Declining in efficacy of a three-day combination regimen of mefloquine-artesunate in a multi-drug resistance area along the Thai-Myanmar border.

Background: Declining in clinical efficacy of artesunate-mefloquine combination has been documented in areas along the eastern border (Thai-Cambodian) of Thailand. In the present study, the clinical efficacy of the three-day combination regimen of artesunate-mefloquine as first-line treatment for acute uncomplicated falciparum malaria in Thailand was monitored in an area along the western border (Thai-Myanmar) of the country.

Methods: A total of 150 Burmese patients (85 males and 65 females) aged between 16 and 50 years who were attending the Mae Tao clinic, Mae-Sot, Tak Province, and presenting with symptomatic acute uncomplicated Plasmodium falciparum malaria were included into the study.