Vermox
Chemotherapy of alveolar echinococcosis. Comparison of plasma mebendazole concentrations in animals and man.

Witassek F, Burkhardt B, Eckert J, Bircher J.

High oral doses of mebendazole have been only partly effective in the treatment of patients with alveolar or cystic echinococcosis. In order to improve therapeutic results the pharmacology of mebendazole has been investigated. Jirds experimentally infected with larval Echinococcus multilocularis were given food containing mebendazole 100 to 1000 ppm. Drug plasma concentrations above 0.25 mumol/l were associated with a reduction in parasite weight to 1 to 10% of that in untreated controls. In treated animals parasite weight was negatively correlated with the plasma mebendazole concentration and with the duration of therapy. In patients on long term therapy with similar doses of mebendazole (16 to 48 mg/kg per day), plasma concentrations were much lower than in jirds. Only 19% of fasting plasma concentrations exceeded 0.25 mumol/l. Plasma concentrations 4 h after the morning dose did not exceed this value in 48% of cases. The results can be explained by the irregular drug absorption and short plasma half life observed in 7 hospitalized patients. It is likely that better results would be obtained if doses of mebendazole were adjusted to produce peak plasma levels exceeding 0.25 mumol/l.

Online source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=7197224&dopt=Abstract mebendazole Vermox



Vermox
Ultrastructural modifications in Heterakis spumosa after treatment with febantel or mebendazole.

Zintz K, Frank W.

The effects of the anthelmintics febantel and mebendazole on Heterakis spumosa were investigated by means of transmission and scanning electron microscopy. Ultramorphological changes were only seen in the intestinal cells. Microtubules disappeared and granules were absent from the terminal web 12 h after treatment with either febantel or mebendazole, and up to 72 h after treatment, the number and size of autophagic vacuoles increased. Moreover the parasites became sluggish and were frequently rolled up like spiral springs. Destruction to microtubules and neurotoxic influences are discussed as possible modes of action.

Online source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=7201711&dopt=Abstract mebendazole Vermox



Vermox
Effect of mebendazole against Echinococcus granulosus and Taenia hydatigena cysts in naturally infected sheep and relevance to larval tapeworm infections in man.

Gemmell MA, Parmeter SN, Sutton RJ, Khan N.

The ability of three treatment schedules of mebendazole to kill well-established hydatid cysts was studied. Pregnant sheep, naturally infected with Echinococcus granulosus and/or Taenia hydatigena, were treated daily with mebendazole at a dose rate of 50 mg/kg body weight for either five days, one month, or three months. At autopsy, seven months after the commencement of treatment, no evidence was found that the 5-day treatment schedule had any damaging effect on E. granulosus cysts. The effects of the one month treatment were equivocal. There was evidence of a damaging effect from the 3-month treatment schedule and protoscoleces were not infective to dogs. No T. hydatigena cysts survived the 1- and 3-month treatments, but organisms from the 5-day treatment were infective to dogs. These results for E. granulosus in sheep suggest that long-term treatment with mebendazole may be required in hydatid disease in man. The results obtained for T. hydatigena in sheep are discussed in relation to the treatment of cysticercosis from T. solium in man. Mebendazole showed no untoward effect on the sheep or their lambs.

Online source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=7210815&dopt=Abstract mebendazole Vermox



Vermox
Development of colon targeted drug delivery systems for mebendazole.

Krishnaiah YS, Veer Raju P, Dinesh Kumar B, Bhaskar P, Satyanarayana V.

Pharmaceutical Technology Division, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Engineering, Andhra University, Visakhapatnam 530 003, India. krishnaysr112 rediffmail.com

