According to a new study, published in the journal PLOS Medicine, a combination therapy of naphthoquine and artemisinin drugs is highly effective in treating malaria in kids.
The research conducted by scientists in University of Western Australia claimed that kids with Plasmodium falciparum infections also had Plasmodium vivax infection. The combo drug was found to effectively reduce the infection of both these species of the virus in a study conducted in children of Papa New Guinea.
Lead author, Mr Tim Davis explained that when compared the current recommended therapy for uncomplicated malaria in children in Papua New Guinea, artemisinin-naphthoquine was found to be more effective, particularly in combating Plasmodium vivax infections.
The authors stated that the tolerability, safety as well as effectiveness of three everyday doses of artemisinin-naphthoquine drugs should be considered together along with other presently available combination drugs for treating simple malaria in Papua New Guinea and similar epidemiologic situations with transmission of many Plasmodium species.
