Patients coming to IMPE Quy Nhon's clinic for Fascioliasis treatment.

Confronted with situation of more and more Fascioliasis cases increasing and serious shortage of anthelmintic drugs, the Ministry of Health (MoH) has approved the IMPE Quy Nhon's purchase of 12,000 Egaten 250 mg tablets (6,000 doses) with the price of o­nly VND 28,895 per tablet for the treating dose of 2 tablets (VND 57,790).

According to the Decision No.3057/QD-BYT issued by MoH o­n August 21, 2009 o­n approving the tender plan of anthelmintic drug purchase by the hospital revenue, the IMPE was allowed to buy 12,000 Triclabendazole tablets (Egaten 250 mg) by the income from the Institute's clinic with the total expected cost of VND 346.731 million. This amount of drugs will ensure the supply of enough anthelmintic drugs for Fascioliasis to timely treat patients in highly-infected povinces at present.

As soon as receiving the Approval Decision from the MoH, the IMPE Quy Nhonimmediately finished the procedures for the tender of drug purchase according to regulations of the tender law and also imported 12,000 tablets of Egaten 250 mg equivalent 6,000 doses, ensuring the treating demand of Fascioliasispatients from this time to the end of 2009.

Although patients must pay more for drugs (as the drugs were bought by the clinic's income), the drug price is just as low as the basis o­ne VND 28,895 /tablet (VND 57,790 for the treating dose of 2 tablets), which is suitable for the need to be treated and also many times lower than the price at some private clinics.

The anthelmintic drug for Fascioliasis that the IMPE Quy Nhon suggested the MoH for purchasing was Triclabendazole (Egaten 250mg) - a derivative of benzimidazole which is proven effective against liver fluke (provided by Diethelem & Co., Ltc Switzerland Company). This medicine displays high efficacy in treating Fascioliasis caused by Fasciola hepatica or Fasciola gigantica and Paragonimiasis caused by Paragenimus westermani or other Paragenimus genera.

As the news we informed, Fascioliasis has become the popular parasitic disease in many provinces of Central Vietnam after several years of transmitting and developing with thousands of infected cases per year. From 2006 to now, the World Health Organization (WHO) made a great deal of effort to support drugs (Egaten 250 mg) free-of-charge to Fascioliasis patients. However, in the times when Fascioliasis cases raised drastically like 2006, 2007 and 2009, the shortage of anthelmintic drugs imposed a lot of difficulties for health centres in highly-infected provinces and caused the patient pressure due to being slow in drug supply.

In the first 6 months of 2009, Fascioliasis cases at several central coastal provinces raised unexpectedly, so the drug source supplied by WHO since early 2009 was not sufficient for distribution. In order to solve this recurring situation as well as take the initiative in providing anthelmintic drugs for Fascioliasis patients, in 2009, the IMPE Quy Nhon reported the difficulties of anthelmintic drug shortage to the MoH and then was allowed to buy drugs for treatment, at the same time to set up a long-term programme for Fascioliasis control.

From September 15, 2009, Fascioliasis patients can go to the Institute's specialist clinic for medical examination and treatment by Egaten 250 mg which has just been imported with a suitable price; at the same time the Institute will plan to distribute this drug source to the regional provinces in light of the MoH's regulations so that Fascioliasis treatment can be deployed widely right from grassroot levels.

The efforts of the IMPE Quy Nhon in taking the initative in finding the drug source, the timely decision of the MoH o­n the allowance of importing Egaten 250 mg and other control measures not o­nly overcome the situation of lacking drugs for Fascioliasis in the past years but also actively contribute in the reduction of Fascioliasis cases in the community.

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