Reinfection patterns of Oesophagostomum bifurcum after anthelmintic treatment

Subjects infected with the adult worms of Oesophagostomum bifurcum, diagnosed through semiquantitative detection of characteristic third stage larvae, were treated in the middle of the dry or in the middle of the rainy season with two different dosages of albendazole. A third group was not treated. The pattern of reinfection after treatment was analysed. Transmission of Oesophagostomum infection appeared to be limited to the rainy season and the rate of reinfection was independent of the dose of albendazole received. The impact on transmission of developing stages that might survive in the nodules in the intestinal wall is discussed.