Studies on the diagnosis and treatment of human filariasis in Rhodesia.

SUMMARY Experiences in Rhodesia with various recovery techniques available for the laboratory diagnosis of infections with Dipetalonema perstans and Wuchereria bancrofti are dis­ cussed. A diagnostic laboratory regimen for routine filarial investigations is suggested. Included are preliminary observations on the use of mebendazole (Vermox) for the treatment of D. perstans infections. 5. Afr. med. J., 50, 1129 (1976). In Rhodesia, only two endemic pecies of filarial nema­ todes have been recorded in man - DipeTalonema perstans. which is found in Lupani and in the Zambesi and Burma valleys, and Wuchereria bancrofTi, which is limited to the Zambesi Valley.'·3 As a result of the paper by Dukes eT al..' Orihel"' po tulated that Meningonellla peruzzi, as de cribed by Orihel and Esslinger: occurs here. However. to date no definite cases have been found in Rhode ia in either the vervet monkey (Cercopithecus aeThiops) or in man. Occasional imported cases of Onchocerca volvulus are recorded from Malawi. and recently 2 imported cases of Loa loa from Nigeria were reported by Sparrow and Goldsmid.' Of the two species of filarial worm recorded as being endemic in Rhodesia, D. persIans is generally considered to be a commensal, although a number of authors ascribe to this species allergic reactions which may be severe, especially in Whites.. ·• W. banCl'ofTi causes lymphangitis. and, in the late chronic stages where repeated long-term infection has occurred, elephantiasis of the penis, scrotum, legs, arms and breasts.'" This article is a compilation of our work in Rhodesia on the problem of the diagnosis of human filarial infec­ tions with D. perstans and W. bancrofli, together with preliminary observations on the treatment of D. perstans infections with mebendazole (Vermox).