Effectiveness and safety of 7-day high-dose primaquine and single-dose tafenoquine versus 14-day low-dose primaquine in patients with Plasmodium vivax malaria (EFFORT): a multicentre, open-label, randomised, controlled, superiority trial

Abstract

Background: Shorter courses of primaquine and single-dose tafenoquine have potential to improve the prevention of recurrent Plasmodium vivax infections, but there are few data on their comparative effectiveness when provided unsupervised. We aimed to assess the effectiveness and safety of these new treatment options. Methods: We conducted a multicentre, open-label, randomised, controlled, superiority trial in Ethiopia, Pakistan, Indonesia, and Cambodia. Adult patients (aged ≥18 years, or aged ≥16 years in Indonesia) with uncomplicated P vivax infection and glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) activity of 70% or greater were eligible for enrolment. Patients were treated with blood schizon..