Treatment of Brugia malayi infection with mebendazole and levamisole

Brugia malayi microfilaraemic patients were treated with either mebendazole 500 mg thrice daily for 21 days or a combination of a similar dose of mebendazole with levamisole hydrochloride 2.5 mg/kg weekly for 3 weeks. Although both regimes were effective, the addition of low doses of levamisole to mebendazole hastened the conversion of all patients to amicrofilaraemia, this being achieved by the second post-treatment week. No serious side reaction was encountered in the use of this high dose of mebendazole. Further experimental studies are necessary to determine whether the drug is adulticidal or only embryostatic.