01714nas a2200301   4500000000100000008004100001260001300042653001600055653001200071653003000083653001600113653001100129653002300140653001200163653002400175100001500199700001400214700001500228700001400243700001400257245007700271856005900348300000900407490000700416050003200423520094300455022001401398       1992                            d  c1992 Mar10aClofazimine10aDapsone10aDrug Therapy, Combination10aEthionamide10aHumans10aLeprostatic Agents10aleprosy10aProspective Studies1 aPattyn S R1 aGroenen G1 aJanssens L1 aKuykens L1 aMputu L B00aTreatment of multibacillary leprosy with a regimen of 13 weeks duration.  uhttp://leprev.ilsl.br/pdfs/1992/v63n1/pdf/v63n1a07.pdf  a41-60 v63  aInfolep Library - available3 a<p>In a prospective study 559 multibacillary patients in Zaire were treated for 13 weeks with twice weekly rifampicin (600 mg) and daily ethionamide (500 mg) and dapsone (100 mg), 13-RED, or clofazimine (100 mg), 13-REC. The patients were followed for a total of 1418 person years, mean 3.2 years. The incidence of hepatitis was 3.3%. The incidence of relapses was 0.28 per 100 person years. Relapses were due to drug-sensitive organisms. In patients who received the same drug regimens but with a reduced dosage of ethionamide to 5 mg/k bodyweight, the incidence of hepatitis was significantly lower but the relapse rate was 7.8 per 100 person years of follow-up in the RED group, no relapses were diagnosed in the REC group. It is concluded that by the use of potent antileprosy drugs in suitable combinations and dosages, it will be possible to shorten the duration of antibacterial treatment in multibacillary leprosy to 3 months.</p>  a0305-7518