Chloroquine resistance trials in Papua New Guinea. 1. Maprik and Popondetta areas

The response of Plasmodium falciparum infections to a standard weight related dose of chloroquine using the W.H.O. Extended Field Test was investigated in the Maprik and Popondetta areas of Papus New Guinea. Fourteen cases of P. falciparum in Maprik and 12 cases at Popondetta were followed daily for seven days and weekly for a further three weeks after receiving 25 mg/kg of chloroquine over three days. All subjects responded well, the parasitaemias cleared in all cases by the fourth day after initiation of treatment and no recrudescences occurred in any subject in the month following therapy. No indication of chloroquine resistance was found in these two areas.