Internal medicine

Pediatrics

Trypanosomiasis

African trypanosomiasis

Biology

Gene

Stage (stratigraphy)

Paleontology

Prospective cohort study

Immunology

Trypanosoma brucei

Cerebrospinal fluid

Lumbar puncture

Cohort

Biochemistry

Medicine

The Lancet Global Health

Staging and treatment of human African trypanosomiasis caused by Trypanosoma brucei gambiense (g-HAT) required lumbar puncture to assess cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and intravenous drugs that cross the blood-brain barrier for late-stage infection. These procedures are inconvenient in rural health systems of disease-endemic countries. A pivotal study established fexinidazole as the first oral monotherapy to be effective against non-severe stage 2 g-HAT. We aimed to assess the safety and efficacy of fexinidazole in early g-HAT.

Oral fexinidazole for stage 1 or early stage 2 African Trypanosoma brucei gambiense trypanosomiasis: a prospective, multicentre, open-label, cohort study