Long-term treatment of onchocerciasis in children with low doses of diethylcarbamazine.

Two groups of children were treated daily with 12.5 or 25 mg diethylcarbamazine for five months and a further group with 12.5 mg daily for seven weeks; 88 children completed the course. The trial was under constant supervision and ophthalmic and parasitological examinations were carried out at approximately one-month intervals. The acceptability of the drug was poor owing to adverse reactions, but the clinical response to treatment good.