IVERMECTIN DETECTION IN SERUM OF ONCHOCERCIASIS PATIENTS - RELATIONSHIP TO ADVERSE REACTIONS

Ivermectin treatment of onchocerciasis patients can be accompanied by adverse reactions. Not much is known concerning the pathogenesis of th ese reactions. Previous studies have demonstrated that the occurrence and extent of adverse reactions are related to infection intensity. Ho wever, some severely infected patients experience relatively few adver se effects. The aim of the present study was to investigate whether th is seeming discrepancy could be due to diminished ivermectin absorptio n, Ivermectin concentrations one and two days after treatment were mea sured by high-performance liquid chromatography in sera of 71 skin sni p-positive onchocerciasis patients (21 without reactions, 25 with mild reactions, 14 with moderate reactions, and 11 with severe reactions). The overall mean +/- SD ivermectin concentrations one and two days af ter a single oral dose (150 mu g/kg) were 16.4 +/- 6.4 and 6.6 +/- 3.1 ng/ml, respectively. The overall mean +/- SD half-life was estimated to be 19.9 +/- 8.6 hr. The data presented did not show a relationship between ivermectin concentrations and the grade of adverse reactions.