Researchers from African and European organisations have published the results of a phase II/III clinical trial that demonstrated the safety and superior efficacy of a new treatment against soil-transmitted helminths (STH), a group of intestinal parasites that afflict 1.5 billion people —the most prevalent of the Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTDs). WHO's 2021-2030 Roadmap for STH has set the goal of its elimination as a public health problem before the end of the decade, and recommends mass drug administration campaigns in high prevalence regions. These usually translate to annual or biannual treatment rounds with a single dose of albendazole, an antiparasitc drug that is highly efficacious against 3 of the 5 species of STH considered by WHO. Complementing with ivermectin can help target the 5 species, but also complicates logistics, as it is dosed individually. The novel drug is a fixed-dose combination of both albendazole and ivermectin in a single tablet, so it can deliver the simpler logistics of the current approach and the superior efficacy of the combination strategy.
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Original Title: Treatment for parasites affecting 1.5 billion people shows safety and superior efficacy in phase II-III trial | Fixed-dose combination of albendazole and ivermectin, seeks to offer a better tool against soil-transmitted helminths