Published in:
Open Access 01-12-2018 | Opinion
Comparing the un-comparable: Olyset Plus and Olyset, different malaria impact
Published in: Malaria Journal | Issue 1/2018
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Background
In a recent article in The Lancet, Protopopoff et al. stated that insecticide resistance must be tackled and concluded that adding the insecticide synergist piperonyl butoxide (PBO) to a bed net with a pyrethroid as principal insecticide might be a part of the response.
Main text
The study in Tanzania compares malaria prevalence between users of two different nets with the principal insecticide permethrin: Olyset and Olyset Plus (Olyset+), the latter also holding the synergist molecule PBO, the first not. The article is based on randomized cluster trial of very high quality, but Olyset+ exposes much more permethrin at the surface so the higher efficacy may not be because of the added PBO.
Conclusion
Data published by the World Health Organization (WHO) when evaluating Olyset+ as well of the study of Protopopoff et al. showed that much more permethrin is available on the surface of Olyset+ than on the surface of Olyset and the relatively small and rapidly dwindling dosage of PBO may have nothing to do with the superior effect of Olyset+. The WHO should not change politics for “PBO nets” based on this study alone.