Treatment of Onchocerciasis

Onchocerciasis (‘river blindness’) has for several centuries been the scourge of people living in certain areas of the world where the disease is endemic. The treatment available up to 10 years ago, diethylcarbamazine, had very severe secondary effects. The availability of ivermectin — a well tolerated and highly effective microfilaricidal drug — has completely changed this scenario. Ivermectin is now considered to be the drug of choice for the treatment of onchocerciasis.