Variable piperaquine exposure significantly impacts protective efficacy of monthly dihydroartemisinin-piperaquine for the prevention of malaria in Ugandan children

BACKGROUND: Anti-malarial chemoprevention with dihydroartemisinin-piperaquine (DHA/PQ) is a promising tool for malaria control, but its efficacy in children may be limited by inadequate drug exposure. METHODS: Children were enrolled in a non directly-observed trial of DHA/PQ chemoprevention in a high transmission setting in Uganda. Children were randomized at 6 months of age to no chemoprevention (n = 89) or monthly DHA/PQ (n = 87) and followed through 24 months of age, with pharmacokinetic sampling performed at variable times following monthly dosing of DHA/PQ. A previously published pharmacokinetic model was used to estimate piperaquine (PQ) exposure in each child, and associations between PQ exposure and the protective efficacy (PE) of DHA/PQ were explored. RESULTS: The incidence of malaria was 6.83 and 3.09 episodes per person year at risk in the no chemoprevention and DHA/PQ arms, respectively (PE 54 %, 95 % CI 39–66 %, P < 0.001). Among children randomized to DHA/PQ, 493 pharmacokinetic samples were collected. Despite nearly 100 % reported adherence to study drug administration at home, there was wide variability in PQ exposure, and children were stratified into three groups based on average PQ exposure during the intervention that was determined by model generated percentiles (low, n = 40; medium, n = 37, and high, n = 10). Gender and socioeconomic factors were not significantly associated with PQ exposure. In multivariate models, the PE of DHA/PQ was 31 % in the low PQ exposure group (95 % CI 6–49 %, P = 0.02), 67 % in the medium PQ exposure group (95 % CI 54–76 %, P < 0.001), and 97 % in the high PQ exposure group (95 % CI 89–99 %, P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: The protective efficacy of DHA/PQ chemoprevention in young children was strongly associated with higher drug exposure; in children with the highest PQ exposure, monthly DHA/PQ chemoprevention was nearly 100 % protective against malaria. Strategies to ensure good adherence to monthly dosing and optimize drug exposure are critical to maximize the efficacy of this promising malaria control strategy. Trial Registration: Current Controlled Trials Identifier NCT00948896 ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12936-015-0908-8) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.