Effectiveness of annual ivermectin treatment for Wuchereria bancrofti infection

Using estimates for the anthelmintic efficacy of a single nose of ivermecti n in the treatment of lymphatic filariasis patients Anton Plaisier, Wilma S tolk, Gerrit van Oortmarssen and Dik Habbema here present and discuss model predictions of the impact of a five-year programme of annual community tre atment on the intensity of infection. They show that the effectiveness of s uch programmes in terms of reductions in the microfilarial density depends critically on the treatment coverage and the pattern of attendance at repea ted mass administrations. Improving these factors will possibly be more imp ortant than improving the efficacy of ivermectin by increasing its dosage o r by adding other drugs.