Soil Transmitted Helminths
Conditions
Keywords
deworming, STH
Brief summary
Soil Transmitted Helminths (STH) are among the most common infections in the world today. The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends mass administration of deworming medicine as a single routine annual dose to all school age children (SAC)(age 5-16 years) in countries where prevalence of Soil Transmitted Helminthic Infections (STHI) is \> 20% as a safe public health intervention that promotes healthy growth (Category 2 Recommendation). Pakistan is classified as a low burden community with a reported prevalence of STHI \<50%, however,routine deworming is not a policy in Pakistan. Currently, Pakistan is also facing a huge burden of malnutrition in all age groups especially in population belonging to low socioeconomic group. Incidentally, worm infestation by STH also occurs in this group due to associated lack of hygiene and poor living conditions. The coexistence of even moderate STH infections can cause or aggravate malnutrition. The urban slums of Karachi provide environmental, social and behavioral conditions that favor both STH infections and a risk of under nutrition. It is unknown if administering routine dose of deworming medicine to SAC as per WHO recommendation will contribute to improvement in indicators of nutrition status in Pakistani children living in urban slum conditions by eliminating worm infection.Therefore, this study is being conducted to determine the effect of deworming on weight of School Age Children aged between 5 to 16 years.
Detailed description
A randomized control trial will be conducted in an urban slum of Karachi. Eligible 5 to 16 year old school age children will be enrolled after parental consent. The calculated total sample size is n= 258. Subjects will be visited at home by researcher and background information, risk factor presence and baseline measurements of weight, Mid Upper Arm Circumference (MUAC) and tricep skinfold thickness (TSF) will be measured. The intervention arm will be administered a single dose of chewable Albendazole 400 mg and the placebo arm will receive 400 mg chewable calcium tablets. The weight, MUAC and TSF will be measured again after 8 weeks to determine the change if any. The selection of locality and allocation of intervention will be done using simple random sampling and computer generated random numbers.
Interventions
DRUGAlbendazole
Albendazole 400 mg chewable tablets (200 mg each) Two tablets as a single dose recommended as ovicidal, larvicidal and vermicidal against all soil transmitted helminths
DIETARY_SUPPLEMENTCalcium 400 mg + Vitamin D 2.5 mcg
2 chewable tablets provide recommended daily allowance for calcium and vitamin D
Sponsors
Dow University of Health Sciences
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
PREVENTION
Masking
TRIPLE (Subject, Investigator, Outcomes Assessor)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
5 Years to 16 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
* Aged 5 - 16 years, Healthy, Able to chew/swallow tablets
Exclusion criteria
* Acutely ill * Previous deworming dose \< 6 months ago * Intellectually challenged or physical condition interfering with measurement of primary outcome variables
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Weight | 8 weeks | Weight of subject in Kgs |
| MUAC | 8 weeks | Mid Upper Arm Circumference in cms |
| TSF | 8 weeks | Tricep Skin Fold thickness in mms |
Countries
Pakistan
Outcome results
None listed