Compliance to correct dose of chloroquine in uncomplicated malaria correlates with improvement in the condition of rural Nigerian children.

Non-compliance to correct dosing is thought to be one of the main causes of treatment failure of chloroquine in the home management of childhood malaria. There are few studies of compliance to drugs used for tropical diseases. In order to study compliance in the rural setting, chloroquine syrup was packaged with a novel pictorial insert for compliance to correct dosing. Compliance was assessed in a field trial in September 1996-December 1997, involving 632 children with uncomplicated malaria in Udi local government area in Nigeria. Written informed consent was obtained from mothers/guardians before children were enrolled in the study. There were 3 arms to the trial: control villages (group I) received chloroquine syrup without further intervention, group II received a pictorial insert with chloroquine syrup, and group III received chloroquine syrup, the pictorial insert and verbal instructions. Each group was made up of 3 health centres. Compliance was assessed by volumetric measurement of the chloroquine syrup left in 30-mL bottles and by questionnaires administered to mothers/helpers of the children. Control villages recorded full compliance for 36.5 +/- 4.4% of the children, group II for 51.9 +/- 7.9% and group III for 73.3 +/- 4.2%. There was a significant correlation (P < 0.0001) between full compliance, improvement and time for improvement of the condition. This study is deemed important because it focuses on children, who bear the greatest burden of malaria. It is unique for introducing a pictorial insert that illiterate villagers, who may not understand the use of age or weight in drug dispensing, may utilize as a substitute.