New drug combinations against falciparum malaria which are both effective and affordable for Sub-Saharan African populations are urgently needed. The combination of the well-known drugs chloroquine (CQ) and methylene blue (MB) is such a promising new regimen. However, there is some concern that MB could cause development of haemolysis in patients with glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency, a condition which is prevalent in malaria-endemic regions. Against this background, 74 G6PD-deficient but otherwise healthy adult men were given a 3-day oral regimen of a total of 1500 mg CQ and 780 mg MB in the District Hospital of Nouna in north-western Burkina Faso. Haemolysis did not occur, haemoglobin levels remained stable or even rose in the study participants, and the drug regimen was well tolerated. Therefore, standard dosages of MB appear to be safe in G6PD-deficient African populations with predominantly class III G6PD deficiency.

Download full-text PDF

Source
http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-3156.2004.01356.xDOI Listing

Publication Analysis

Top Keywords

g6pd deficiency
12
chloroquine methylene
8
methylene blue
8
healthy adult
8
adult men
8
burkina faso
8
african populations
8
safety combination
4
combination chloroquine
4
blue healthy
4

Similar Publications

Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency is a well-known red blood cell enzymopathy and a cause of intravascular hemolysis. This case report presents a child with underlying G6PD deficiency who experienced an acute episode of extensive intravascular hemolysis induced by a scrub typhus infection. The key takeaway from this report is that scrub typhus infection can trigger extensive hemolysis in patients with even "mild" G6PD deficiency, and normal G6PD levels found during the acute phase of hemolysis do not rule out the possibility of underlying G6PD deficiency.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Purpose: To develop an algorithm using routine clinical laboratory measurements to identify people at risk for systematic underestimation of glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) due to p.Val68Met glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency.

Methods: We analyzed 122,307 participants of self-identified Black race across four large cohorts with blood glucose, HbA1c, and red cell distribution width measurements from a single blood draw.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The medium-fluorescence reticulocyte ratio is an independent predictor of G6PD deficiency neonates.

Int J Hematol

January 2025

Children's Medical Center, Sun Yat-Sen Memorial Hospital, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, 510120, People's Republic of China.

Objective: G6PD deficiency is a potentially life-threatening condition in neonates presenting with hyperbilirubinemia. This study aims to identify clinical and laboratory predictors of G6PD deficiency in neonates presenting with hyperbilirubinemia.

Methods: This was a retrospective study of 227 term neonates admitted to Heyuan People's Hospital from January 2019 to October 2023.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Quantifying Plasmodium vivax radical cure efficacy: a modelling study integrating clinical trial data and transmission dynamics.

Lancet Infect Dis

January 2025

Institut Pasteur, Université Paris Cité, G5 Épidémiologie et Analyse des Maladies Infectieuses, Paris, France. Electronic address:

Background: Plasmodium vivax forms dormant liver stages (hypnozoites) that can reactivate weeks to months after primary infection. Radical cure requires a combination of antimalarial drugs to kill both the blood-stage and liver-stage parasites. Hypnozoiticidal efficacy of the liver-stage drugs primaquine and tafenoquine cannot be estimated directly because hypnozoites are undetectable.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Want AI Summaries of new PubMed Abstracts delivered to your In-box?

Enter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!