Single and triple dose treatment of Trichomonas infection of the vagina.

Both metronidazole and nimorazole (Naxogin) are highly effective in the treatment of Trichomonas infection of the vagina when given orally over a period of 5 to 7 days (Wisdom and Dunlop, 1965; Keighley, 1971; Moffett, McGill, Schofield, and Masterton, 1971; Cohen, 1971; McClean, 1972).However, Moffett and others (1971) consider that only about half those on standard oral therapy adhere correctly to treatment.Even in clinical trials of such courses, the percentage of patients failing to attend for follow- up has tended to be high: 21 per cent.(Evans and Catterall, 1971); 22 per cent.(McClean, 1972); 17 per cent.(Moffett and others, 1971).The aim of the present investigation was to determine the efficacy of metronidazole and nimorazole when given in short high-dose courses. Patients and methodsTwo trials were carried out at the Lideta M.C.H. Centre and at the University Gynaecology Clinics at the Princess Tsahai Memorial Hospital on a total of 258 patients found to be infested with Trichomonas vaginalis.The patients were unselected except for the exclusion of those in early pregnancy.In the first trial, 58 patients were given 3 g.metronida- zole and 52 patients 3 g.nimorazole.Both groups were instructed to take 1 g.immediately, 1 g.6 hrs later and 1 g. the next morning.If the patient arrived too late in the day to comply with the above instructions she was told to take 1 g. of the drug that evening and further doses in the morning and afternoon of the following day.In the second trial 75 patients were given 2 g. metronida- zole, and 73 patients were given 2 g. nimorazole.The drug was administered in the clinic.In this trial the nature of the trichomonicide was not known either to prescriber or to patient, the latter being allocated to one or other treatment groups alternately.Forty of these patients (twenty in each group) were also treated with