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
Format: | Article in Journal/Newspaper |
Language: | English |
Published: |
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2020
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Subjects: | |
Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pntd.0008277 https://doaj.org/article/6b4d9dbc269646a79fcd185c6c560947 |
Summary: | Background Better knowledge of the efficacy and safety of single-dose 40 mg/kg oral praziquantel in preschool-age children is required, should preventive chemotherapy programs for schistosomiasis be expanded to include this age group. Methodology We analyzed individual participant-level data from 16 studies (13 single-arm or cohort studies and three randomized trials), amounting to 683 preschool-age children (aged <6 years) and 2,010 school-age children (aged 6-14 years). Children had a documented Schistosoma mansoni or S. haematobium infection, were treated with single 40 mg/kg oral praziquantel, and assessed between 21 and 60 days post-treatment. Efficacy was expressed as arithmetic mean and individual egg reduction rate (ERR) and meta-analyzed using general linear models and mixed models. Safety was summarized using reported adverse events (AEs). Principal findings Preschool-age children had significantly lower baseline Schistosoma egg counts and more losses to follow-up compared to school-age children. No difference in efficacy was found between preschool- and school-age children using a general linear model of individual-participant ERR with baseline log-transformed egg count as covariate and study, age, and sex as fixed variables, and a mixed model with a random effect on the study. Safety was reported in only four studies (n = 1,128 individuals); few AEs were reported in preschool-age children 4 and 24 hours post-treatment as well as at follow-up. Three severe but not serious AEs were recorded in school-age children during follow-up. Conclusions/significance There is no indication that single-dose 40 mg/kg oral praziquantel would be less efficacious and less safe in preschool-age children compared to school-age children, with the caveat that only few randomized comparisons exist between the two age groups. Preventive chemotherapy might therefore be extended to preschool-age children, with proper monitoring of its efficacy and safety. |
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