Eastern and Southern Africa Centre of International Parasite Control (ESACIPAC) conducted
stool examinations for soil transmitted helminthiases (STH) and
Schistosoma mansoni
, among
school children in Mwea Division, Central Kenya where both infections are endemic. Mass drug
administrations (MDAs) were then conducted in 2004 and 2005 using schoolteachers trained
on how to administer treatment, physically and psychologically prepare the children to take
the medication, have them eat before treatment, handle minor and refer serious side effects to
local health facilities. Local health workers were on standby to help manage severe side effects.
This study examined side effects of the drugs and the teachers’ preparedness to handle the
children when such effects occurred. No serious side effects requiring referral to the health
centre occurred and the minor ones observed were temporal.
In 2005 children in Mwea schools were treated with albendazole 400mg and praziquantel
40mg/kg body weight while those of Ndia, a neighboring division treated with only albendazole
400mg since there was low
S.mansoni prevalence. Monitoring of side effects was done in two
schools of Ndia and in three of Mwea through a questionnaire distributed to grade three pupils
a week after treatment.
Of 73 pupils from Mwea, 49.7% reported incidences of stomachache, vomiting/nausea, headache
and dizziness whereas 39.2% of 186 from Ndia experienced incidences of cough, stomachache
and headache. This shows that more pupils from Mwea, (albendazole and praziquantel) than
from Ndia (albendazole alone) experienced minor side effects.
These results show that both drugs have temporary, minor side effects, which can be managed
by trained schoolteachers by ensuring that the school children do not swallow the drugs on
an empty stomach and rest immediately after swallowing the drugs but should be closely
monitored by health personnel. In this study, one trained schoolteacher could administer
treatment to three hundred children in one day, which makes the approach cost effective and
should be adopted nationally.
