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Lydia R Leonardo

Publications and source records attributed to Lydia R Leonardo.

4 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2005

Vaccine-linked chemotherapy: can schistosomiasis control benefit from an integrated approach?

The present strong emphasis on gross organ pathology (liver, kidneys, bladder) in schistosomiasis needs to be replaced with a more balanced view of the disease that also takes into account systemic symptoms that are less easy to assess, such as retarded growth, cognitive development and the effect of continuing low-level blood loss. Access to better estimates of disease burdens, morbidity and mortality is delivering results that bring into question the wisdom of downgrading the impact of the disease. In this scenario, the simplistic approach of exclusive drug treatment might not be sufficient and, in the worst-case scenario, might even exacerbate pathology. To meet this challenge, the repositioning of vaccines within the totality of disease control through the combined use of chemotherapy and vaccination is recommended as the basis for a novel, more-versatile approach to control. Studies on human correlate responses in endemic areas have opened the way to assess the protective value of specific antigens through the cytokine responses and antibodies they elicit. Moreover, vaccine formulations based on novel adjuvants could improve the final outcome through selective manipulation of the immune response. Thus, the tools of vaccine-linked chemotherapy are in principle already available and could shortly be put to the test in clinical trials.

Animals↗
PubMed2002

Difficulties and strategies in the control of schistosomiasis in the Philippines.

Schistosomiasis japonica continues to remain a public health problem in the Philippines affecting 10 out of 16 regions with 6.7 million people at risk mostly farmers and fisher folks. Early efforts focused on snail control in the absence of an effective drug against the disease. Discovery of praziquantel shifted control focus from the expensive snail control to a more manageable one involving case detection and treatment. At present, the government's objective is to reduce morbidity by chemotherapy and supplemented with environmental sanitation, health education, and mollusciciding. In the past, external funds infused into government control programs helped a lot in bringing down prevalence rates of the disease in many highly endemic areas. The end of this foreign assistance has expectedly affected implementation of the programs bringing fears of a possible resurgence in many endemic areas. Such anxiety is also founded on the perennial problems of low disease awareness among people at risk, aggravated security problem, poverty and the negative effects of a devolved set-up in the health care delivery system. Experts suggest that the national health department should be more aggressive in dealing with the disease in terms of ensuring implementation and of continuously searching for better and more improved methods of control. Any new strategy should always consider the devolved set up of the health department.

Anthelmintics↗
PubMed2002

Regional Network for Research, Surveillance and Control of Asian Schistosomiasis (RNAS).

In order to strengthen the communication, cooperation and coordination among scientists and control authorities concerned with these parasitic diseases at the regional level, the establishment of the Regional Network on Asian Schistosomiasis (RNAS) was initiated 1998 in Wuxi, People's Republic of China. The RNAS was facilitated by an initiating collaborative research grant from WHO/TDR in 1999. The main activities and achievements of the RNAS during its first 2 years of existence are described. It is hoped that more interested parties will become involved in the network activities and other international agencies will consider providing technical and financial support to the network in the future to ensure the sustained development of the RNAS. The website of RNAS is now available in both English and Chinese versions with URL address: http://www.rnas.org. Thus far, the RNAS has held two important meetings with a third planned for 2002. The annual meeting will involve scientists and control authorities from all countries endemic for Asian schistosomiasis, providing a forum for more regional cooperation and coordination. More focus will be directed at training activities in specific fields such as immunodiagnostics, standardization of ultrasound use for monitoring infection-related morbidity, cost factor analysis, application of GIS/RS technology, environmental modification and human behaviour, agricultural efforts including livestock management for control of schistosome transmission, etc.

Asia↗