By Stabroek staff
Stabroek News
Minister of Health Dr Leslie Ramsammy has thrown down the gauntlet to pharmacies to desist from selling the single dose artemisinin malaria drug by the end of this year or he would instruct officers from the Food & Drugs Department to size the drug from their shelves.
Saying his patience is running out, Ramsammy stated that he would be forced to take such an extreme measure as the single dose drug poses a risk to the malaria fight since there is a resistance to the combination that has been developed.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) had earlier this year warned against the single dose being used as resistance has been detected.
Ramsammy, speaking to reporters during a press briefing earlier this week, said he would be forced to go to Parliament and gazette the removal of the drug from the shelves. He pointed out that because the drug is easy to obtain the pharmacies are importing it in bulk and he hinted that he may also have to seek to restrict the importation of the drug.
“The risk is very high and the private sector is not adhering to the rule,” the minister said. He said artemisinin has to be used along with other drugs.
WHO officials first noticed evidence of artemisinin resistance in Cambodia and Thailand after receiving reports about increases in clearance times in patients with malaria treated with artemisinin. The combination is designed to kill the parasites within 24 to 48 hours but it was found that it sometimes takes four or five days to kill them. Some studies indicated that half of the parasites are not killed within 72 hours after the beginning of treatment, which points to a growing resistance problem.”
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