Everyone remembers during the COVID years the sudden demonization by major media outlets of Ivermectin. Now, one of the most-used medicines on Earth, just helped Niger to become the first country in Africa to eradicate a debilitating parasitical disease.
Onchocerciasis, or river blindness, is spread via the filarial parasite Onchocerca volvulus transmitted through black flies which breed near fast-flowing rivers. At its ugliest, it can cause severe skin disfigurations, permanent blindness, and epilepsy.
Present in 26 African countries as well as parts of Brazil, Venezuela, and Yemen, its transmission was severely reduced in the Americas following wide-scale distribution programs of Ivermectin starting in the 1980s called the Mectizan Donation Program (MDP), managed by the World Health Organization.
This wide-scale Ivermectin treatment has continued until present day, such that this year, on World Neglected Tropical Disease Day (Jan. 30th), Niger was confirmed and honored as the first African country to eradicate onchocerciasis, which they achieved through 4decades of Ivermectin administration, an activity that also eradicated the elephant man disease lymphatic filariasis.
Niger is one of the poorest countries in the world, but with simple strategies and an effective medicine, was able to replicate the success seen in much wealthier countries like Colombia and Mexico.
Though dry in many places, the Niger River is a major African river system that is a hotbed for tropical diseases. The report lauded the country’s strong national disease control leadership in the program and cross-border partnerships in helping to eliminate the two diseases.
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Senegal has also ended the mass treatment phase and is moving into a period of monitoring and targeted response that Niger successfully navigated during its journey to eradication.
“This achievement highlights the power of strong public–private partnerships and the impact of coordinated efforts between communities, governments, and stakeholders,” reads a report on the program published in the Weekly Epidemiological Record.
“The MDP, the longest-running large-scale medicine donation program in history, has been central to this success, providing a model for other global health initiatives.”
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