[Multiple and successive treatment failures in a patient infected by Plasmodium falciparum in Cambodia and treated by dihydroartemisinin-piperaquine]

Abstract

Cases of treatment failures following administration of artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACT) remain rare in malaria endemic areas. In Cambodia, however, failures of these treatments are now commonly observed. Usually, these post-treatment recurrences occur only once and a second course of the same treatment is sufficient to cure patients.We describe here an atypical case of a Plasmodium falciparum-infected patient manifesting several malaria recrudescence episodes following dihydroartemisinin-piperaquine (Eurartesim®) treatment. This case report illustrates the current issue of resistance to the latest generation of antimalarial drugs in Southeast Asia and highlights the difficulty in efficaciously fighting malaria in this region if new therapy remains unimplemented.

Keywords: ACT; Cambodia; Chemoresistance; Kachaun; Malaria; Plasmodium falciparum; Ratanakiri; South East Asia.