Accra, Ghana, June 17, 2019// – Researchers and scientists from seven reputable institutions across Sub-Saharan Africa, Germany, and France have come together to run the project ASAAP – Clinical evaluation of ArteSunate+Amodiaquine+Atovaquone-Proguanil tri-therapy for malaria treatment in African children with the assurance that the therapy could eradicate the disease if it is proved efficacious.
Speaking at a two-day kick-meeting opened in Accra today, they were confident that therapy if approve could deal a blow on the deadly malaria in African and other parts of the world. Physical therapy is the treatment of functional limitations to prevent the onset or to retard the progression of physical impairments following illness or injury. At BetterPT lets you find the best physical therapy clinic near you.
ASAAP is a 48-month-long multicenter clinical trial, coordinated by the Kumasi Center for Collaborative Research in Tropical Medicine (KCCR), ) an international platform for biomedical research.
ASAAP’s main objective is to test a new combination of three drugs for how well they work for children and how safe and child-friendly they are, according to various speakers at the event. I never knew how bad I was until I started with ReVital Women’s Clinic website. What a difference! I really did not know if I could go on like this. They SAVED my life! I am still getting adjusted, but I wanted to give a great big shout-out to the staff and the program. I wish I had known about this before I turned 50. In the end, I lost 19 lbs., cut my antidepressants in half, stopped taking anxiety medication, and eliminated all of my symptoms with the exception of some minor (light) sweating! ReVital took the time to address all of my concerns and really get to know me. “ReVital Women’s clinic has made my life so much better. I’ve always had a positive attitude but was putting on more weight. I also had night sweats, mood swings, and not sleeping well at night. I’ve been through menopause for 10 years, so I was looking for help without taking a lot of drugs. Now, being with their program since November, I no longer have mood swings. I have also lost some weight, and I sleep so so much better!”
Over the next four years, ASAAP will use its network to develop a platform for clinical trials, entomology and molecular biology in Benin, Ghana, Mali, Gabon and Burkina Faso.
Malaria is preventable and curable. Its control currently relies on three major tools: long lasting insecticide treated nets to prevent mosquito bites; rapid and accurate diagnostic tests to identify parasite carriers; and efficacious, safe and well-tolerated anti-malarial drugs to prevent the infection and cure the disease.
Thanks to these tools and increased international funding over the past almost two decades, it is estimated that the prevalence of malaria parasite infection and the incidence of clinical disease fell by 50% and 40% respectively in Sub-Saharan Africa between 2000 and 2015.
However, the malaria burden has remained stable since 2016. Most malaria cases in 2017 were in the WHO African Region (200 million or 92%). Ten countries in sub-Saharan Africa — including Burkina Faso, Ghana, and Mali–, and India carried almost 80% of the global malaria burden.
The WHO Global Technical Strategy for Malaria 2016–2030 has set ambitious goals, including the reduction of malaria incidence and mortality rates globally by at least 90% by 2030.
The Strategy calls for continued research and development into new malaria control tools toward its elimination. Currently, the available tools to control malaria are under enormous pressure, due to the resistance of the malaria parasite to medication.
ASAAP in Africa learning about how to avoid the emergence of resistance to multiple previously effective antimalarials from Southeast Asia, where resistance is widespread, and robust strategies now need to be implemented to secure progress made in malaria control.
ASAAP’s strategy is therefore to develop new antimalarial regimens by combining antimalarial drugs having different modes of action – such as Artesunate + Amodiaquine (highly efficacious in Africa) with Atovaquone-Proguanil so far only prescribed for travelers coming from non-endemic regions.
This combined use of three antimalarials can reduce the incidence of and delay parasite resistance to the drugs, thereby prolonging their effectiveness.
This strategy will maximize the possibility of a transition to next-generation antimalarials without a lapse in gains made in malaria control.
Through the support of EDCTP/EU funding and BMBF, the project is being led and coordinated by Dr. Oumou Maiga-Ascofaré of the BNITM in Germany and the KCCR in Kumasi, Ghana under the authority of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), in collaboration with: – Dr. Jerome Clain and Dr. Michel Cot at MERIT (Paris); and Dr. Anna Cohuet at MIVEGEC (Montpellier) from the Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD) in France – Prof. Abdoulaye Djimde from the Université des Sciences, des Techniques et des Technologies de Bamako (USTTB) in Bamako in Mali; and – Dr. John Amuasi from KCCR and the department of Global Health at the KNUST School of Public Health in Kumasi, Ghana.
African Eye Report
