Africa deworming scheme boosted after pandemic lull
The donation by US drug firm Johnson & Johnson of 50 million doses of a new formulation of a drug will make it possible to fast-track the deworming of children in Ethiopia, Kenya and Rwanda, an American charity fighting neglected tropical diseases says.
Ellen Agler, the chief executive of the End Fund, said this was necessary as deworming programmes had been affected by the coronavirus pandemic.
This had put at “significant risk” the gains that had taken years to achieve, she said.
Vermox, a new form of mebendazole, allows for easier administration to children as it can be easily chewed or mixed with a small amount of water.
Intestinal or parasitic worms are one of several neglected tropical diseases that affect more than 1.7 billion people globally, with a 40% burden in Africa alone.
Ms Agler said that Johnson & Johnson’s commitment to its The Deworming Innovation Fund showed that that it was “possible to end these diseases in our lifetimes”.
The effects of intestinal worms on those who have been infected include malnutrition, anaemia, stunting and impaired intellectual development – they are also then susceptible to other infectious diseases.
