02139nas a2200181   4500000000100000008004100001260001200042653001500054653001500069653001900084100002000103245007000123856026000193300001000453490000700463520146200470022002501932       2024                            d  bMedknow10aFilariasis10aIvermectin10aMicrofilaremia1 aKrishnasastry S00aThree decades of research in lymphatic filariasis-lessons learned  uhttps://pdfs.journals.lww.com/tpar/2024/14020/three_decades_of_research_in_lymphatic.2.pdf?token=method|ExpireAbsolute;source|Journals;ttl|1727093183689;payload|mY8D3u1TCCsNvP5E421JYK6N6XICDamxByyYpaNzk7FKjTaa1Yz22MivkHZqjGP4kdS2v0J76WGAnHACH69s21Csk0OpQi  a65-700 v143 a<p>Lymphatic filariasis (LF), one of the 21 Neglected Tropical Diseases (NTD) which is the second leading cause for disability globally. Wuchereria Bancrofti, Brugia malayi and Brugia timori are the parasites causing this infection. World Health Assembly in 1997 declared LF to be eliminated and the Global Program to eliminate LF (GPELF) was launched by WHO in 2000 with the two strategies viz, 1) stop transmission of infection through Mass Drug Administration (MDA) and 2) to alleviate the suffering of the people affected with the disease through Morbidity Management and Disability Prevention (MMDP. The ‘Filariasis research unit’ recommended by WHO TDR and ICMR was established in Alappuzha, Kerala in 1989 for research studies related to LF. Over the last three decades 23 studies have been completed, which included different trials to find out the dose, effectiveness and safety of the various drugs used in preventive chemotherapy as single drug or combinations, for treatment of microfilaraemia,, various studies related to morbidity management in filarial disease, socio-economic aspects of filarial disability, Pharmacokinetic study of antifilarial drugs, Study on lymphatic filariasis in children, Studies on dignostics of LF, efficacy of drugs in management of lymphedema etc. In this article an attempt is made to explain the lessons learned from these studies and its importance in development of policy decision making for GPELF.</p>
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