The objective of the present study is to develop colon targeted drug delivery systems for mebendazole using guar gum as a carrier. Matrix tablets containing various proportions of guar gum were prepared by wet granulation technique using starch paste as a binder. The tablets were evaluated for drug content uniformity, and were subjected to in vitro drug release studies. The amount of mebendazole released from the matrix tablets at different time intervals was estimated by a high-performance liquid chromatography method. Guar gum matrix tablets released 8-15% of the mebendazole in the physiological environment of stomach and small intestine depending on the proportion of guar gum used in the formulation. When the dissolution study was continued in simulated colonic fluids the matrix tablets containing 20% of guar gum released another 83% of mebendazole after degradation into 2-3 pieces. The matrix tablets containing 30% of guar gum also released about 50% of mebendazole in simulated colonic fluids indicating the susceptibility of the guar gum formulations to the rat caecal contents. The results of the study show that matrix tablets containing either 20% or 30% of guar gum are most likely to provide targeting of mebendazole for local action in the colon. The mebendazole matrix tablets containing either 20% or 30% of guar gum showed no change either in physical appearance, drug content or dissolution pattern after storage at 45 degrees C/75% relative humidity for 3 months. Differential scanning calorimetry indicated no possibility of interaction between mebendazole and guar gum.

Online source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=11689262&dopt=Abstract mebendazole Vermox



Vermox
Comparative anthelmintic efficacy of two schedules of mebendazole treatment in dogs.

Guerrero J, Pancari G, Michael B.

Two schedules of anthelmintic oral treatment, using mebendazole powder, were compared in 73 dogs naturally infected with common helminth intestinal parasites. Mebendazole powder was administered to 26 dogs at doses of 22 mg/kg once daily for 3 days and was compared with the same dose given only daily for 5 days into 23 dogs. The 24 other dogs were kept as controls and received a placebo treatment for 5 days. Efficacy results for the 3-day treatment schedule of mebendazole were as follows: Toxocara canis, 100%; Uncinaria stenocephala, 100%; Ancylostoma caninum, 99.4%; Trichuris vulpis, 100%; and Taenia pisiformis, 93.9%. Mebendazole powder given on the 5-day treatment schedule was 100% efficacious against the foregoing parasites. Anthelmintic efficacy against Dipylidium caninum was not detected in either schedule of treatment.

Online source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=7271006&dopt=Abstract mebendazole Vermox



Vermox
Resistance to benzimidazole anthelmintics in equine strongyles. 2. Evidence of side-resistance, and susceptibility of benzimidazole-resistant strongyles to non-benzimidazole compounds.

Webster JH, Baird JD, Gunawan M, Martin IC, Kelly JD.

The susceptibility of a known thiabendazole-resistant population of small strongyles to anthelmintics of both benzimidazole and non-benzimidazole groups, was determined. In the first study, 42 horses infected with thiabendazole-resistant small strongyles were allocated to 6 groups. Treatment groups received one of the following anthelmintics: mebendazole, febantel, febantel plus trichlorphon, morantel tartrate, or a combination of thiabendazole, piperazine and trichlorphon. Morantel tartrate and the thiabendazole/piperazine/trichlorphon combination produced highly significant (p less than 0.001) reductions in faecal strongyle egg counts 20 days post-treatment. Mebendazole, febantel and febantel plus trichlorphon failed to reduce strongyle egg counts significantly. Larval culture and differentiation indicated that in all cases of anthelmintic failure, small strongyles of the sub-family Cyathostominae were involved. Eighteen horses from groups in which treatment had failed were re-allocated to 3 groups. Treatment with either morantel tartrate or haloxon was highly efficient in reducing faecal strongyle egg counts. In the final study, fifty-four horses, infected with benzimidazole-resistant small strongyles were allocated to 10 groups. On day zero, each treatment group received one of the following anthelmintics: thiabendazole, cambendazole, mebendazole, oxibendazole, piperazine, thiabendazole/piperazine, cambendazole/piperazine, mebendazole/piperazine or oxibendazole/piperazine. Oxibendazole, piperazine and the benzimidazole/piperazine combinations produced highly significant reductions in faecal strongyle egg counts 20 days post-treatment (p less than 0.001). When administered alone, benzimidazole anthelmintics failed to reduce strongyle egg counts significantly, with the exception of oxibendazole. Larval culture and differentiation indicated that in all cases of anthelmintic failure, the species involved were small strongyles of subfamily Cyathostominae. There was no significant increase in benzimidazole resistance level (based on in vitro assay) as a result of drug treatment, over one generation.

Online source: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=7271606&dopt=Abstract mebendazole Vermox