Experts have advised against the use of monotherapy medicines for the treatment of malaria.
Malaria monotherapy treatment includes the use of a single medication or drug such as chloroquine and artesunate, among others for the treatment of the disease.
National Coordinator of the National Malaria Elimination Program, of the Federal Ministry of Health, Dr Nnenna Ezeigwe said Artemisin based Combination Therapy (ACTs) is the approved treatment for malaria in Nigeria.
Speaking during a meeting on national training for the implementation of the ban on malaria monotherapy in Abuja, she said the National Council on Health has banned the use of monotherapies for the treatment of malaria because they are not effective and usually lead to resistance.
Ezeigwe who was represented by the Head of the Monitoring and Evaluation branch of the organization, Dr Perpetua Uhomoibhi said quinine is recommended during the first trimester of pregnancy because the side effects of ACTs might not be suitable for pregnant women, but can be used where there is no alternative.
She said the meeting is aimed at training national monitors who will go to the states to train community pharmacists and patent medicine vendors on how to use the rapid diagnostic test kits to diagnose malaria, and use the proper ACT for treatment.
Head case management branch of the National Malaria elimination programme, Dr Godwin Ntadom said one of the reasons, the trained monitors are going to the field is to let people know that the monotherapy medicines are no longer in use and there is no need for patent medicines vendors to stock them for treatment.
He said: “Chloroquine has been banned. Don’t use it to treat malaria, it is not effective. Amodaquine is not recommended. Artesunate only is not recommended in any way. Don’t use halfan, it has been linked to several conditions including heart diseases, so it is not recommended. Don’t also use suffadoxine pyrimethemin, it is for pregnant women alone not for the treatment of malaria by individuals.You should use combination treatment all the time.
He said recommended medicines for malaria are ACTS and they come in different forms such as arthemether-lumenfantrin, artesunate-amodaquine and several others.
“Any medicine you want to use for malaria must have combination which must include an artemisin product. Only one product to treat malaria is not recommended,” he advised.
